In an effort to combat sexual assault in college, two U.S. Senators are proposing a bill that would require public high schools to include rape and relationship violence in health classes.

According to the Washington Post, Timothy M. Kaine (D-Va.) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) introduced the Teach Safe Relationships Act (TSRA) Tuesday morning. Kaine reportedly gained some inspiration for the bill in Dec. when he spoke with student leaders at the University of Virginia (UVA).

Though Rolling Stone's "A Rape on Campus" investigative article was discredited, UVA still acknowledged the issue of sexual assault on many college campuses. UVA has since been reforming its policies for Greek groups social events and now some students are contributing to legislation that could affect the nation.

The TSRA would not doubt add more controversy to what already exists in high school health classes. Like other topics normally covered in health classes, critics of the TSRA would likely argue that parents should discern when to teach their children about sexual misconduct and rape.

"As advocates and educators, one of the biggest challenges we face is undoing years of apathy, misinformation, and cultural norms," UVA's sexual assault prevention group One Less said in a statement. "The statistics show us that 44 percent of survivors are assaulted before the age of eighteen. However, education on consent and healthy relationships is all but non-existent in our public education system."

Like nearly 100 other institutions, UVA is under federal investigation for complaints against their sexual misconduct policies and practices. The Obama Administration began publicly disclosing such investigations for the first time in the Education Department's history.

McCaskill said in a statement that teenagers are learning about sex and relationships in school, despite any opposition. She argued that they should be also learning how to maintain and operate in those relationships in a "healthy and safe" manner.

"One thing we've learned in our work to curb sexual violence on campuses and in the military is that many young people learn about sex and relationships before they turn 18," she said, according to the Huffington Post. "Many students are leaving high school without learning about these crimes that disproportionately impact young people."

Read more