Student Council President Jalen Ross and Sara Surface, External Chair of the Sexual Violence Prevention Coalition, traveled to the White House last week to discuss sexual assault prevention strategies with other college students.
The meeting was facilitated by Kyle Lierman, White House Liaison to Young Americans, and Andy MacCracken, Executive Director of the National Campus Leadership Council.
Ross, a fourth-year Engineering student, was invited by MacCracken to attend the meeting, and was allowed to select another leader to come with him.
“We met with student leaders involved in student government and prevention programs at William & Mary, ODU, JMU, GMU, Longwood and Virginia Tech,” said Surface, a third-year College student.
The White House recently initiated a sexual assault prevention campaign called “It’s On Us” and has been reaching out to various colleges and universities for support.
“We've been happy to be able to share the successes and challenges of the campaigns we'd already launched with the team coordinating that effort,” Ross said.
Surface said various student leaders presented initiatives put in place on their campuses to prevent sexual violence.
“We also discussed what challenges and tensions we faced on our campuses in our prevention movements,” she said. “GMU representatives talked a lot about intersectionality and how to engage all corners and identities of their campus, including male survivors.”
Ross and Surface discussed the Hoos Got Your Back program, an initiative by the University to raise awareness about bystander intervention to prevent sexual violence on Grounds.
“We were asked follow up questions about our engagements with Corner merchants,” Surface said. “Many were interested in the idea of giving tools to bars and restaurants in regards to bystander intervention.”
During the summer, Surface and former University spokesperson Carol Wood established the bystander intervention program, as well as the “Not On Our Grounds” sexual assault prevention campaigns. The Sexual Violence Prevention Coalition will work with Nicole Thomas, the new Violence Prevention Coordinator, and Dean Nicole Eramo in the Office of the Dean of Students to promote the campaign throughout the year.
Student Council has been involved with sexual assault prevention since concern was raised in January about classifying sexual assault as an Honor offense. Ross said that due to legal reasons, sexual assault cannot be considered an Honor offense, but in response, the Student Council partnered with sexual assault advocacy groups across Grounds to pass the Sexual Misconduct, Awareness, Reaction, and Tangible Change (“SMART”) Resolution, which called for specific changes to University sexual assault education and case processing policies.
“At the end of the day, sexual assault has no place at this University; and Student Council is committed to working with any students, groups, organizations, or campaigns that are dedicated to ending it,” Ross said.
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