Content Warning: the following article covers topics of domestic and dating violence, as well as sexual assault and violence. For additional support please contact Villanova’s Title IX Office.
October marks Domestic and Dating Violence Awareness Month, and with that comes a plethora of events, resources and support being provided by the University for Villanova students and the greater Villanova community.
On-campus organizations such as POWER and the One Love Club are working alongside the Office of Health Promotion and Title IX to host events to raise awareness about the signs and actions to take if you yourself are in a relationship entailing dating violence, or in the relationship of a loved one.
“We have a sexual misconduct policy, and sexual assault of course, is included in that, as is dating and domestic violence,” Ryan Rost from the Title IX Office said. “More often than not when someone observes a sexual assault, that is likely more recognizable and more people seem to know what that is. In regards to dating violence, that is not as easy to recognize, or it might be something that people do not want to see.”
Dating violence is oftentimes overlooked and misrepresented in media and everyday life, hence the importance of awareness and looking for signs in personal relationships or those of friends and loved ones.
The One Love Club and Workshop is an organization aimed to bring awareness to college campuses by sharing the true story of Yeardley Love, a student at the University of Virginia whose life was taken by her boyfriend at the time.
“One of the things that [One Love] talk[s] about a lot is that you do not need to know as a friend, what exactly is going on, but if you see changes in your friends behavior, like disengaging from things they previously did, even checking in, like how is your relationship going, beyond the social media, and truly how are you doing, it gives your friends the option to share if there are things going on,” Shannon Barnett from the Title IX Office said.
Throughout the month of October, Villanova and on and off-campus partners, such as the Domestic Abuse Project of Delaware County, Delaware County Victim Assistance Center, Public Safety and the Office of Health Promotion, will be providing workshops, interactive events and information to be spread around campus and the greater community.
Events such as the “Ask a Sex-Pert” virtual workshop and “Trauma Informed Yoga” are being brought to campus, both virtually and in-person in order to break the stigma regarding these topics, and to make the Villanova community more aware of safe practices within relationships.
“The cool thing is we are talking about sex,” Rost said. “It is not a taboo topic for those presenting, and the alternative is learning from friends who might also not have the knowledge or experience.”
Dating and domestic violence are not easy topics to talk about, nor are they simple to recognize in day to day life, both in oneself and in other relationships. Through the efforts of the on and off campus resources, Villanova is hoping to promote healthy relationships and spread awareness on these topics.
“People may not recognize it because it is not always physical, and it is not always physically violent,” Rost said. “There may be things that are violent, that are verbal or emotional, and there are things that might go on behind closed doors, but there are often warning signs and red flags. That is one of the things we really try to help people learn about.”
“As far as signs, there is a ‘Ten Unhealthy, Healthy’ signs,” Barnett said.
These can be found on both the One Love Website and the “It’s On Us ‘Nova” Instagram page.
To report an act of domestic and dating violence, call Public Safety at 610-519-5800; the Title IX Coordinator Ms. Ryan Rost at 610-519-8805; or a Deputy Title IX Coordinator. For more information on support resources, call the Sexual Assault Resource Coordinator (SARC) at 484-343-6028. For more information on Villanova’s sexual misconduct prevention and education efforts, visit: https://www1.villanova.edu/university/sexual-misconduct/education.html. For the National Domestic and Dating Hotline, call 800-799-7233.
