Campus Advocacy
Understanding Campus Violence
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Information For Survivors
In 1973 a group of students from Clark University recognized the lack of support and resources for survivors of sexual assaults. They also noticed that victim blaming and rape culture was rampant and accepted their campus community, and others.
In 2011, when the Obama administration released their Dear Colleague letter it rocked the world of higher education. Title IX guidance was altered significantly to reflect the times and the reality that sexual violence is a silent epidemic on all college campuses. Without a doubt, it was recognized at the federal level as a public health issue.
Resources and Reporting Options: Clark, Holy Cross, Assumption, and WPI
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Assumption: |
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What Is the “Red Zone”?
Let’s be clear, sexual assault is never a misunderstanding between two people on a Saturday night in October. It’s not a bad hook up with someone on campus or someone you met off campus at a party. The focus in programs at colleges and universities has long been focused on prevention education, which is great. However, bystander trainings and alcohol education are not addressing the root of the issue. The fact is that we live in a campus culture that too often does not hold perpetrators accountable for their actions.
Consent Is Tea
Title IX, at its core, is meant to ensure equal access to education, not necessarily the overall emotional wellbeing and safety of survivors on campus. A sexual assault can quickly turn a community that is supposed to be educational and fun, into one that is toxic and unsafe. Sexual violence is never something anyone can be fully prepared to prepare for and foresee. Many survivors don’t even have the information to identify that what has happened to them is a violent crime. They may not have access to trauma-informed resources that specialize in healing from a sexual assault. Simply just navigating an environment where you can constantly see your perpetrator: walking to classes, coming out of a dorm, attending the same event, maybe even sharing the same group of friends; day in and day out is retraumatizing. Sexual assault has enormous impact on a campus community, especially the smaller, private colleges with high on campus dorming rates. Due to this, survivors of sexual violence are most likely to transfer to another college. How is that equitable access to education?
What Is Title IX?
Pathways for Change, Inc. is here to help. We have the only program in the state of Massachusetts that is solely focused on providing education, training, and response to all the colleges in the Worcester County area. As part of our free and confidential services, advocates are able to provide campus-based accompaniment for any student navigating the process of reporting to student conduct or Title IX. For any staff, faculty, or student that needs information or support in relation to a campus community member who has been impacted by sexual violence please contact Marienelly Vazquez at mvazquez@pathwaysforchange.help or call 508-852-7600×103.
Prevention and Education Programs
1. Training for Confidential Resource Employees (2 hours):
a. Who is Pathways and How to support survivors who support and come forward? Focus should be on presenting resources and utilizing an empowerment based model to help facilitate warm referral process to Pathways for Change, Inc.
2. Student Education and Prevention Programs (Vary based on program):
a. Sexual Violence 101 (Pathways presentations including campus and national statistics, examples that illustrate rape culture, myths vs. facts, pathways philosophy and services) (NSO’s, RD/RA trainings)
i. (1.5 to 2hrs)
ii. Pathways for Change, Inc. Campus Services
b. Bringing in the Bystander (New Student Orientations)
i. (1.5 abbreviated or 4 hours full length)
c. One Love (General student clubs or groups as well as classes)
i. (90 minutes)
ii. One Love Workshop Information
3. Staff/Faculty Training and Prevention Curricula (2.5 to 3 hours):
a. Sexual Violence 101 (Pathways presentations including campus and national statistics, examples that illustrate rape culture, myths vs. facts, pathways philosophy and services)
b. Role Playing and Case Review Scenarios reviewed in small groups.
4. Judicial Board, Student Conduct, and Title IX investigator Training):
a. Sexual Violence 101 (including all campus and national statistics)
b. Review of rape culture (utilizing pop culture/news stories as examples)
c. The Neurobiology of Trauma
d. Brief review of the myth of false reporting statistics.
e. Best practices on trauma informed interviewing and investigations
f. How to Support Survivors who come forward, review of Pathways services and contact information.