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By Connor Gunn/LethbridgeNewsNOW

Survey To Be Launched This Fall

$2.5 million announced to reduce sexual violence on Alberta post-secondary campuses

Feb 16, 2022 | 12:38 PM

Alberta’s government is agreeing with student leaders from across the province that more needs to be done to address sexual violence in campus communities.

Advanced Education is investing $2.5 million to help change and safety in those campuses.

This funding will support the development of a new province-wide survey to give us a better understanding of the state of sexual violence and harassment in Alberta’s post-secondary communities.

A new grant of $2.5 million will be provided to post-secondary institutions to support training and awareness programs on campuses.

Through the province’s Alberta 2030: Building Skills for Jobs strategy, it emphasizes the student experience, and within that, helps address sexual violence in Alberta’s campus communities.

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“Ensuring a safe and positive student experience will set students up for success during their studies and beyond,” the provincial release reads.

The survey is expected to launch when students return to campus for the fall 2022 semester, with results gathered before the end of the 2022-2023 academic year.

Demetrios Nicolaides, Minister of Advanced Education, says the province needed to make funding available for important initiatives like this.

“We must do more to support survivors of sexual violence and create safer campus communities across our province. The steps we are taking today are a direct result of student advocacy. They have told us this is important and we have listened.”

“The steps today also demonstrate tangible steps forward in implementing Alberta 2030, the province’s ten-year strategic plan for post-secondary education.”

Post-secondary institutions will have until the end of 2022 to have their campus violence policy updated to reflect current best practices while ensuring they take a survivor-focused approach.

David Eggen, NDP Critic for Advanced Education and Janis Irwin, NDP Women, and LGBTQ2S+ Issues Critic issued the following statement in response to the UCP government announcing its initiatives for reducing sexual violence on Alberta campuses:

“Addressing sexual violence on our campuses is crucial. Students deserve to be safe and supported wherever they go to school,” said Eggen

“We have advocated for these measures since 2019. Initiatives to address sexual and gender-based violence on Alberta’s campuses and wider post-secondary communities can be found in our paper Strengthening Post-Secondary for a Resilient Future. Some of our proposals include improving sexual violence response procedures and policies at every institution, and providing support for training for staff and faculty,” said Irwin.

“We are glad to see today’s announcement and the $2.5 million in funding. However, making more progress on addressing sexual violence on Alberta campuses will take sustained efforts. The Alberta NDP will continue to advocate for solutions for preventing sexual and gender-based violence in our post-secondaries and in the broader community, and we are committed to supporting survivors,” said Irwin.

Here is a link to Strengthening Post-Secondary for a Resilient Future.

(With files from rdnewsNOW)