Georgia Southern to Host Sexual Assault & Spring Break Awareness Week

March 2, 2015

STATESBORO, Ga. (March 2, 2015) — Georgia Southern University’s Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) will host Sexual Assault & Spring Break Awareness Week on campus from March 2-5. The week aims to unify individuals against sexual violence with two major events scheduled throughout the week as part of the campaign.

“This is the fifteenth year that we’ve done this event on our campus,” said Dr. Jodi Caldwell, and director of the University Counseling Center and chair for SART at Georgia Southern. “We do our awareness week prior to spring break because it’s a high risk time for sexual assault, and while education in this field is always important, we want to educate our student community before they go on break to increase their safety.”

Students, faculty and staff are invited to participate in The Clothesline Project at the Russell Union Rotunda and Recreation Activity Center lobby from 9a.m.-5p.m. and at the Centennial Place Café from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., where they can create a t-shirt to express emotions and reactions regarding sexual violence .The shirts created will then be displayed to represent the various forms and degrees of sexual violence.

Take Back the Night (TBTN) Rally and March will take place as part of the week’s events on Thursday, March 5 at 7:30p.m. The event will begin at the Russell Union Rotunda at 7 p.m. for anyone who wishes to participate. The event will include a candlelight vigil, rally, survivor speak-out and the large-scale public march.

Since the 1970s in the United States, TBTN has focused on eliminating sexual and domestic violence in all forms. Thousands of colleges, domestic violence shelters, and rape crisis centers have held events all over the country. Georgia Southern continues to participate in the tradition to encourage the campus community to unify against sexual violence.

Because Georgia Southern works in conjunction with the Statesboro Regional Sexual Assault Center, Christy Perry, the Director of the center, strongly supports this initiative taking place before spring break.

“We know some students are going to engage in semi-risky behavior on Spring Break,” Perry said. “We offer 24/7 free services such as counseling, crisis intervention, forensic exams and medication among other services. We want students to know that no matter what happens they’ll have the resources they need and that we’re here.”

For more information on SART, visit GeorgiaSouthern.edu/counseling/crisis/sexual-assault-response-team/ or contact Dr. Caldwell at jodic@georgiasouthern.edu

Georgia Southern University, a public Carnegie Doctoral/Research University founded in 1906, offers more than 125-degree programs serving more than 20,500 students. Through eight colleges, the University offers bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs built on more than a century of academic achievement. Georgia Southern is recognized for its student-centered and hands-on approach to education.