April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and is dedicated to fostering dialogue surrounding sexual violence and supporting survivors. Throughout the month, students and staff educate the Villanova community on proactive prevention.
It’s On Us Nova is a campus-wide movement grounded in three key principles: prevent, respond and support. The campaign is inspired by the national It’s On Us movement, which is the largest college sexual assault prevention nonprofit program in the nation. It is a call to action, emphasizing everybody’s responsibility to prevent sexual violence and make Villanova a safer place.
On Wednesday, April 8, It’s On Us Nova hosted a Sexual Assault Awareness Month kick-off event at the Oreo. All students and staff were welcome and encouraged to wear teal to show their support.
Ryan Rost, Villanova’s Title IX coordinator, was tabling the event with other staff members from the Title IX office, located in Tolentine Hall 207. At the table, students could learn more about the Title IX office and the resources it provides, and take the It’s On Us pledge for a free t-shirt.
“We’re raising awareness about the importance of preventing harmful behaviors and harmful culture and harmful narratives as it relates to sexual violence,” Rost said. “The It’s On Us pledge is important so that people can kind of put into action what their intentions are, because we know a lot of our community is passionate about the issue of sexual violence and sexual violence prevention. Coming here and participating in some of the other things we have going on are just tangible ways and intentional ways to raise awareness about the issue of sexual violence.”
Villanova’s health promotion student organization, Peers Offering Wellness Education and Resources (POWER), was also present at the event. Corinn Eads is a Community Advocate for POWER and serves as the Training and Recruitment Co-Director. Eads was tabling for POWER.
“I think the biggest reason I’m out here tabling for Sexual Assault Awareness Month is to just increase awareness among students,” Eads said. “I think a lot of students on campus don’t know the resources that we have, and this is a very important and serious topic. We need to get the resources out, so people know who they can go to when they themselves need help or people they know need help.”
Some partners from the surrounding community were also present, including the Delaware County Victim Assistance Center and the Domestic Abuse Project of Delaware County. These are 24-hour community partners that provide support and resources to people within Delaware County.
The Title IX office and other partners will be highlighting resources related to sexual assault prevention throughout the month.
From 5-6 p.m. on Monday, April 13, in Dougherty West Lounge, the Title IX Office hosted an event titled “Creating a Culture of Respect.” The conversation centered on healthy relationships, consent, bystander intervention and creating a culture of respect.
“What we are trying to promote is the culture of conversation,” Rost said. “Everyone thinks and knows that sexual violence is wrong. If they see something, more than likely they are going to do something. Then we’ve got to back that train up a little bit and figure out what the things are that lead up to that culture within our community that can be improved and addressed to create that culture of respect.”
From 6-7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 21, Title IX will be hosting a “One Love Escalation Workshop.” The goal of the workshop is to help students deepen their understanding of healthy relationships and learn strategies for responding to escalating relationship conflicts.
From 4-6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 28, Title IX will be hosting the “Stand With Survivors: Sexual Violence Awareness Solidarity Walk.” Students can join campus and community partners at the Oreo for a walk to support survivors and bring awareness to the issue of sexual violence.
There are numerous opportunities throughout April to learn about prevention strategies and show support for others. All Villanovans have a responsibility to prevent sexual violence.
