UConn students stage walkout over handling of sexual assault probes
STORRS — Hundreds of University of Connecticut students staged a walkout Wednesday in response to how the school has handled sexual assault investigations.
The walkout followed two other demonstrations after Alexandra Docken, a 20-year-old student from Maryland, held her own protest last week on how the school handled her sexual assault claim.
Hundreds of students walked out Wednesday, gathering outside the Rowe Center for Undergraduate Education, filling the nearby oval on Fairfield Way. Some carried signs, while other students chanted through bullhorns.
Several of those students who spoke during the demonstration said they wanted to see changes in how the school investigates sexual assault allegations.
Docken, who was among those at the rally, called the turnout “inspiring.”
“I never knew I would get this much support . ... I knew I was going to create some ripples, but it’s insane not only to see how much of the student body cares about this issue, but have come forward with their own stories,” she said.
Julia Luscomb, an 18-year-old freshman, said she heard about the protest through Instagram and YikYak.
Luscomb said she was moved last week when she saw Dochen standing in the rain by herself, holding two signs criticizing how the school has investigated recent sexual assault claims, including her own. A photo of Docken’s protest went viral on Instagram, sparking more campus demonstrations and questions on how these cases are investigated.
Luscomb said she works a late job on campus and has concerns about walking home alone at night.
“All my friends are like, ‘hey, make sure that you have pepper spray … it’s kind of scary now to think about it more,’’ Luscomb said.
River Granniss, a junior studying electrical engineering, said he wants to see the school administration be “aggressive” in their investigations, and to use the phrases rape and sexual assault.
“I want to see more action and more investigations into the assault accusations or rape accusations,” Granniss said.
Bridget Skeffington, 20, said she encountered Docken protesting while walking to class. “I was just surprised because she was standing in the cold, you could tell she had like a reason to be there,” she said.
“She was really brave to stand in front of all your peers and faculty talking about an experience like that,” added Oliver Felicione, a sophomore standing with Skeffington.
Marla Fais said more people attended the protest than she expected.
“I felt really empowered, just all of us screaming at the sky in unison,” she said.
The 20-year-old said she wants more serious consequences and “actual investigations” to come out of the protest.
“They need more support, they need someone who’s basically fighting on their side,” Fais said.
Alyssa Pearce, who attended alongside Fais, had a few suggestions to improve the school’s investigation process and for those reporting the incidents to access the resources they need.
“I think that would be a huge first step for them to make that announcement that ‘we have not been doing enough and we will do more.’ A promise can sometimes be empty words, but that’s what I’d like to see,” Pearce said.
She also suggested the school create a website where people could report sexual harassment or assault that would be sent to the police and appropriate members of the school administration.
Pearce also wants reporters of abuse to have a way to “track” the status of their investigation
through a website after a report is made.
In an interview with Hearst Connecticut Media, Docken said she filed a Title IX complaint with the school after she was sexually assaulted by a male student at an off-campus party in August 2021.
According to documents Docken shared with Hearst Connecticut, the school investigator determined there was “insufficient evidence” to show the male student violated the school’s code of conduct.
Docken said she felt discouraged by the school’s findings, so she did not pursue an appeal or file a police report.
Stephanie Reitz, a UConn spokesperson, said the school cannot discuss individual students or cases.
In 2014, UConn settled a federal sexual assault lawsuit for nearly $1.3 million after five female students alleged the college was indif
ferent to sexual assault and violated their equal protection rights. The college also promised to reform policies to better handle rape cases.
Reitz said the school is “committed to providing a safe, supportive environment on all our campuses and has a range of strategies and practices in place to further that mission.”
Reitz said the university “has a robust system to respond to reported incidents, combat sexual and interpersonal violence and harassment and provide support.”
Reitz the school has a website where students can file reports of sexual or other types of abuse, and students can also report the abuse to a staff member, such as a trusted professor, advisor, coach, hall director or other staff considered Campus Security Authorities.