Graduate School Student Climate Survey

Executive Summary 

New York State’s Enough is Enough (EIE) law requires colleges and universities in the state to conduct biennial campus climate surveys to measure the prevalence of sexual assault on campus, assess students’ attitudes and awareness about sexual misconduct and how to report it on campus, and help schools identify ways to address the problem.

Bank Street’s Student Climate Survey was conducted from February 21, 2022 to March 22, 2022 in an online, confidential survey that was accessible on all smartphones, tablets and desktops. The survey was sent to 686 matriculated students on February 21, with three reminder emails sent to all non-respondents through March 21, 2022. 196 students started the survey and 134* students responded. In addition to the topic areas required by New York State’s EIE statute, the 2022 survey also included questions on the student experience of the general climate at Bank Street.

Since 2018, Bank Street has worked with Everfi’s Foundry to provide an online Sexual Assault Prevention for Graduate Students and AlcoholEdu Ongoing Education that is assigned to matriculated students every fall. For the 2021-2022 school year, 316 students completed the training.

*Response rates for each question may vary.

Survey Findings

Training

Of the 118 respondents to this question, 76% indicated they had participated in this training at least once and 42% indicated they participated more than once.

Reporting and Awareness of Policy

Students were asked to assess how knowledgeable they are about the following Title IX policies. Please note: on campus refers to any Bank Street programming, e.g., classes, whether online or in person, at the Bank Street main building, or offsite.

77% (91/119) of students indicated they were aware of and understand Bank Street’s procedures for dealing with reported incidents of sexual misconduct.

Campus Safety

97% (115/119) of students indicated they feel safe as a student enrolled at Bank Street.

Affirmative Consent

Affirmative Consent (“Consent”) is a knowing, voluntary, and mutual decision among all participants to engage in sexual activity. Consent can be given by words or actions, as long as those words or actions create clear permission regarding willingness to engage in the sexual activity. Silence or lack of resistance, in and of itself, does not demonstrate consent. This definition does not vary based upon a participant’s sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. Consent to any sexual act or prior consensual sexual activity between or with any party does not necessarily constitute consent to any other sexual act;  Consent is required regardless of whether the person initiating the act is under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol;  Consent may be initially given but withdrawn at any time;  Consent cannot be given when a person is incapacitated, which occurs when an individual lacks the ability to knowingly choose to participate in sexual activity. Incapacitation may be caused by the lack of consciousness or being asleep, being involuntarily restrained, or if an individual otherwise cannot consent. Depending on the degree of intoxication, someone who is under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or other intoxicants may be incapacitated and therefore unable to consent;  Consent cannot be given when it is the result of any coercion, intimidation, force, or threat of harm;  When consent is withdrawn or can no longer be given, sexual activity must stop; According to New York law, children under 17 years of age cannot legally consent to sex or sexual contact with an adult (i.e., someone who is 17 years of age or older). Any sexual contact in New York between a child under 17 and an adult is a crime, and any such illegal behavior between a College student under 17 and a College employee or employee of a contracted service provider to the College will be reported to an appropriate law enforcement agency. Other jurisdictions may have different standards, and any illegal behavior in such jurisdiction also will be reported to the appropriate law enforcement agency.

90% (107/119) of students indicated they were at least a little aware of Bank Street’s definition of affirmative consent before completing the survey.

Alcohol and/or Drug Use Amnesty Policy

The health and safety of every student at the College is of utmost importance. The College recognizes that students who have been drinking and/or using drugs (whether such use is voluntary or involuntary) at the time that violence, including but not limited to domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, or sexual assault occurs may be hesitant to report such incidents due to fear of potential consequences for their own conduct. The College strongly encourages students to report domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, or sexual assault to institution officials. A bystander acting in good faith or a reporting individual acting in good faith that discloses any incident of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, or sexual assault to a College official or law enforcement will not be subject to an action for violations of College alcohol and/or drug use policies occurring at or near the time of the commission of the domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, or sexual assault.

87% (103/119) of students indicated they were at least a little aware of Bank Street’s policy for alcohol and/or drug use amnesty in reporting incidents of sexual misconduct.

Incidents

The sections asked questions about personal experiences with sexual misconduct and they responded when they were affected by those behaviors.

Specific information regarding these questions is not posted to maintain confidentiality. However, there were no reported incidents of sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic violence, or stalking in the past year, in relation to their role as a student (e.g., on-campus, supervised fieldwork, extracurricular activities, etc.).

Appendix A: Graduate School of Education Climate Survey Instrument (pdf)

Appendix B: Graduate School of Education Climate Survey Graphics (pdf)