Some people have said that the Coalition Against Sexual Violence's approach is too extreme, and turns people away from the topic, but Lauren Allswede, advocacy coordinator for the MSU Sexual Assault Program thinks that the attention now swarming around the subject may be a good thing for MSU, since rape is a big issue on almost all college campuses.
"I think it's good anytime there's this much dialogue surrounding sexual violence and university response," Allswede said. "This is a very important issue and should be highlighted more often, so I'm glad for the raised awareness and attention to such an important topic."
Allswede, along with Shari Murgittroyd, who is also a coordinator for the MSU Sexual Assault Program, agree that it is important for students, as well as members of the East Lansing community to utilize the services provided to victims and those looking to become more aware of the topic.
According to Murgittroyd, 1 in 4 women will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetimes, and women ages 16-24 are at the highest risk for being sexually assaulting, making it especially important to provide services for college-aged students.
The MSU Sexual Assault Program serves about 400 clients a year, with about 120 of them being MSU students according to Murgittroyd.
The program provides prevention education programming that consists of sexual violence awareness presentations, as well as multi-session workshops to the university community. The program also has a 24-hour crisis line, which provides resources for sexual assault survivors and forms of counseling.
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