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Betsy DeVos was met by critics during her arrival this week to the Denver capitol. In light of her decision to take Title IX funding from universities to combat sexual assault it’s clear why many people are up in arms.

During the Obama administration, the federal government and universities that receive Title IX funding have partnered in an effort to combat sexual violence on campuses, which are often hotbeds of misconduct when it comes to assault and other sex crimes. So why the change of heart?

Well for one thing, advisers close to the education secretary have cited alarming numbers: claiming that the number of ambiguous ‘we were both drunk’ cases ruining young men’s lives are the vast majority of cases reported on campus. At least that’s what Candice E. Jackson, the top civil rights official at the Department of Education said in an interview on the new plans.

Yes, we are talking about young men’s lives, as those are the only victims it seems that DeVos and Jackson are eager to protect in her recent decision making.

Currently, at the college level, our nation is embroiled in many high-profile sexual assault cases, but to say that 90 percent of these cases are the result of two drunk students where nobody is the victim is just factually incorrect. While Jackson later apologized for her untrue remarks, the damage is already done if DeVos still does not see the shaky basis of her thinking.

Taking away funding from universities to address the rising issues of sexual violence in an effort to placate outskirts groups of falsely accused men is like taking one step forward and three steps back.

Studies show that false accusations are quite rare, amounting to only between two to eight percent of cases. At a time when actual victims are often mistreated and blamed, it is an outrage that this administration would give greater priority to these groups as victims.

According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, “Research shows that rates of false reporting are frequently inflated, in part because of inconsistent definitions and protocols, or a weak understanding of sexual assault.”

Perhaps it’s the semantics here, however it seems the greatest culprit of this new thinking on policy from our administration absolutely stems from a weak understanding of sexual assault. You need only look towards the fountain of Trump supporters and surrogates who tried to change the definition of sexual assault after then presidential candidate Trump was implicated in this crime in the leaked Trump tape.

The problem with DeVos’ thinking here is her inability to see the forest for the trees.

Of course there are groups of people wrongfully accused of sexual assault. There are also people wrongfully accused of murder in the prison system. That does not mean we should take away funding resources to arrest those who are accused of murder.

Digital Production Manager Mikaela Rodenbaugh can be reached at letters@collegian.com or on Twitter at @mikarodenbaugh.