How often have you heard a teenager, student, and/or parents make statements such as, “All guys are jerks” and/or “All girls are trouble“? Often people use derogatory generalizations to scare younger individuals from dating and/or to help a friend “feel better” after being unhappy in a relationship. Watch this episode of DSP TV to see if such statements are helpful.
Discussing the 4 letter “F” word with your students
Yes, you need to talk with students of all ages (teenagers, middle school, high school, college, university) about the “4 letter F word” and so openly. Watch today’s video to see why this lesson is important:
Discussion on alcohol and sexual assault
Was informed today my response to the question, “How can the link between alcohol and sexual violence be best taught to students?” has been posted on Outside The Classroom’s website: http://www.outsidetheclassroom.com!
Join the conversation and share your thoughts!
Central Washington University Students Drugged at Party AND the Reaction
A party was thrown about 30 miles from Central Washington University this past weekend in Roslyn, Washington. 9 students were rushed to a hospital due to what is suspected to be alcohol spiked with a drug (many suspect a “date rape” drug was involved).
Our hearts go out to the students effected and to the many wonderful people at Central Washington University who we have been blessed to work with.
One aspect which needs to be discussed is what is currently being reported by news mediums. Here are concerning factors which have been reported (we are summarizing based off multiple media sources):
1) Read the following report from the Yakima Herald:
A Kittitas County sheriff’s deputy reported seeing a man performing a sex act on his semi-conscious girlfriend. The man was not arrested, but the incident remains under investigation because of the woman’s possible inability to consent.
If she was semi-conscious, she would have NO ABILITY TO CONSENT (by the laws of almost every state in the USA). Do police departments release a rapist they catch in the act of a sexual assault? The typical answer is “NO” which leaves the impression that somehow the sexual assault in this case wasn’t as “serious” or criminal because he was a boyfriend. Unacceptable. The officers walked into the room and VISUALLY SAW what was occurring. That kind of police evidence rarely occurs. Do not get me wrong. Police officers across the country have my support because they do vital work in helping convict predators. In this case, the authorities need to take a much stronger stance (the correct stance).
2) Debates are abound on whether the students who were drugged will be charged with underage drinking. Across the country on many campuses, they have a policy that if someone drugs you while you are drinking, you will NOT BE CHARGED with underage drinking when you seek help or receive medical aid. The reason this policy is important is because you want to ENCOURAGE students to seek medical help (not deter them). In the case of sexual assaults, you never want a sexual assault survivor to fear being charged with a crime and thus not come forward.
Keep an eye on this case and see if news outlets and/or media sources discuss this elements of the party. Leave your comments below!
Bearcats Love Cheri
As you may know, the person who inspired me to want to speak out originally back in the early 90s was my sister Cheri, an amazing survivor. Tonight, a campus ASKED to honor Cheri in a video statement. Northwest Missouri State University students unanimously voted to have the following video filmed. I was moved and thrilled to be able to put a video on YouTube with such a special message to share with the world. Please watch the video below and then Leave a Comment:
Students and Customer Service
Do you work with students? When they first approach, do you think, “How can I help this student today? How can I make his or her day AWESOME?” Imagine if every student felt educators and professionals had that goal in mind for them.
In the past 24 hours, I was doused with great customer service. Last night driving to speak at Vassar College, my back tire blew in a remote, restricted road. I was only 15 miles from the campus, yet tow trucks weren’t allowed in that area without the State Police coming by first. I was being told it could take over an hour. Uh oh. Thank goodness, I left early for “just in case” moments like this. Suddenly, a state highway truck pulled up. He said when the call went to the state police, he noticed. In 10 minutes, he had me on my way with a fantastic attitude!!
Today on my flight from DC to Kansas City (yes first I flew from NY to DC), our flight attendant was one of the best I’ve ever experienced. His name was Joe, a retired police officer who took JOY in having fun with everyone (co-workers, customers, etc…). He told us all how much people take their jobs too seriously. He wanted everyone on the flight to have fun. I almost didn’t want to sleep just to see what more he would do.
Then arriving at my hotel in Kansas City, Sarah lit up the room as she welcomed you to the property. She wanted you to know to help yourself to anything you needed and you could have unlimited numbers of water bottles.
Now imagine we treated those we care about with the AMAZING attitude and approach I was blessed to experience today. How more open would everyone be to learning from us?
Keuka goes BIG
Keuka College has me speak to their incoming students each year in the Chapel which is a beautiful location. The seating goes far back and so last night Keuka provided a video screen upfront showing a closeup of the show. The results?
The students in the back were as equally engaged as those in the front row! Great Job to Jen and everyone at Keuka who also raised money for their local crisis center through the sales of “Can I Kiss You?” shirts and books.
Watch the video below:
St. Lawrence raises MONEY at “Can I Kiss You?” Show.
Last night, St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY had 2 great turnouts. Due to the size of their incoming class, they have me present the “Can I Kiss You?” program at 2 different times of 7pm and 9pm. The attendance at each session was wonderful and the interaction and reactions afterward were fantastic.
Chris Morrin runs one of the best student Advocate programs in the WORLD at St. Lawrence. Their numbers of students who are trained as Advocates (referred to as “Sex Positive Violence Prevention”) is amazing, especially for a smaller size campus.
RAISING MONEY!
In addition to the students downloading “Voices of Courage” from our website (as a Gift to give those they care about), they raised a record amount of money from our show. We give 10% of all T-shirt and book SALES at our events to a non-profit organization the individual campus chooses. At the current rate of results, this semester is going to be a record high in donations raised by students purchasing books and shirts. The new shirts are being sought after so much by students that we are frequently running out sizes at the events.
THANKS, ST. LAWRENCE!!
