Senior Year and Mentorship Begins- by blogger Ashley from Bradley University

Last August, I wrote about freshmen coming to campus and essentially being naïve to the true happenings of the college nightlife. Now as a senior, it is (or should be) my duty to guide freshmen in the right direction when I can. I joined a new multicultural peer mentor program on campus and will have two mentees to personally guide this year. The start of this program will be great for the campus, especially for minority students since many of us have trouble “fitting in” our first semester of college.


Since this program didn’t exist my freshmen year, I didn’t have someone to show me how to get around campus or where to find certain resources. I didn’t have someone to show me all of the various activities the school has to offer. I wasn’t into the whole frat party scene, so I felt out of place and bored often on campus. No one was there to tell me that the older guy who seemed so into me was clearly out to use me. By default, most upperclassmen just roll their eyes at “those silly/stupid freshmen” rather than helping them out.


As upperclassmen, we know the DOs and DON’Ts of the social scene in college, but we can’t hold freshmen to that same standard. Freshmen are bombarded with so much information, including how to protect oneself from being a victim of sexual assault (a method that has many flaws, but that’s for another discussion), so the majority of that info is not necessarily retained or used in every situation a freshmen encounters. College is overwhelming at the start, and it pretty much takes the entire first year to adjust to being on our own and having this much freedom.


If you’re an upperclassmen, think about helping out the freshmen you see in compromising positions that they may not know how to get out of. Just as you may hear or read a sign on public transit- if you see something, say something. I know we live in a generation that is supposedly very self-centered, but we can break that stereotype by helping someone younger and more naïve than us. Everyone could use a mentor in life, so why can’t that person be you? Spread your knowledge with others to help keep them safe. It’ll make the college experience much better for everyone.

Freshmen college safety- A scavenger hunt by blogger Denelle

Every fall thousands of fresh faced kids flock the college campuses throughout our country. Wide eyed and eager for new friends, new experiences and an education worth their weight in debt, college freshmen face a particular challenge when it comes to safety. With all their nervousness and insecurity, students may not feel comfortable traveling in packs if they don’t know other coeds just yet. And lack of familiarity around the campus means they don’t know which areas to avoid after dark.





So how do you get new female students familiar with the campus and aware of their surroundings without needlessly frightening them? A scavenger hunt!





Break new students into small groups that will form a competitive team, and guided by a chaperon (senior student, faculty, etc) these teams will go through the campus looking for treasure. All of the “clue” points should be areas of the campus that are most susceptible to danger or have been trouble areas in the past. At these check points, groups receive clues for the next check point as well as prizes, such as a whistle on a necklace, a key chain flashlight, or a football noise maker. A map of the school that indicates safe spots and a listing of emergency contacts in the area are musts as well. By the end of the hunt, girls are more familiar with the areas they should avoid when alone, have made some new friends, and have been supplied with some emergency aid should they require it.

A Whole New World by Blogger Alex

Do you even stop to read sexual violence articles anymore? I see them all of the time, and I just laugh and think to myself “another one of these – how are people so terrible? I would never think of doing something like this!” These articles may be ineffective to me, but that is only because I’ve hit a maturity level where I know the difference between right and wrong when it comes to sexual activity. I learned a lot to get to this point of sexual maturity, and it is obvious that many others have a lot of work to do if we want sexual violence to stop.


It’s easy to forget how hard it was making the adjustment from high school to college. Some of us go to college and are in a whole new world with more freedom than we’ve ever had before. Some of us don’t leave for college and feel very discouraged and angry. Either way, our lives change from being on a set high school schedule to making decisions on our own. Peer pressure is at an all-time high at this stage of our life - we are presented with new scenarios where there are opportunities to learn about drugs, alcohol and sex and don’t know what decisions are the right ones to make. These years of our lives are about learning from our bad decisions, but sometimes these decisions are more wrong than any of us could’ve ever imagined.


I’ve been in situations where I could have said “yes” to an urge instead of “no” and my life could’ve been completely altered if I made the wrong decision. How are teens supposed to know what the right decision is? I think adults forget how hard it was to grow up. We need to start offering teens more guidance or they will continue to make the wrong decisions.


We all have our sexual urges – and who knows what will happen when these urges are combined with an immature mind and a bad day… In a whole new world teens need more teachers so that they are set up for success. Parents need to be more aware of their children’s thought during this tough time in their life. College need to begin teaching mandatory classes that show the student what choices to make in common teen situations. High school health classes need to talk about this as they teach students about Sexually Transmitted Diseases. It’s up to us to make the young understand – so what are you going to do to help?

Sexual Assault Prevention in Universities by Blogger Shaleen

In universities, there should be required seminars to get the students communicating especially those that have fraternities and sororities. College students are very susceptible to peer pressure because we are at an age where we want to be accepted by our peers. College is typically viewed as a place to find yourself and experiment with a different surrounding that one wouldn’t typically be used to. Sexual violence can be prevented so that everyone can thrive rather than just survive.


The seminars should include men and women of every age range, so that the freshman attending are conscious that sexual violence happens to everyone, not just women of a certain type, like typically assumed. Attacking the silence is part of the shocking nature of the survival stories of these speakers and it would be very interesting to also hear from the attendees. Communication is a big part of life and it would be unacceptable to allow these college students to only be able to hear the experiences of strangers. There should also be a section of the seminar where they can ask questions and state their opinions rather than just listen to the speakers.


Personally speaking, I would want to be educated with something that impacts me rather than just informs me of the surrounding dangers. Students should know that they are in a safe surrounding instead of being scared to walk around alone. According to the RAIIN organization, (2013), 2/3 of assaults are committed by friends or acquaintances.


RAIIN (2013) Statistics. Retrieved from


https://www.rainn.org/statistics

Temples of learning and Teachers of Individualistic identity- by blogger Snehal

Holy books across the globe preach ‘Humanity’ being the greatest religion. Today, “We” the so called humans have buried these ethics under the veil of social, political and cultural acceptance. Why should one victimize the weaker strata of the society? This comparison and ignorance of equality has given rise to several heinous offences contributing to sexual violence. It’s time to introspect and bring in the positive changes. The best places to start with are the schools (our temples of learning).


Education is the best weapon to fight injustice and inequality. Therefore, every school should focus on empowering its students with this gift of knowledge in the following ways.






Every academic term should have a 2 day workshop; to address the issue of sexual violence to the students. These workshops shall include plays, games, songs, painting activities that can highlight this issue in a subtle manner.


Yoga and spiritual learning must be enshrined in the curriculum. This aids in imbibing good moral values and provides a positive healing to each soul.


The school should have stringent rules pertaining to victimization, bullying, ragging, sexual abuse and offences of the like kinds. Spy cameras can be fixed in the classrooms, corridor, playgrounds, washrooms and campus to ensure the student safety. These cameras must be monitored by the student counsellor, so appointed for helping the students.


A monthly student counselling session must focus on various ideas of teaching them the difference between a good/bad touch.


The curriculum should also include learning of self defense techniques and martial arts to protect themselves against any mishap.


The school should believe that “Every child is special”. Teachers have to be more vigilant in the classroom and ensure safety of all the students especially the fresher men.






Hope this small step can be a giant leap in bringing about the positive changes in the schools and then in the society.