Buffalo, NY - Canisius College is under investigation by the federal government for how it handled a complaint of sexual violence. The college is now responding to being placed on the list of schools where investigations are underway.
The White House started a task force to protect college students from sexual assault last April.
In May, the U.S. Department of Education called for more transparency to the federal government's enforcement efforts when it comes to the handling of sexual violence and harassment complaints made by college students.
Part of that transparency included revealing the list of campuses under review by the Office for Civil Rights. In May, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon said, "...a college or university's appearance on this list and being the subject of a Title IX investigation in no way indicates at this stage that the college or university is violating or has violated the law."
Since May, the list has grown from 55 colleges and universities to 95. Canisius College was added last month. The university gave 2 On Your Side a written statement Wednesday saying the investigation, "...arises out of a single incident that occurred out of the country involving two students that has already been fully investigated and adjudicated through the college's disciplinary processes. A party to that proceeding initiated the complaint with the OCR after the college's adjudication."
The policies Canisius has in place for handling sexual assaults are posted online, and include six steps for victims. They include: get to a safe place and call a friend or family member, call for help, get medical attention immediately, seek counseling, document the incident and decide how to proceed.
The college says its process for investigating claims of student misconduct fully meets state and federal requirements. Canisius also tells 2 On Your Side that it is satisfied it has followed those procedures in all cases, including the case currently under investigation.
Though they would not grant us an on-camera interview, Canisius says it is cooperating with the Department of Education, and since this involves student conduct and legal issues, it won't be giving us any additional information.
We also reached out to student government representatives and did not hear back Wednesday.
The Department of Education also told us that it does not comment on specific cases until the investigation is closed.
