LANSING, Mich. — First Lady Sue Snyder announced this week the speakers and sessions that will be featured at the third campus sexual assault summit being held at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti.

The day long “Inform. Empower. Prevent. Let’s End Campus Sexual Assault” summit makes Michigan a model state in the fight against sexual assault amongst the college-age population. The summit is a continuation of an ongoing campaign to inform communities, empower individuals and ultimately bring an end to campus sexual assault statewide.

“Michigan is a national leader in addressing campus sexual assault, and I’m excited to continue these important conversations to make our state’s campuses—our students’ homes away from home—safer,” Sue Snyder said.  “We have built a great deal of positive momentum in the last few years and the summit will help us to develop new ideas and keep this issue at the forefront in Michigan and beyond.”

Co-hosted by state Senators Tonya Schuitmaker and Rebekah Warren, and State Rep. Laura Cox and Kristy Pagan, the summit is a bipartisan effort bringing together college and university representatives, legislators, law enforcement officials and students for a series of panels and networking sessions.

In May, First Lady Sue Snyder created the Campus Sexual Assault Workgroup to develop a resource handbook for campus sexual assault survivors. The workgroup has completed the handbook, which will be available in print and online the day of the summit.

Summit attendees will hear from a number of nationally-recognized experts on the topic of campus sexual assault. Speakers and topics include:

Dr. Rebecca Campbell, researcher and professor of psychology at Michigan State University, will examine how we—friends, family, campus officials, and community service providers—can support sexual assault survivors’ well-being, recovery, and empowerment.

Melanie Boyd, assistant dean of student affairs in the Yale College dean’s office and director of the office of gender and campus culture, will offer a conceptual framework to effectively protect students from sexual violence, along with specific strategies and concrete examples from an undergraduate program focused on positive culture change.   

Rebecca Leitman Veidlinger, attorney consultant, Title IX investigations and compliance, will help attendees explore several complex considerations that go into institutions’ development of sexual misconduct investigative processes:  compliance with federal law, fairness in process, and trauma-informed practice.

David Lisak, researcher and forensic consultant focused on the causes and consequences of interpersonal violence, will summarize twenty years of research on men who commit rape on college campuses.

Heather McCauley, assistant professor of human development and family studies at Michigan State University, will leverage survivor voices regarding what they want and need from those around them, discuss how our communities can support survivors and promote healing and review the research on sexual assault disparities among marginalized college students.

Rus Funk, consultant, will explore ways to create a campus environment supportive of gender equality, that also encourages men’s roles in promoting this equality.

Dr. Keith Edwards, speaker and educator on sexual violence prevention, will help participants define and explore the realities of sexual violence, critique traditional approaches on campus and in society in general and reframe how we can approach sexual violence prevention proactively.

Based on available space, summit attendance is limited to campus representatives and issue experts. A live stream option will be available with information to follow.

Summit sponsors include:

Presenting: Eastern Michigan University.

Supporting: Michigan Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention and Treatment Board.

Partner: Western Michigan University, Oakland University, Michigan State University, University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, Saginaw Valley State University and Wayne State University.

Friend: Grand Valley State University, University of Michigan – Flint, University of Michigan – Dearborn, Michigan Technological University, Central Michigan University, Washtenaw Community College, Mott Community College, Lake Superior State University, the Diane Peppler Resource Center and Northern Michigan University.

Additional summit details, information about speakers and the full agenda can be found at www.endcampussexualassault.com.

For updates on the “Inform. Empower. Prevent.” initiative, follow @CSAInitiative on Twitter and join the conversation using #MISaferCampus.