"When Helping Rape Victims Hurts a College’s Reputation"

"From the perspective of a university administrator who is concerned primarily with his school’s reputation, a sexual assault that goes unreported is a sexual assault that never actually happened. That’s why there’s a difference between symbolic gestures like UVA’s fraternity suspension and policies that actually encourage victims to speak up about their experiences. More transparency means more recorded victims...These changes [at Princeton] are almost certainly going to help victims. More money means more resources and more support. A lower burden of proof means more women will have the confidence to come forward, and more assailants will be punished. But it’s significant that none of these developments took place until the university had been publicly shamed by the White House and the media. If history is any indicator, this topic may simmer for a while and then recede from the national spotlight. When it does, there will be less pressure for colleges and universities to maintain their reforms. When that time comes, schools might take stock of their reported numbers and quietly scale back their programs, reverting to policies that keep more victims quiet."

http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/12/when-helping-rape-victims-hurts-a-universitys-reputation/383820/