Berkeley Vows to Improve Response to Sex Harassment

The University of California at Berkeley on Thursday vowed to improve prevention efforts and responses to allegations of sexual assault and sex harassment. The announcement follows a series of incidents in which the university has been accused of ignoring longstanding harassment issues or of issuing light sanctions for serious violations of policy. "We have an obligation to promote a campus culture in which sexual harassment, sexual violence, stalking and any abuse of power are neither tolerated nor ignored, but proactively prevented," said an email to the campus from Nicholas Dirks, the chancellor, and Claude Steele, the executive vice chancellor and provost.