Last week, possible changes to University counseling for victims
of sexual assault created concern among students, with some student
leaders calling the changes detrimental.

Counseling and Psychological Services and the Sexual Assault
Prevention and Awareness Center will formally announce specific
changes in both programs today. The two centers, in collaboration
with an off-campus provider called SAFE House, will reorganize
their services in an effort to streamline responses to crises
involving sexual and domestic assault, University administrators
said.

University spokeswoman Julie Peterson said that these changes
are not a reduction in services. “It’s not a budget
cut, and it’s not a reduction of total resources devoted to
sexual violence issues,” she said.

No changes will take effect until this summer, said Associate
Dean of Students Stephanie Pinder-Amaker.

The organizational shift includes a three-prong response system
involving SAPAC, CAPS and the SAFE House, the county provider of
sexual assault and domestic violence services.

SAPAC’s two counselors — one full-time, one
part-time — will be transferred to CAPS. The center hopes
this shift will allow them to focus their resources on education
and advocacy work, SAPAC Director Kelly Cichy said. The two
counselors, who hold degrees in clinical psychology and social
work, will work full-time for CAPS.

In the past, SAPAC has waitlisted students who want to receive
ongoing counseling and has occasionally referred students to
off-campus providers, Cichy said.

“The advocacy work has always been rolled into a piece of
the counseling work,” she added. Students never had one
person who they could use as an advocate in dealing with
professors, University housing and other legal and administrative
officials necessary in these circumstances.

The other major change concerns immediate crisis-intervention
service, currently provided by SAPAC’s 24-hour Crisis-line.
After this semester, SAFE House will administer the hotline. The
off-campus provider offers translation into 150 languages and
immediately connects callers with a staff member or volunteer.
Students who call SAPAC’s Crisis-line must hold for a few
minutes until a volunteer is reached.

As part of this relationship, the University will also employ
SAFE House’s outreach services, which include on-site crisis
intervention.

“In a domestic violence situation, (SAFE House
representatives) will go anywhere the police have gone. In a sexual
assault situation, they’ll go to the hospital and do the work
in the emergency room,” Cichy said. She added that if
students need on-site assistance during SAPAC’s office hours,
a SAPAC representative will fulfill this duty.

While SAFE House will provide immediate crisis intervention,
SAPAC will provide follow-up — primarily through advocacy
work — if requested by the individual, and CAPS will offer
ongoing counseling if needed.

As payment for SAFE House’s services, the University will
provide monetary compensation and will also encourage students to
volunteer at the organization, Cichy said.

Even though University administrators claim that servies will
not be reduced, some students are still concerned about the
psychological and organizational repercussions of using an outside
provider to administer the Crisis-line.

In a letter addressed to President Coleman last week, MSA
executives stated their opinion of this transfer.

“A line run for students by their peers makes this vital
service more accessible to students who might otherwise feel
intimidated or alienated by talking about these deeply difficult
experiences with people outside of our campus community,”
states the letter, which was signed by MSA President Angela Galardi
and MSA Vice President Monique Perry, among others.

The letter also stated that the removal of the Crisis-line would
make it impossible to compile campus-specific statistics on sexual
assault crimes.

Although CAPS has a large staff compared to other university
counseling centers, the reorganization will not make service less
personal, CAPS director Todd Sevig said.

Sevig stressed that students who see a counselor generally
continue to see the same one, unless they request otherwise. The
diversity of CAPS staff allows students to choose a professional
with whom they may feel more comfortable.

CAPS provides individual, group and walk-in counseling sessions
made by appointment. To obtain an appointment, individuals must
complete a 20-minute confidential intake form. CAPS, with a current
staff of 25 professionals and trainees, also conducts outreach and
education programs.