Bill Text: HI SB1333 | 2015 | Regular Session | Introduced

Hawaii Senate Bill 1333 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Women's Legislative Caucus Package; University of Hawaii; Prevention Awareness Understanding Violence Program; Appropriation ($)

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-02-02 - Referred to HEA/JDL, WAM. [SB1333 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2015-SB1333-Introduced.html

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	1333
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2015
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO Sexual violence prevention education.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Nationally, one in five women is sexually assaulted while in college. Women aged sixteen to twenty-four are at the highest risk for experiencing abuse by an intimate partner.

Under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013, and the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act, sexual violence, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking are considered acts of sexual harassment due to the pervasive nature of these crimes to interfere with students' access to education. Ending campus sexual violence is a combined endeavor of effective response and intervention with awareness education to change attitudes and behaviors. The federal government has recognized the need for institutions of higher education to have systems in place to investigate and report instances of sexual violence, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. However, just as important, universities are obligated to provide comprehensive on-going prevention education, bystander intervention, and training to students, faculty, and staff to address these criminal acts.

The legislature finds that sexual violence prevention education is necessary to accomplish the University of Hawaii's plans for compliance with federal mandates to effectively address campus sexual violence, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. The prevention awareness understanding violence program, formerly named program against violence to women, at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, was established in 2002 through a campus grant from the United States Department of Justice Office of Violence Against Women. The focus areas of the prevention awareness understanding violence program are to:

(1) Provide sexual violence education to all incoming students;

(2) Provide regular gender-based violence and effective response training to first responders and university judicial affairs committees;

(3) Coordinate campus-community response teams to coordinate student services; and

(4) Provide crisis referral support and advocacy for survivors of sexual violence, domestic violence, and stalking.

The prevention awareness understanding violence program is a system-wide program, ensuring that all ten University of Hawaii campuses establish and maintain infrastructures to continue providing violence prevention education and coordinated student services to address sexual violence, domestic violence, and stalking. These coordinated efforts include health promotions, student mental health services, and building strong partnerships with campus stakeholders, student affairs administrators, campus law enforcement, and student housing services. For the last five years, the program has maintained a practicum placement program for up to four social work graduate students training in the areas of gender-based violence, higher education, and community building.

In 2011, the program's application to continue receiving the federal grant was denied due to the lack of evidence that prevention education efforts would be fully supported by the institution. Each year since, the demand for prevention education and crisis referral services has increased because of continued awareness efforts.

The legislature further finds that continuing effective violence prevention education and training requires additional resources such as staff and materials. Due to the nature of campus sexual violence and the skills necessary to provide sexual violence prevention, the following are needed:

(1) One full-time faculty specialist position, to be housed at the University of Hawaii at Manoa women's center, to coordinate the program with University of Hawaii community colleges;

(2) One full-time faculty specialist position at the University of Hawaii at Manoa women's center;

(3) One full-time faculty specialist position for the student health and wellness programs at the University of Hawaii at Hilo;

(4) One full-time faculty specialist personal support counselor at the University of Hawaii Maui college;

(5) Two part-time graduate assistant positions;

(6) Annual program supplies and materials for all campuses; and

(7) Annual professional development and training for program staff.

It is anticipated that university-instituted violence prevention education through the program would expand existing coordinated efforts to educate students about the impact of sexual violence and domestic violence. Furthermore, the legislature believes that having campus-based student support services that specialize in working with survivors of sexual and domestic violence increases the likelihood that survivors will seek help and attain the support needed to overcome their experience while remaining in college.

The purpose of this Act is to provide resources to the University of Hawaii's prevention awareness understanding violence program to meet the needs of a vulnerable student population and ensure compliance with federal mandates to address campus sexual violence.

SECTION 2. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $75,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2015-2016 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016-2017 for one full-time time equivalent (1.0 FTE) faculty specialist position, to be housed at the University of Hawaii at Manoa women's center, to coordinate the prevention awareness understanding violence program with University of Hawaii community colleges.