Chancellor encourages incident reporting

Chancellor John Wiley urges students, faculty and staff to report any incidents of harassment, threats or violence, especially in the wake of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.

Wiley says he has received anecdotal information about 15 incidents, on or off campus, in which individuals have been targeted because of their ethnicity, religious affiliation or appearance. The chancellor says help is needed in documenting such cases: University Police and the Dean of Students Office haven’t received any reports of harassment or violence against UW–Madison students, faculty or staff since the Sept. 11 attacks.

“I don’t want people to feel uncomfortable about reporting what’s happening to them,” Wiley told an audience at an Oct. 16 campus listening session. “There’s not much we can do about things that aren’t reported,” he says. “We need to be able to get to the bottom of these and do something about them.”

University Police are distributing informational pamphlets on these types of incidents throughout campus.

The chancellor strongly urges anyone who feels he or she has been targeted or harassed in some way to report the incident through official channels. If the incident occurred on campus, it should be reported to UW Police, (608) 262-2957; if it takes place off-campus, call the Madison Police Department, (608) 266-4275.

Students also may call the Dean of Students Office, (608) 263-5702, for assistance.