Tag Archives: sexual assault

Sexual Assault Awareness Month – April 2012

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Although the month of April is coming to a close, we want to share with you a note from Amy Cavender, MyStudentBody Implementation Specialist, about Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The tips below for programming can also be used year-round to raise awareness of this important issue on college campuses.

In April, schools all over the country observe Sexual Assault Awareness Month with educational events, media campaigns, and forums for survivors of assault. MyStudentBody makes information and resources for understanding and preventing sexual assault and other forms of sexual violence available year-round, both in the Essentials course and in articles and tools in the Student Center.

By sharing this information with students early in their college careers, colleges and universities can give students useful tools to prevent sexual violence and to help themselves and others if they experience an assault or find themselves in an abusive relationship. You can use the information gathered through student Sexual Violence Rate Myself assessments to guide your approach to the issue on your campus.

MyStudentBody works best as part of an overall prevention and awareness campaign. You can find information about raising awareness and preventing sexual violence in our library.

For more ideas on how to address sexual violence prevention on your campus, the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) offers a wonderful clearinghouse of resources on its Sexual Violence Awareness Month site. NSVRC is using a variety of approaches to communicate about the issue, from videos to Twitter-based chats to printable materials. There’s a great resource page that has everything from suggested events to templates for letters to the editor of the student or local media.

As a former member of the Primary Prevention Planning Team at the Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center in San Marcos, TX, I was especially glad to see that NSVRC offers an information sheet about working with men’s groups to prevent sexual violence. Working with men to prevent sexual violence is an issue that’s dear to my heart, as well as an effective strategy. I hope these resources will help make your sexual violence awareness and prevention activities more successful.

Get more helpful tips from MyStudentBody in your inbox by subscribing to the blog in the sidebar on our homepage.

Photo credit: http://www.yorkblog.com/smart/2012/03/29/sexual-assault-awareness-month-kicks-off-today/

Fulfilling Federal Mandates Part 2: Dominican College Uses MyStudentBody In Title IX Compliance

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In the first part of this series, we discussed the “Dear Partner” letter, which announced that campus drug abuse programs would be falling under increased scrutiny by the US Department of Education and the Office of National Drug Control Policy. We suggested ways that college and university administrators can step up the drug prevention programs on their campuses. In the second part of this series, we invite you to find out more about how MyStudentBody can help schools respond to another part of these new federal mandates, which was outlined in the recently distributed “Dear Colleague” letter.

Dominican College, in Orangeburg, NY, is a small college in the Catholic tradition serving about 1,800 students with professional programs in teacher education, athletic training, social work, business administration, and the health care professions of nursing and occupational and physical therapy. In addition to over 30 programs of study, the college also has a strong athletic program, sponsoring 12 intercollegiate sports in NCAA Division II.

According to Dominican College’s Prevention and Education Coordinator, Eileen A. Piccininni, MA, LPC, CASAC, CEAP, the “Dear Colleague” letter issued by the US Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights last April means all US colleges will be looking more uniformly at how they handle sexual assault complaints. The letter, which the White House has declared a “significant guidance document”, reiterated schools’ obligation under Title IX to deal with sexual harassment as unlawful discrimination, and detailed the process by which institutions should respond to sexual assault complaints.

“The ‘Dear Colleague’ letter specifically references issues around sexual violence,” Piccininni says. “Every campus will be reviewing and improving methods for promoting healthy and safe environments through educating students about sexual violence issues.”

Dominican has used MyStudentBody for the past five years as part of its alcohol abuse prevention education, and began using the Essentials course, which covers sexual violence as well as alcohol and drug use, last year. Piccininni finds it an effective tool for Title IX training and documentation. “Proactively, we’ve assigned MyStudentBody Essentials as part of the curriculum for our year-long Freshman Seminar,” she says. “I also use it when I have students who violate the alcohol and other drug policy.”

As part of an educational sanction for students who violate the policy, Piccininni requires completion of either the Essentials Course or the Student Conduct Course. Piccininni has also assigned the sexual violence component of Essentials course to students whose relationships show warning signs of dating violence or potential abuse. “These courses help to increase the culture of respect for self and respect for others, instilling the importance of being an active bystander and of a shared responsibility for the safest and most healthy learning environment possible,” she explains.

And at Dominican, MyStudentBody isn’t just for students. “Every administrator in student services has been asked by our Dean of Students to take and pass the Essentials course,” Piccininni says. “We’ve recommended that faculty and other staff take it as well.”

Sexy & Savvy: What happened last night?

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Contributed by Rebecca Smith, M.A., L.C.P.C., C.S.A.T.

Do you ever wake up and wonder what happened the night before? It can be very scary. It’s even more alarming if you feel that someone else has drugged you and raped or sexually assaulted you. The fact that this happens at all is disturbing, but it’s definitely something college students need to be aware of. Some of it can be attributed to alcohol and drugs, so watch out for so-called “date rape drugs” when you go out to the bar or to parties. The four most common date rape drugs are alcohol, Rohypnol or “roofies”, Gamma Hydroxy Butyrate (GHB), and Ketamine. They render you incapable of saying no or asserting yourself in a situation.

Alcohol is the most used drug in date rape situations. Be aware if someone keeps bringing you drinks or keeps encouraging you to drink more. Rohypnol is a prescription sedative/depressant. It’s not approved or manufactured in North America but can be found as a street drug. Tasteless, colorless, and odorless, it can be added to any drink without detection. GHB is an odorless, colorless liquid that resembles water and is manufactured in illegal drug labs. Ketamine Hydrochloride is a legal drug sold as a veterinary sedative or hospital-grade anesthesia. It comes in a powder form but resembles slightly cloudy water when added to liquid. All these drugs can take effect within 10-20 minutes. The most common side effects are amnesia, intoxication, drowsiness, delayed reaction time, confusion and, in some cases, severe respiratory depression and coma.

Girl looking out window after sexual assaultHere are some ways to protect yourself:

  1. Don’t accept open drinks from others you don’t know or trust.
  2. Never leave your drink unattended.
  3. Go with a friend or a group. Stay with them and go home with them.
  4. Use DrinkSafe Technology. This technology comes in test strips or coasters that work like litmus paper in chemistry class. They change color when they come in contact with a date rape drug.

The drugs listed above can have the effect of erasing your memory. Some people may never be aware that something has happened to them. Here are some signs you may have been drugged:

  1. You feel very hung over but don’t remember drinking much at all.
  2. You have no clear memory of events during an 8 to 24-hour period and have no reason for the memory lapse.
  3. You feel soreness or have bruising in your genital area, thighs, wrists and/or arms.
  4. You feel like you have had sex even though you don’t remember it.

If you think you’ve been drugged and raped or sexually assaulted, then get to a safe place. Call a friend to take you to the hospital right away. Do not bathe, wash your hands, brush your teeth, change your clothes, or eat or drink before you go. At the hospital, ask to have a urine sample taken to test for those specific drugs in your system. Contact the police when you get to the hospital to report what you do remember. Get counseling or support. Remember, you are never at fault. No matter what the situation, no one deserves to be sexually assaulted or raped.

For more help, you can call the National Sexual Abuse Hotline at (800) 656-HOPE or visit the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network website. For more information on sexual violence, check out the Essentials Course on MyStudentBody.