The percentage of students who reported experiencing one or more specific forms of harassing behaviors rose slightly to 45% this year from 44% in 2021, according to the 2023 Cornell Survey of Sexual Assault and Related Misconduct, which is conducted every two years in accordance with New York state law.

Consistent with national data and previous Cornell survey results, undergraduate women; gay, lesbian, bisexual, asexual, pansexual, queer or questioning students; transgender, questioning and gender nonconforming or nonbinary students; and students with disabilities continue to report experiencing harassment, stalking, domestic/dating violence, and nonconsensual sexual contact at significantly higher rates than their peers.

The survey revealed that since entering Cornell, 11% of students experienced nonconsensual sexual contact – the same percentage as the previous survey. Students reporting incidences of nonconsensual sexual contact increased from 3% to 6% between the 2020-21 and 2022-23 academic years.

“Sexual misconduct in any form cannot be tolerated and it is deeply concerning to see continued prevalence of it on our Cornell campuses,” said Ryan Lombardi, vice president for student and campus life. “We are united in our concern and compassion for all victims and appreciate their courage in participating in this survey.”

Laura Weiss, program director and victim advocate at Cornell’s Sexual Harassment and Assault - Response and Education (SHARE) office, said lower reported sexual misconduct numbers in 2021 were likely due to campus restrictions around COVID-19; while one incident of sexual assault is too many, she said, the trends have been flat since Cornell began conducting these surveys in 2015.

“With the reopening of campus and return to a full in-person campus experience, the increase in incidents shown between the 2023 and 2021 surveys is not surprising with the findings largely consistent with our pre-pandemic numbers,” Weiss said.

Further, the results showed 13% of survey respondents experienced stalking behavior, an increase from 5% in 2021. The increase in stalking was primarily related to unwanted calls, emails or messages, with consistent numbers in more serious types of stalking such as spying and following.

This year marks the fifth Sexual Assault and Related Misconduct survey, which was administered during the spring 2023 semester to a random sample of 6,000 undergraduate, graduate and professional students enrolled at the Ithaca, Geneva and Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell Tech campuses in New York City. A total of 2,163 students completed the survey for a response rate of 36%, which is slightly below the 38% response rates from the 2021 and 2019 surveys.

The majority of student respondents who experienced nonconsensual sexual contact reported having to have spoken to someone about their experience – most often, a friend, followed by a spouse, or a romantic or sexual partner.

Though the vast majority of student participants said they are aware of Cornell Health, Cornell Police, and the Title IX coordinator, only 11% of survey participants said they contacted a Cornell- or community-based resource. The most common reason for not contacting a program was that the student “did not think it was serious enough to contact a program,” according to 58% of respondents.

“Based on the results of the survey, we are seeing a trend that many Cornell students don’t believe their experience was ‘serious enough’ to report through contacting the resources available to them,” Lombardi said. “We certainly respect a student’s right to choose how to respond, but want to make it clear for all students to know that every experience matters, and we have dedicated staff here to support and help you.”

Cornell offers a broad range of programs and resources both to prevent and respond to sexual assault, including education, coordinated victim support and enforcement of university policies. Many of these resources are housed centrally on the SHARE website, which provides an overview and quick links to education and victim advocacy resources, emergency services, confidential support, health care and reporting options.

Stephen D’Angelo is a communications lead for Student and Campus Life.