Colleges and Universities are places of learning where students from all types of backgrounds come together in classrooms and group projects, take part in campus activities, and stay in student housing. It is important for educational institutions that everyone feels comfortable and safe in these shared learning environments. While the main purpose of college focuses on creating skills that benefit students in their future careers, it is also a place where students can find out about themselves. While attending college students learn about their likes and dislikes, who they want to be friends with and how they want to go about the rest of their post-academic career. It is during this time of self-discovery it is the institution’s role to ensure that everyone is safe while on their campus.
Sadly, sometimes academic institutions fall short of their obligations to their students. According to the article by Penn Live, during the 2024-25 academic year, a woman studying at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, PA, went to a gathering at a friend’s dorm room where people were drinking alcohol. While at the party, the student left the room to use her phone and ended up getting locked out. Outside the room, she encountered a man that made her uncomfortable and attempted to avoid him by entering different rooms and trying to get back to her friends. The man, however, eventually led her to his room and raped her.
The lawsuit, brought by Bellwoar Kelly, LLP against Lebanon Valley College, maintains that they were negligent and unwilling to help the woman after she was sexually assaulted on their campus and elected to protect the assailant from legal trouble. The student reported the incident immediately, but the school’s reaction was slow and before they started an investigation, the accused student withdrew from his classes, blocking their ability to formally act. The school went against its Title IX obligations by not reacting quickly to the incident. To make matters worse, a school official encouraged the victim to withdraw from school, even trying to obstruct her summer classes with claims of academic dishonesty. The Lebanon County prosecutors also failed to file criminal charges against the man because of the school’s slow response time for providing necessary documents.
Bellwoar Kelly, LLP is currently representing the woman and are working to get justice to her and her family after the heinous crime and the school’s failure to act. We know that many voices of victims of sexual assault and sexual violence are not heard, even when victims go through the right pathways to get justice. In the case of the student at Lebanon Valley College, after she was raped, she went to the proper authorities who then failed to act. Not only did the academic institution fail to file under Title IX, but they also failed to report the incident to the police. If you report a sexual assault to the proper authorities who fail to help, do not hesitate and call Bellwoar Kelly, LLP. We hear you and will fight to get what you deserve.
Call us at +1-610-314-7066 or CLICK HERE to schedule your free consultation. Bellwoar Kelly, LLP, will be right there for you