The Minaret is encouraged by President Vaughn’s recent announcement that he has dispatched a group of senior administrators to investigate the status of campus safety and security policies with the view of recognizing lapses from the rape incident and proposing improvements for the future. We hope that the results of this investigation, due to President Vaughn by March 30, will be made public, and we look forward to reading and reporting them.

Vaughn stated that ‘Our institutional response to the recent alleged sexual assault incident and media coverage has, unfortunately, resulted in some misperceptions and yet also provided us with an opportunity to look more closely at our ongoing safety efforts.’

While we applaud all efforts for an honest and open investigation, unsettling statements recently made by University officials force us to call their sincerity into question. On at least two occasions, security officials have publicly maligned The Minaret, including the following statement made in front of a group of twenty students and a Minaret staffer: ‘you can read about all the lies and misinformation in The Minaret next week.’

In a global e-mail, Dean of Students Bob Ruday said in reference to a Minaret article that ‘remarks attributed to me in the press were incomplete’ and added ‘I am sorry if anything I said or was alleged to have said seemed insensitive.’

Either we accurately reported the story or we didn’t. If we did, these incriminations are nothing more than scapegoating and a subtle form of slander; if we didn’t accurately report it, University officials only need to inform us of our errors for us to address them. Either way, the end of truth is not served by backhanded implications on the part of our officials. We will not allow to go unanswered cowardly and vague sniping that questions our journalistic integrity.

The Minaret takes seriously its twin responsibilities of informing the community and getting the story right. We understand, above all, that the pursuit of truth is an ongoing process. In this spirit, we are always anxious to get our facts straight and correct mistakes. We understand that we are subject to error, as we can only print the most accurate information available to us at the time (we encourage readers to regularly check theminaretonline.com, as we always seek to keep up with the constantly changing available information).

The irony is that it was a failure in communication which precipitated this incident to begin with. What have our officials learned from this ordeal? Are they to continue avoiding the heart of the matter by equivocating with roundabout quibbles?
What remarks of ours were incomplete? What false allegations or misquotations did we print? We’ll be more than glad to accept responsibility for and address any errors brought to our attention through transparent communication. This communication cannot be ensured through mutually exclusive monologues, in the form of stories by us and generic global e-mails by University officials. We want to create dialogue, not monologue. E-mail us at minaret@ut.edu, or directly e-mail our editor, our writers or our advisor. Truth and understanding will be the beneficiaries.

Suspect in UT Rape Sought

Details emerge about dorm room attack

By: Ellery McCardle ‘amp; Josh Kratovil

Although the rape of a USF student during Gasparilla was reported in local and national news, the dorm room rape of a University of Tampa student that same day received so little attention that the UT spokesman and other campus officials said they knew nothing about it.

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UT Rape Victim’s Roommate Speaks Out

Says she spoke to the attacker for several minutes

By: Ellery McCardle, Victor O’Brien

This week the roommate of a campus rape victim described her encounters with the rapist, and administration admitted to notification mistakes and outlined changes to campus policy. The victim’s roommate told a slightly different side of the story from those previously published.

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U.S. Dept. of Education inquires into university’s response to campus rape

UT accepts non-profit’s offer to help revamp policies

By: Victor O’Brien

The U.S. Department of Education began an informal inquiry last week into the university’s managing of the Gasparilla rape incident. The inquiry, which was made to university spokesman Grant Donaldson, involved university compliance with the Clery Act.

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Editorial: Sexual Battery Investigation ‘amp; University Disclosure

Two rapes associated with the University of Tampa occurred on Gasparilla. Most students are unaware that one allegedly occurred in a UT dorm room and received no media attention. The other incident received national attention in part because the woman, who was parked at UT, was later jailed after police realized she had unpaid fines
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Date Rape Is Sexual Battery

By: Alisa Smith, JD, Ph.D.

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Editorial: Journalistic Integrity and Ethical Reporting

The University dealt with considerable local fallout over the handling of a campus rape. Yet some students, even after coverage by all major local media outlets in both television and print, still do not know about the incident, proving that students should be reading the news, both local and national.

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The Association of American Colleges Offers Strategies to Avoid Rape

Examine your feelings about sex. Do not give mixed messages. Yes means yes, no means no. Be forceful and firm. ‘middot; Be independent and aware on your date. For example, when starting to date someone, pay your own way at first. ‘middot; Do not do anything you do not want to do just to avoid a scene or unpleasantness, or to avoid hurting your date’s feelings – after all, he may be ignoring yours.

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UT Students and Staff: ‘Rape is rape’

Protest makes message clear

By: Ellery McCardle

With recent news about the sexual assault on campus after the Gasparilla Parade, some students and faculty outwardly responded to this issue. ‘It is important for people to know that these issues come up,’ explained Alaina McGinnis, president of the UT Women’s Organization.

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Dorm Room Rape Timeline