I Need My Tax Dollars to do That: Fight Rape on College Campuses

Last week, a former Amherst College student published an account of her personal struggle in dealing with the after affects of rape. Most upsetting, however, was the school’s response to her allegations against a graduating honor-roll senior. In other words, they blamed her, the victim, and tried to sweep the rape under the rug. Following her story’s publication in The Amherst Student, the school’s independently run newspaper, the article popped up all over the Facebook pages of Five College students furious at Amherst’s mishandling of an obvious crime.  With the administration facing such sharp criticism, the Amherst College president released a statement, vowing to fix the current system and provide better support for rape victims.

Yeah, because we all know how well schools uphold those promises when the issue at hand has the potential to tarnish a college’s precious statistics. They don’t.

Often a rape will get disguised and manipulated to show that the victim wanted it or consented to having sex. Last time I checked, no one asks to get raped. 

Photo credit: http://collegecandy.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/rape-2.jpg 

Rape on college campuses is a problem that extends way beyond the schools in the Pioneer Valley.  One in four women will be sexually assaulted on a college campus while one in eight women will be raped (http://abacus.bates.edu/admin/offices/scs/salt7.html). Yet 95% of attacks go unreported. A 2009 investigation by the Center for Public Integrity found that campus barriers including administration resistance, complicated and often incomplete judicial proceedings and social pressure were the main reasons so many rapes went unreported. (http://www.aauw.org/act/laf/library/assault_stats.cfm).

Based on the experiences of the Amherst student, it’s obvious that college administrations apply layer upon layer of red tape to prevent rape victims from seeking and achieving justice for their rapes. Rape is not a feature of the college experience any school wants to promote as part of its curriculum. No school wants to brag about the annual number of students raped and/or the number of students punished for having committed rape. But such statistics are not something schools should be allowed to dismiss.

One way to improve the system is change who oversees the investigation of rape accusations. Campus police should not be allowed to investigate rape cases based on conflict of interest. They represent and report to the school rather than acting as an advocate for the victim. Town police or a specific task force should be appointed to handle rape cases so that they can supersede any hang-ups attempted by an administration. That’s where my tax dollars come in. Such a change though only affects the handling of a rape after it has already occurred rather than trying to prevent its occurrence in the first place. That is something students must decide to change. But then again, maybe if college rapists were properly prosecuted, there would be fewer rapes to begin with.

I need my tax dollars to do that: Fight Rape on College Campuses

I Approve My Tax Dollars to do That: Refinance College Education

Back in high school, I did a project on the most recent boom and bust of the housing market. The collapse of so many risky mortgages precipitated the 2008 financial crisis that crippled the US economy. In doing research for that project, I came across whisperings about the source of the next crisis. The consensus? Student loans.

Yesterday the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a new report, citing similarities between the management of student loans and the oversight of mortgages by the private sector. Complaints included conflicting information, lack of transparency in fees, unwillingness to create payment plans for borrowers and failure to accurately process payments. (http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-10-16/the-echoes-between-student-loans-and-mortgages#r=nav-r-story)

The cost of a secondary education is a major concern, from parents with young children trying to save up or students currently enrolled exhausting scholarship, work-study and financial aid opportunities. Many resort to taking out loans to cover the remaining cost. Very few can actually afford to pay for college and/or graduate school out of pocket. 2010 marked the first time that student debt exceeded credit card debt. The following year it surpassed auto loans. As of March, student debt was recorded at over $1 trillion dollars. That’s before you account for interest. (http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-06/student-loans-debt-for-life#r=lr-fst)

 How did we arrive at $1 trillion in student debt? According to Bloomberg, some of it stems from an increase in college attendees. Much of it, however, comes from increases in tuition that are very disproportionate to increases in income. One thing this illustration does not show however is savings lost in the stock market crash in 2008. 

Photo credit: http://images.businessweek.com/cms/2012-09-05/feature_collegeloans37__01b__630x420.jpg 

On one hand, a college education pays off – literally. As Bloomberg Business Week writer Peter Coy observes, “You can lose your house to foreclosure, but never your education.” (http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-06/student-loans-debt-for-life#r=lr-fst) Even if you default on your loan, the bank cannot come and take away your knowledge and experience. It is no secret that college graduates earn more than their high school counterparts. But that in itself has a catch: you have to get the education first.

How states compare to one another. Having grown up in New England, it is no surprise to me that the top ten most expensive schools all reside in the Northeast and coincidentally, that same area has the largest percentage of students attending private institutions. Surrounded by so many top-notch private schools, the state schools cannot hope to compete. I do wish this map showed the proportion of high school graduates in each state go on to attend a four-year institution. 

Photo credit: http://thumbnails.visually.netdna-cdn.com/average-student-loan-debt-by-state_50290b4526609.jpg

In my home there was never a question about whether I would attend college. That being said, I grew up in a fairly wealth Eastern Massachusetts town where over 95% of my graduating high school class went onto college and both of my parents have professional degrees. While I do receive a substantial scholarship and financial aid, I recognize I’m fortunate. Students from lower-income families aren’t so lucky. As strapped-for-cash colleges seek out potential full-tuition attendees or bribe high-scoring test takers to boost their own statistics, low-income students are stuck. Loan payments are not calculated based on income; they’re based on dollar amount, often preventing students from being able to pay them back. Why make the effort to go to college if it shackles you with thousands in debt you cannot pay off? It’s simple: you don’t even try. As a result, the accessibility of a college education is increasingly restricted to the upper class.

How can we reverse the growing income inequality if the tools are not available to those who could benefit from them the most?

My tax dollars need to do something about this. If I ultimately pay for my parents’ wars, then my parents should finance my education. You cannot expect an entire generation of people to succeed if they are already laden with debt by the age of 25. Educational value aside, it is bad for the economy as well. An economy will not grow if consumers are unable to spend money. Just like how the big banks cannot be allowed to fail, the up and coming generation cannot be allowed to financially collapse.

I approve my tax dollars to do that: refinance a college education

I Don't Approve My Tax Dollars to do That: Mix Guns and Education

Guns have a place. They belong in gun clubs, shooting ranges, private homes for self-defense and in the hands of law enforcement. But according to the Colorado Supreme Court, guns now have another locale: the college classroom.

In March, the Colorado Supreme Court overturned a college-wide ban prohibiting firearms, claiming that  such a ban violated students' Second Amendment rights. The decision enabled students to bring their guns practically anywhere on campus. From class to the library to the dining hall, students with concealed weapon permits are now permitted to haul their guns around alongside textbooks and gym bags. CU did implement several restrictions on where guns can and cannot go. They are forbidden at sporting events and in regular dorms. Students with permits who wish to bring their guns to campus, something the school strongly discourages, are housed with graduate students (http://www.npr.org/2012/08/23/159921428/u-of-colorado-to-students-no-guns-in-dorms-please) Bans on visible guns, knifes and explosive remain unchanged. (http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-08-17/news/sns-rt-us-usa-firearms-coloradobre87h00h-20120817_1_boulder-campus-graduate-student-guns). In addition to the school's sanctions, Colorado law mandates anyone seeking a concealed weapons permit must be 21 or older. (http://www.npr.org/2012/08/23/159921428/u-of-colorado-to-students-no-guns-in-dorms-please) 

The changes came into effect as students returned to campus this past August. The Supreme Court's decision has sparked a rift between the University and the professors, many of whom shudder at the thought of students bringing concealed weapons to their classes. Some have threatened to cancel class in protest. The University however, has forcefully retaliated, admonishing professors who have expressed their resentment and made such threats. The administration claims that such decisions are not the professors call. Furthermore, it states that refusal to comply will be in violation of Colorado state law. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/22/cu-boulder-chancellor-peterson-guns-on-campus_n_1822550.html 

Map of demonstrating which states ban guns from campuses, which permit their schools to decide, and which always allow guns. I was surprised to see that the "banned" states and "decide" states did not necessarily correlate to the conservative red versus liberal blue state map. I was especially surprised to see that Texas, Georgia and most other Deep South states had banned guns from college campuses.
photo credit: http://downloads.thedaily.com/ui-images/2012/08/18/081812-news-concealed-carry-map-r-662w-at-1x.png

If I were a student at Colorado University and I were financially able, I would hands-down transfer to another school. I am repulsed at the thought of my peers bringing guns to class. I would be afraid that someone might come after me if I made a provocative comment (said in a tactful, intellectually-stimulating way of course). Class would become more stressful than it already is, as I would replay the Aurora shootings in my head. This time, however, the setting being a lecture hall as opposed to a movie theater. 

It saddens me to think that students feel the need to protect themselves with a concealed weapon on a college campus. College is supposed to be a safe haven for learning and provide us with holy grail of education  resources and stimulation. College students are already stressed. We do not need to add the fear of getting shot by our classmates in a lecture hall, dorm, gym, or dining hall to the omnipresent  academic pressures.We do not need to worry about getting hurt for a controversial comment made in class. In my opinion, no guns on campus - period. 

Some will argue that since shootings occur on college campus (VTech), students should be able to defend themselves. This argument can be applied to any of the shootings in the thought that, "If I have a gun, I can protect myself." Is one person's right to protect himself or herself worth more than another individual or group's right to feel secure in a supposedly safe setting? Can guns have a "safe" place in the classroom and not interfere with student learning environment? Should we all carry concealed weapons?