Sex assault supports vary in B.C. universities a year after provincial bill
VANCOUVER — One year after a bill came into effect requiring British Columbia universities to have sexual assault policies, the supports available at different schools still vary widely and students are urging the province to fill a funding gap.
A student at the University of British Columbia can walk into a Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Office that is open five days a week and staffed by five people. But no such office exists for students at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, a smaller institution with campuses across Metro Vancouver.
“I think resources are the biggest reason for the disparity,” said Caitlin McCutchen, a Kwantlen student and chairwoman of the Alliance of B.C. Students, which recently assessed implementation of the policies in a report.
“Perhaps if the government had attached some funding (to the bill), or had attached more laid-out principles or guidelines, that could’ve helped other universities that didn’t necessarily have the resources.”