Former MU student pleading for university to do more for sex assault victim

CREATED Feb. 22, 2012 - UPDATED: Feb. 22, 2012

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  • Annie Scholz reports Video by tmj4.com

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MILWAUKEE- A student studying in Cape Town, South Africa says her friend was raped on her way home.  Marquette University answered their call for more on-site security -- at first.  But now, it's gone, and she wants to know why Marquette University isn't doing more to protect students abroad.

Molly Arenberg was a Marquette student studying abroad in Cape Town last May when her friend was raped on the way back to university housing.  "I still can't find somebody.  I can't find somebody who cares and can do something about it," said Arenberg.  "When our program director sat us down, he gave us the same lecture he did at the beginning of our stay in Cape Town, which was to use the buddy system."

Arenberg demanded a night guard be placed outside the residence called Kimberly House, which the university did -- but only for the rest of that semester.

She called the same security firm that handles Northwestern University's security in Cape Town. She was quoted about $8,500 a semester.  She's been trying ever since to convince Marquette University it's worth the cost.  She shared some of her emails with TODAY'S TMJ4.  The chief of public safety told her: "We believe that by exercising good judgment, joined with the safety features that are currently in place at Kimberly House...The appropriate steps have been taken"

The sexual violence services coordinator said "I'm uncertain as to the weight my voice may carry". 

A university spokesman said he'd have to look into it more, but wanted to make this message clear: "We want to express our thoughts and prayers for this student, safety is the utmost concern for all of our students," said spokesman Brian Dorrington.

Molly told TODAY'S TMJ4 her friend is doing the best she can after what happened.  Molly is now at Oxford in England and has been trying to do all of this from overseas -- something she won't give up on now matter how far away she is.