Editor’s note: This article discusses sexual assault and gender-based violence. 

On Sept. 16, a former Cornell student filed a civil lawsuit against Cornell University for their response regarding her alleged rape at the Chi Phi fraternity house in October 2024. 

Student journalists at The Cornell Daily Sun have been following this story since the alleged incident happened and the broader campus community moved on. 

Cereese Qusba, a senior reporter for The Sun, contacted the plaintiff, identified as Jane Doe, and her lawyer as they filed the lawsuit against the university. Qusba’s investigation was 23 months in the making. 

Qusba and The Sun, a student-run newspaper, made the decision to release the names of the Chi Phi members named in the lawsuit: Matthew Ingalls, Johnathan Newell, Winston Lee, Gillio Lopes, Diego Sarabia, Scott Norris and Scott Kretzschmar.

The current editor-in-chief for The Sun, Sophia Dassar, emphasized the importance of being financially independent from Cornell and publishing sharp criticism of the university. She said these priorities  prompted the controversial decision to release the names of the alleged perpetrators. 

The article, originally published on Sept. 18, talked about Jane Doe’s allegations in detail through the night she said she was assaulted. 

In a Sept. 21 editorial, The Sun’s editorial board released a statement condemning the actions of the university in its handling of Jane Doe’s case. 

“As for Cornell, administrators have allowed the idea that enough ambiguity, enough he-said-she-said, enough familial connections, enough money will allow you to get off scot-free. We call on Cornell to publish the standard by which a suspension in a sexual assault case is lifted,” the board wrote. 

This story has made national headlines, prompting survivors of sexual assault to come forward and tell their story. 

On Sept. 28, former DU student Grace Wankelman shared her story in an Instagram statement. Wankelman shares her experience of being roofied at a party hosted by members of Beta Theta Pi and how this incident prompted her to start the “Do Better” campaign at DU alongside two other fellow students. 

Wankelman also shared the tangible change her and her co-founders implemented at DU, shifting the campus culture around consent and sexual violence. 

In 2020, Chancellor Jeremy Haefner released an action plan in response to the student activists as their campaign went national. 

One of the wellness areas of Thrive Health Promotion, a department within the Campus Recreation and Well-Being Promotion team, is dedicated to teaching students about healthy relationships and consent through workshops and tabling activities. 

If you or someone you know has been impacted by sexual assault or any other form of gender-based violence, you can find resources here. To get involved in advocacy for sexual assault survivors, DU provides a list of local programs and organizations.