Dive Brief:
- The president of Eckerd College, a liberal arts college with 1,800 students in Florida, is the latest higher ed leader to generate controversy with his comments about sexual assault in an email to students.
- Some students have taken offense to Donald Eastman III’s advice that students should help avoid sexual assaults by drinking less alcohol and engaging in less casual sex.
- While some students perceived the comments as victim-blaming, other students thought the president’s commentary was reasonable, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
Dive Insight:
Is the topic of campus sexual assault the new third rail for college presidents? While there shouldn’t be any debate about the role that alcohol plays in sexual assaults, with perpetrators using it to gain situational advantages, any preaching directed at potential victims is bound to come off as crass, or worse. So far, an Eckerd alumni has started a petition in response to Eastman’s comments calling for a broader discussion of sexual assault causes.