Attend on-campus community conversations, events about domestic violence, sexual assault

A $550,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) will help Edmonds Community College continue to educate its campus and community about sexual assault and domestic violence and prevention. Throughout October, which is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the college will hold community conversations and events that focus on sexual violence education.

“If more people learn to recognize the warning signs of sexual assault and domestic violence and are more empowered to intervene, then we have a better chance to prevent harm in our community,” said Katy Griffith, Edmonds CC’s Healthy Relationships Team (HEART) project coordinator.

A previous $300,000 grant from the DOJ’s Office on Violence Against Women provided funding for the creation of HEART. It also funded employee training on sexual violence through a partnership with Alteristic, and the college’s formation of the Coordinated Community Response Team. Edmonds CC was among the first community colleges to receive the grant and now serves as a model for other colleges.

“One thing we identified three years ago was that many of the services that are available in our area are centralized in Everett,” Griffith said, “so this was an opportunity to bring services closer to South Snohomish County and an opportunity for community partners to extend their reach as well.”

The CCRT includes Domestic Violence Services of Snohomish County, Lynnwood Police Department, Providence Intervention Center for Assault and Abuse, Snohomish County Prosecuting Attorney, Snohomish County’s Sheriff’s Office, and Verdant Health Commission.

The college has also started its own on-campus victim advocacy program which brings CCRT community partners and services to campus.

“We are now able to consistently serve people who have been affected by sexual assault, domestic and dating violence, and stalking,” Griffith said. “In the past two years, we have helped more and more survivors access legal and medical services, mental health counseling, and accompaniment during investigations.”

In terms of numbers, she said looking at the number of reports doesn’t always tell the full story. However, over time there has been an increase in the number of incidents in the surrounding community.

The newly awarded three-year DOJ grant will allow Edmonds CC to build upon this work and expand its reach to vulnerable populations on campus and in the community. The team will also continue to offer Alteristic’s Green Dot Bystander Intervention training to employees and partner with Green River College in Auburn, Wash. to help it implement similar services and resources.

“We want to spread the message that violence in our community is not OK, and have that be the norm,” Griffith said, “and that everyone has a responsibility to do their part.”

For more information on healthy relationships and preventing relationship violence, visit violence prevention.

Edmonds CC’s Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention Month events:

• Counseling and Resource Center Open House
  9:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 11
  Mountlake Terrace Hall, room 145
• Free on-campus HIV testing provided by Lifelong
  10 a.m.-2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 11
  Campus Courtyard between Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace halls
• National Coming Out Day
  11 a.m.-1 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 11
  Brier Hall lobby
• HEART Campus Conversation
  How Can I Use My Voice for Change? An EdCC Student Story
  3:30-4:45 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 16
  Lynnwood Hall, room 210
• International Student Services Advising Workshop
  Friendship and Dating Culture in the US
  4:30-5:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 22
  Snohomish Hall, room 336
• Film Screening: “The Mask You Live In” and facilitated Q&A
  12:30-3 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 23
  Center for Student Cultural Diversity and Inclusion, Brier Hall, room 154
• Purple Thursday: Make a fashion statement that really says something: Wear purple to honor victims and support survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.
  10 a.m.-2 p.m Thursday, Oct. 25
  Table in Brier Hall lobby hosted by Queer Action Team and LGBTQ "We Got Y'all" Club
•  HEART Campus Conversation
  To Swipe or Not to Swipe: A Dating App Panel Discussion
  3:30-4:45 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 30
  Lynnwood Hall, room 210

All events are free and open to the public. They are co-sponsored by Arts, Culture, and Civic Engagement (ACCE), Equity and Inclusion, Counseling Resource Center, Wellness Center, Queer Action Team, International Student Services, Center for Student Engagement and Leadership, Domestic Violence Services of Snohomish County, Providence Intervention Center for Assault and Abuse, and HEART, see campus map and directions .