United States Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) discussed at a hearing Tuesday in the Senate education committee, the process for responding to sexual assault on college campuses.

The annual TBI Crime on Campus Report showed that 91 forcible sex offenses were committed in 2017, the most recent year for statistics to be released. That number was down compared to the 123 reported in 2016. Forcible sex offenses includes everything from rape to sexual assault.

Senator Alexander said...



The TBI reports that 24 rape cases in 2017 were committed by an acquaintance and 2 were reported by an intimate partner. None were committed by a stranger. 21 Fondling cases were committed by an acquaintance and 4 by total strangers to the victim.

Alexander is chairman of the Senate's education committee. Today's hearing was the second hearing of this Congress on reauthorizing the Higher Education Act. On March 12, the committee held a hearing on FAFSA simplification and reducing the burden of verification. In February, Alexander outlined his priorities for updating the Higher Education Act at the American Enterprise Institute.