University conducts second campus climate open forum
USC hosted the second Campus Climate Open Forum, which discussed profiling, safety and the Department of Public Safety, Wednesday at the Davidson Conference Center.
Issues from the previous forum included how USC will increase diversity in staff and students, address sexual assault cases and increase transparency from President C.L. Max Nikias. Some students were upset that Nikias did not attend the event.
The second forum focused on following the lead from universities like Harvard and the UC systems on racial profiling, sexual assault and transparency from the Provost.
DPS Chief John Thomas wants not just USC to be safer, but the community outside of the university as well.
“The community outside of USC idolizes us. I idolize us. We need to take action in not only helping kids, but with businesses and homeless advocates. We need to create the opportunity for engagement,” Thomas said.
Taj Frazier, a professor in the Annenberg School of Communication, raised a question on how to engage with young students outside of the USC community.
“How do students get introduced into the outside neighborhood? We have students,” he said. “Our purpose as a university is to find alternative representation to engage with the outside community.”
Juan Antonio Cordero Vasquez, a senior majoring in psychology, said that racial profiling is rooted in the enduring legacy of white supremacy.
Leslie Berntsen, a student organizer for the Campus Climate Coalition, is an advocate for victims of sexual assault and believes sex education is a great way to bring awareness to this issue.
Berntsen said that the University should offer students comprehensive education on sexual violence prevention and intervention.
Cynthia Wang, a graduate student in engineering management, attended this event to see what the issues are going on around campus.
“Some of the issues were stuff I never thought about before, as an RA, I am able to bring awareness to the community,” she said.
The next campus climate forum will be held March 9 in the Vineyard Room of the Davidson Center.
Correction: A previous version of this article stated that Leslie Berntsen said that the University should educate students on “sex and communication.” She said sexual violence prevention and intervention. The article also stated that Juan Antonio Cordero Vasquez is a member of the RISE Student Alliance. He is not. He also said that racial profiling was rooted in the legacy of white supremacy, not “relevant due to history,” as the article previously stated. This post has also been updated to reflect that Berntsen is an advocate for victims of sexual assault, not sexual assault. The Daily Trojan regrets the errors.