KPU student rights and responsibilities office launches videos on sexual violence support
The videos address topics including anonymous reporting and campus safety resources
The four new videos about sexual violence and misconduct support are on the KPU student rights and responsibilities office's website. (Nyamat Singh)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s student rights and responsibilities office (SRRO) released four videos about sexual violence and misconduct support for students, faculty, and staff affected by sexual violence.
The videos provide information on confidential and anonymous reporting options, how the SRRO supports students who disclose or report sexual violence, the “Safer Campuses for Everyone” online Moodle course, and safety on and off campus.
“Students and the broader KPU community tend to seek out this kind of information after an incident has occurred [at] what is likely a very vulnerable and overwhelming time,” SRRO Director Jennifer Jordan wrote in an email statement to The Runner.
“Having four videos on very specific topics to provide clear and direct information is a proactive way of informing the KPU community of services and resources available to them.”
The videos were created after the B.C. Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills (PSFS) provided limited, one-time only funding to help improve an existing anonymous or confidential sexual violence reporting system.
“Given the funding requirements, we knew one of the videos would be specific to how to report anonymously. In selecting the topics for the other videos, we felt it was important for the KPU community to have an understanding of how the SRRO can provide support,” Jordan wrote.
“We learned through the 2022 student satisfaction survey that safety on campus was a concern for students and this was an opportunity to address the need for more information on that specific topic by creating a video about safety at KPU.”
Anonymous reporting options already existed at KPU, and after reviewing them, SRRO came up with ways to expand these options for students within existing services, Jordan wrote.
The updates include a new anonymous reporting webpage that provides guidance on five different ways to anonymously report sexual violence, with an anonymous reporting form available on that page as well as on the KPU Safe app.
The videos range from around three-to-five minutes in length and are available in English, Punjabi, and simplified Chinese closed captions to make the information more accessible to students who are deaf or whose first language is not English. The videos also allow students with visual challenges to hear the information, Jordan wrote.
“Each member of the SRRO team … is featured as the narrator of a video. This gives students an opportunity to see us and become more familiar with us, and our approach, which may increase their comfort level in accessing support from us,” Jordan wrote.
The information was previously available on various KPU webpages but not in a consolidated or cohesive manner, Jordan wrote. The videos aim to convey the support available to students in a short and engaging format.
“I hope more KPU students become aware of where and how to report sexual violence and an understanding that reporting doesn’t have to mean a formal process, that it can be a means of obtaining support and/or resources that are the best fit for their needs.”
The SRRO has a support and services webpage, which provides information and links to community support options in the regions served by KPU. Students can also reach out to the office by emailing srr@kpu.ca.
For more information and to watch the videos, visit www.kpu.ca/sexual-misconduct.
