News
Widespread rumors of a spike in on-campus sexual assaults have put Dartmouth administrators on alert, although few facts have been established amid a flurry of allegations.
Several Dartmouth administrators expressed concern about the assault rumors, but they also said that they were not aware of any specific cases of sexual assault at this point.
Although some of the email messages forwarded about the sexual assault cases have forged a link with members of a specific social organization at Dartmouth, no administrator interviewed by The Dartmouth said that any evidence for these allegations currently exists.
Abby Tassel, coordinator of Dartmouth's sexual abuse awareness program, was away at the end of the last week and said she was surprised to return home to an inbox full of BlitzMail messages about possible sexual assault cases.
Tassel said in a BlitzMail message to The Dartmouth that it seemed that there has been "a tremendous amount of misinformation flying about in my absence."
Tassel said that she was not aware of any specific cases of sexual assault over the past two weeks.
Sergeant Rebel Roberts of the Department of Safety and Security also said that no cases of sexual assault have been reported to Safety and Security either in the past two weeks, although one student did call to ask for information about sexual abuse.
Roberts said, however, that due to the way systems for reporting sexual abuse at Dartmouth work, Safety and Security might well be unaware of any recent sexual assaults.
While some students who are sexually assaulted might choose to report the incident to Safety and Security or to the Hanover Police, others might choose to report the incident only to Tassel or only to their Undergraduate Advisors, she said.
No complaints of sexual assault have been filed with the Hanover Police either, according to Hanover Police Department Chief Nick Giaccone.
Elizabeth Hirsh, director of women's health at Dick's House, said that Dick's House has not treated any women for sexual assault.
