You have questions. We have answers.
Here's what's coming up in our Expert Q&A series.
Topic: Best Practices To Respond to Sexual Assault on College and University Campuses
Date: April 10, 2024; 2:00–3:15 p.m. ET
Description: Sexual assault on college and university campuses is a pervasive problem that often goes unreported. It includes any unwanted sexual activity, from unwanted touching to rape. Alcohol and drugs often play a role in sexual assault on campuses. How can we effectively and compassionately respond to sexual assault on college and university campuses that is victim-centered and trauma-informed?
Note: This session will be recorded and posted on the Expert Q&A Past Sessions page when available.
Lindy Aldrich, Esq. founded Ladder Consulting in 2020. She is a national expert in Title IX and how student survivors of sexual assault interact with reporting systems. She founded Ladder Consulting to use her experience to help schools and employers better their systemic response to gender-based violence. Taking what she learned from the education realm, she has provided training and consulting services to The National Science Foundation, National Organization for Victim Advocates and others.
Ms. Aldrich was the Deputy Director of the Victim Rights Law Center (VRLC) for 13 years. While at the VRLC – a nonprofit legal aid provider specializing in the legal needs of sexual assault victims – she had the unique position of overseeing both the legal representation of all campus and K-12 clients as well as leading the VRLC’s DOJ Office of Violence Against Women’s Campus Conduct Grant with hundreds of colleges and universities nationwide. Her work included policy creation, identifying on-campus, at-risk populations, communicating response systems and ensuring trauma-informed procedures. In February 2014, Ms. Aldrich was invited by the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault to lend her expertise on Title IX and victim confidentiality. |
Connie J. Kirkland, MA, has more than 40 years of experience in crime victim advocacy, as a college instructor, and as a criminal justice trainer. Connie is a senior consultant for NewPoint Strategies, LLC and serves as a leading expert on the issue of sexual assault prevention. She was a key advisor for the NewPoint team project at West Point on sexual assault prevention. From 2012–2022, she directed the NOVACares Office at Northern Virginia Community College, where she chaired the Threat Assessment Team, coordinated behavioral intervention and support services for the college, and managed the Sexual Assault Services program.
Previously, she was the Director of Sexual Assault Services at George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, where for 20 years she provided education and intervention services for victims of sexual assault, stalking, and dating/domestic violence. In 2020 she received the Fairfax County, Virginia Vanguard Award for Domestic Violence Advocacy. In 2014 and 2016 Ms. Kirkland spoke to the White House Campus Sexual Assault Task Force, presented keynotes addressing Title IX at both the Stetson Law School Conference on Law and Higher Education and the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services Campus Crime Summit. She was a main author for the 2014 NCAA guide “Addressing Sexual Assault and Interpersonal Violence.” She presented on Victim Support and Campus Culture at several Magna-sponsored Title IX Compliance Institutes from 2014 to 2016. In 2016 she created “Ten Ways to Distinguish Consent” published by the National Center for Student Life and used in the Magna Institutes. She hosted a U.S. Department of Justice-sponsored web forum on Campus Stalking and two national webinars regarding the Final Regulations to Campus SaVE. In 2013 Ms. Kirkland spoke on Capitol Hill on behalf of the proposed VAWA Reauthorization Act, including the Campus SaVE Act, which added dating violence and stalking as reportable Clery Act crimes and was enacted in March, 2013. She is a National Certified Counselor and holds a MA in Counseling Psychology. |
Stay in Touch
Want to be the first to hear about new sessions? Subscribe to the Expert Q&A email list for the latest announcements.