Fears and concerns about safety are an issue among students, especially females who are the targets of these assaults.
The Women’s Resource Center (WRC) is a place where students can come to have questions answered about these fears or concerns. Marcela Chavez, the director at the WRC, talks about the issue of sexual assault on campus in an interview.
Q: What does the WRC do to promote safety on campus?
A: At the Women’s Resource Center, we do a lot of workshops. Sometimes we’ll do forums to talk about campus safety. It is important to ensure safety and part of that is the educational process. We let students know what are the different things they can do. I really recommend that they walk in groups or buddy systems. It is unfortunate that we have to tell young ladies you can’t walk on campus by yourself, but that’s the reality. It’s a large campus. We have some areas that need improved lighting. We’ve identified different areas that we feel need more lighting. The campus has been very responsive to improving the lighting, but still we can’t get every place.
Q: Are more students coming to the WRC with questions about sexual assault?
A: We have them all the time. Young men come in as well. Sometimes they’ll come to ask for a friend. We listen to what the concern is, what the questions are. Sometimes they need immediate attention depending on the situation. We do the hand-holding and the support that has to occur. Also, we refer them to counseling. It’s about connecting them to the right services. That’s what we do here. We become as understanding as we can be and try to give them a guiding hand and refer them to the appropriate resources.
Q: What programs are available for awareness about sexual assault?
A: There are a lot of programs we do. We bring in speakers. We are going to be doing more training with our administrators and faculty to know what the resources are and what they can do to help. Faculty will bring students in and call me or send me e-mails on what they should do, and I have referred them to someone. It’s an on-going training process of awareness and responsibility building.
Q: What should students do if they find themselves being in situation where they have been sexually assaulted?
A: I think they need to get the help [they need] right away. If they have been sexually assaulted, calling campus police, or [if they are] not on campus, call the police. Normally the procedure is the campus has a response team, that if the woman says, “I have been sexually assaulted,” they can take them to a hospital right away. Testing can be done. Medical treatment can be provided and a report written.
I think when that happens, women think they did something wrong. [They think] it was their fault that they were out there alone. No, it wasn’t. The fact that they were alone is their right, but unfortunately they can’t control others. They can only control their own choices. They need to report it.
Q: Are there counselors and staff here at the WRC to help women in this situation?
A: We refer them. I do the immediate intervention for the crisis. Both my staff and assistant director and office manager have gone through training called the Sexual Assault Crisis Agency Training to do crisis intervention. You drop everything you have and you try to deal with the student. The student becomes No. 1. They become a priority. You find out what that student needs. If you need to physically take them somewhere, you do that. It’s crisis intervention, then referral.
Q: What programs are available for students that have been sexually assaulted?
A: We have a lot of programs through CAPS [Counseling and Psychological Services]. We have programs through SACA [Sexual Assault Crisis Agency], out in the community. That’s one of our partners. Beyond the education we do here, we connect with all the resources, and do treatment and follow-ups with the students.
Q: What should students do if they are approached by a potential sexual predator?
A: Run. If they want to keep your purse, give them the purse and run. Don’t fight for your purse. We teach self-defense every semester. That’s one area of teaching how to be aware of your surroundings.
