San Diego State faculty, staff and students came together Wednesday, Oct. 22 for the Get Together, Give Back Fall Social in the Conrad Prebys Aztec Student Union. Following an increased awareness of sexual assault, the social focused on educating faculty and staff about SDSU’s efforts to end sexual assault on and around campus.
“The faculty and staff are the people who run this campus and if they don’t understand what consent is and what the real issue is that we have on this campus with sexual assault then I don’t think the students will understand either,” Aztecs for Awareness member Leah Schroeder said.
Aztecs for Awareness is an organization on campus that provides education about sexual assault and violence.
SDSU President Elliot Hirshman also spoke at the event.
“We are fortunate in our efforts to have faculty members, staff members and students who are proactive and who are leading the way,” Hirshman said. “Addressing the sexual violence that is deeply and systematically engraved in our culture is going to require specific and direct actions.”
Hirshman said the increased prevention and training efforts, the creation of a sexual violence task force and the enforcement of an affirmative consent standard are some of the things SDSU will be implementing to end sexual assault.
To show support for sexual assault prevention, those in attendance wore teal ribbons in celebration of SDSU’s Teal Ribbon Campaign. The campaign seeks to encourage dialogue on campus about the important and relevant topics of sexual violence.
Students, faculty and staff also revealed why they chose to wear a teal ribbon on notes hung around the student union.
“I wear my teal ribbon for my daughters” and “I wear my teal ribbon to protect men and women against this horrible act” were among the notes hung.
Associated Students Vice President of University Affairs Corey Polant said the social was a great way to educate staff about how they can help students if they come to them for help.
“A lot of times students will rely on staff to be that support system for them,” Polant said. “The staff, and all our administration, should know where to send students if they’re ever in that kind of conversation with them.”
