Oct 17, 2014 11:35 AM EDT By Russell Westerholm, UniversityHerald Reporter

California's "Yes Means Yes" bill redefining sexual consent on college campuses is spreading in popularity, and quickly, but that may be a problem for some institutions.

With rape and sexual assault in college quickly coming into focus for many Americans, several schools have looked to find a black-and-white way to adjudicate such a gray-area crime. Multiple states and school systems are trying to adapt the Calif. bill while its critics are being drowned out.

"The swiftly evolving conversation about defining sexual assault signaled to us that we needed to reframe our name as something more positive," Allison Korman, executive director for the Culture of Respect, told Inside Higher Ed. "And it's even possible that 'No means no' will be an outdated or irrelevant concept in 10 years. Students may not have even heard of the phrase by then."

Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown signed the bill, which had unanimous support and little doubt of being enacted, into law last month. Since, student groups at Harvard have urged the Ivy League institution to adopt a similar policy, while a New Hampshire lawmaker filed a draft for a similar bill.

Ezra Klein wrote for Vox.com that he originally did not agree with the bill, but changed his mind after he "talked to more lawyers about it, talked to more of the women in my life about it." Klein also opined that the response to his article has unfortunately classified the campus rape epidemic as a "myth."

Ashe Schow wrote for the Washington Examiner that the "Yes Means Yes" bill undermines due process and requires schools "to be just 50.01 percent sure that accusers are telling the truth" to find someone responsible of sexual assault.

With so many institutions wanting to adopt a new policy, it may put administrators in a tough spot to catch up.

"There's quite a surge in support of a 'Yes means yes' formula," Ada Meloy, general counsel for the American Council on Education, told Inside Higher Ed. "It's certainly an ongoing movement, and is likely to be a generally positive thing. At the same time, it's not easy to develop a good definition of affirmative consent. We wouldn't want a one-size-fits-all approach for a variety of institutions."

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