Undergraduate Senate (UGS) Deputy Chair Minji Cho ’28 first learned that Beyond Sex Ed (BSE) — a program started by students to help students “intentionally develop their sexual citizenship” in 2016 — was removed from mandatory New Student Orientation (NSO) programming by administrators on April 15. 

It was another student, not an administrator, who disseminated the information to Cho. 

BSE is a narrative-based sexual education program that was a part of NSO’s mandatory programming for over a decade. During the event, students shared stories with the incoming freshman class that touched on themes of setting boundaries, consent, agency, sexual assault and choosing abstinence, among others. 

Undergraduate student leaders were not consulted before administrators decided to cut the program. After they were informed and expressed concerns regarding the change, a University administrator wrote that the decision was “final.” The administrator also advised SHARE staff that their support for students would “[undermine] institutional trust” and frustrate students.

The administrator’s anonymity was requested due to fears of retaliation.

Sexual misconduct is a serious issue on college campuses, especially for freshmen. Over 50% of college sexual assaults occur during the first four months on campus, and 13% of college students have reported experiencing sexual assault on campus. At Stanford, a 2019 survey found that 14.2% of respondents “reported experiencing at least one incident of nonconsensual sexual contact” since coming to campus.

BSE was largely popular amongst students. Last year, according to a survey of 773 students who attended, 90% “reported they gained more empathy for others at Stanford” and 87% “[felt] more acceptance of themselves, their values, and their timing.” 

In preparation for BSE, student storytellers would develop their personal narratives through a storycraft class, TAPS 21T, taken in the spring. Former Director of Positive Sexuality Brianna Booth served as the instructor for the course and facilitated BSE during NSO. 

Chhavi Nahata ’26, who participated in the storycraft course and performed on stage last year, wrote to The Daily that BSE was “one of the most humane, memorable and influential” experiences that she had at NSO, adding that she believes the program’s “vulnerability and honesty” is “absolutely necessary for students to experience.” 

The spring course was canceled this year over spring break.

In a March 2 email obtained by The Daily, a senior Stanford administrator wrote that the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education (VPUE) James Hamilton and Vice Provost for Student Affairs (VPSA) Michele Rasmussen will eliminate mandatory BSE programming. The email was shared with the SHARE Title IX and Title VI Office (SHARE office).

The University did not respond to a request for comment.

Associate Dean Edith Wu, in a May 5 email obtained by The Daily, confirmed that Hamilton had made the decision “in consultation with Vice Provost for Student Affairs Michele Rasmussen.” Wu did not respond to a request for comment. 

David Walton ’27, a resident assistant (RA) for freshman dorm Branner, emphasized that BSE is a space to help college students better understand the complexities of consent. Walton felt the decision was “thoughtless … a disservice to future generations of Stanford students … and in some ways, irresponsible,” he said.

As a reason for this change, the administrator wrote that the VPUE and VPSA have decided to “shorten the fall in-person component of NSO.” 

However, the duration of NSO next year is consistent with past years, according to the NSO website. Furthermore, Wu wrote that “new required programs … will be incorporated into the schedule” for NSO in 2026.

 A “number of conversations” with Hamilton and Rasmussen determined that their decision to eliminate BSE was “final and will not be reconsidered,” according to the administrator.

Former Associated Students of Stanford University (ASSU) executives Will Berriman ’26 and Ava Brown ’26 were made aware of the decision to eliminate BSE before the UGS, according to several undergraduate student leaders. 

Brown has not responded to a request for comment. 

Their efforts to get the program reinstated after the decision was made were unsuccessful and members of the Undergraduate Senate (UGS) were unaware of the policy change until mid-April. 

In her email, Wu claimed that it is Stanford administration’s “general practice to brainstorm and discuss with partners when making changes to the NSO schedule.”

“This decision was made with no student input at all,” Cho said during a presentation advocating for the reinstation of BSE at a UGS meeting on April 29. The UGS has been vocal about their support for the program and their frustration at the lack of student input in making the decision to make BSE optional. 

While the decision to end BSE came as a shock to the SHARE office, Booth recalled being asked by the VPUE in September whether or not BSE programming was legally mandated for sexual violence prevention. 

While BSE programming is not a legal requirement, she said “sexual violence prevention requires … more than an online training.” Incoming freshmen are required to complete a Title IX module prior to matriculating as students at NSO. Since September, Booth claims she was never asked to provide any input or data about the efficacy or success of the program. 

At the April 29 UGS meeting, senator Anna Roth ’28 said that the unique structure of BSE is part of what makes it such an effective program. “Having … people come in and be so vulnerable, I think it really leaves an impact on people … I don’t remember anything from NSO, but I remember who spoke and what their story was,” Roth said.

The UGS conducted a poll in May that found that nearly 77% of survey participants believed Stanford “should require a sexual health and consent education program during NSO.” 

Following these developments, ASSU Cabinet Director of Sexual Violence Prevention Zoya Fasihuddin ’26 wrote a memo to encourage administration to reinstate the program with the help of members of the SHARE office. Fasihuddin then shared the memo with Berriman, Brown, and other UGS members. The memo was linked in an agenda for their meeting with Hamilton and Rasmussen regarding BSE’s removal as a mandatory program at NSO. 

Deeming Fasihuddin’s memo “an effort to influence a reversal of the university decision to discontinue the current mandatory version of BSE,” the Stanford administrator sent another email to SHARE staff on March 17 attempting to “set expectations.” The administrator wrote, once more, that “the decision by VPSA and VPUE is final and will not be reconsidered.” 

The administrator claimed their email was not seeking to discourage members of the SHARE staff from supporting their students. However, their support, he wrote, “could have the unintended consequence of undermining institutional trust in light of the lack of alignment.” 

“The efforts of the students, when they are unsuccessful, will result in frustration,” the administrator wrote. 

An individual working intimately with University leadership, who requested anonymity due to fears of retaliation, stated that President Jonathan Levin and Provost Jennifer Martinez granted Hamilton and Rasmussen authority to make changes to NSO programming. 

The individual claimed that these changes may have originated in the Board of Trustees as a part of a broader campaign to remove programs at Stanford that may resemble Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI).

The University administration’s decision to end BSE comes amidst a broader pattern of capitulation to the current Trump administration’s policies. Over the past two years, Stanford has dismantled its Office for Inclusion, Belonging and Intergroup Communication, replaced several research programs geared toward diverse and low-income student populations and, most recently, terminated a training program for Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) that was subjected to an investigation. 

Booth argued that BSE does not fall under the umbrella of DEI. Instead, Booth wrote, BSE “engages with ethics — the question of how we treat each other — and teaches the interpersonal skills for building healthy, respectful and flourishing relationships.”

According to several attendees of a meeting with senior University leadership, Title IX and Title XI Coordinator Adrienne Lyles claimed that BSE could not continue because Booth was no longer at Stanford. However, Booth says she left Stanford due to this decision. 

“I kept Beyond Sex Ed running last year as a new mother and my commitment was to keep it running. When it was cut … I recognized that this chapter had come to an end,” Booth said. 

Erika Lynn Kreeger ’17 originally proposed the idea for BSE to former Provost John Etchemendy in 2016. Booth recalled “the Provost attended in the first year” of BSE and asked her to “keep this going.” After all, she said, the program had been initiated by students. 

Historically, the Provost has attended BSE as a part of NSO. Like Etchemendy, former Provost Persis Drell attended in the past. Similarly, according to emails reviewed by The Daily, University President Jonathan Levin and Provost Jennifer Martinez have received invitations for the past two years. Thus far, neither Levin nor Martinez have attended in person due to scheduling conflicts. 

Former student storytellers for BSE have described their experience as both audience members and participants as life-changing. 

“Being a part of Beyond Sex Ed changed my life. I was able to understand parts of my life that had been incomprehensible for years prior,” wrote Dash Beavers ’26 M.S. ’27 in an email to The Daily. “I know for a fact that freshmen lives have been bettered from BSE because I am living proof.”

Cho and ASSU Vice President Celeste Vargas are continuing to advocate for the reinstatement of BSE. In a May 18th email, Cho asked administrators to provide a timeline and plan for “opportunities for student collaboration or support.” 

In a short reply, Vice Provost of Institutional Equity, Access and Community Patrick Dunkley promised to follow up and wrote, “we will be further discussing these issues internally.”

Anders Luffman ’26, a BSE storyteller in 2024, wrote to The Daily about his personal experience. “After BSE, multiple people sought me out on campus and told me how much my story affected them,” he wrote. 

“Without Beyond Sex Ed, Stanford risks losing a part of itself,” Luffman wrote.