Sen. Claire McCaskill’s college tour gives sexual violence deserved attention

Using her national stature to focus on a troubling issue, U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill is touring Missouri to discuss how college campuses deal with sexual violence.

Problems abound. Many crimes aren’t reported or properly investigated, which means campuses are not as safe as students may think.

McCaskill earlier this year released a report that said colleges and universities often violate federal law by failing to investigate reported assaults. Staff lack training to properly respond to them, the report said.

The Missouri Democrat is scheduled to appear at Avila University at 2 p.m. today, meeting with representatives of that school, the University of Missouri-Kansas City, other area schools and local law enforcement.

At earlier stops this week, McCaskill has talked about her proposed Campus Accountability and Safety Act, which she hopes can pass Congress in 2015.

It’s designed to require schools to improve resources for sexual assault victims, boost training for campus staff, enhance cooperation with law enforcement officials, and put teeth in federal penalties for not aggressively investigating and reporting sexual violence.

These are worthwhile goals to better protect students and hold university officials more accountable for providing safer campuses.

Students and their parents would benefit from these outcomes.

This story was originally published October 7, 2014 at 3:21 PM with the headline "Sen. Claire McCaskill’s college tour gives sexual violence deserved attention."