Jacquelyn Amaral is a sophomore at Bryant University that recently began working with the Katie Brown Educational Program, and along with the help of other Bryant students, has organized an upcoming event that will address dating violence.
HC: Tell us a little about the Katie Brown Educational Program (KBEP)
JA: KBEP is an educational non-profit that is based out of Fall River, MA. They have classes and seminars for students from 4th grade to college level, as well as adults. They mostly talk about dating violence, what consent is, etc. For the younger kids they mostly talk about what to do if someone makes you uncomfortable, and to know to reach out to an adult or someone they trust. Katie Brown was a young woman who was killed by her high school sweetheart in 2001, so the organization tries to give light to her death and educate people about the signs of dating violence.
HC: How and why did you choose to become involved with KBEP?
JA: Originally, my management group and I wanted to work with a children’s organization, but after attending the non-profit fair we felt that KBEP really stuck out to us as a group. We decided that we wanted to spread more awareness about dating violence on college campuses because it is an issue that is not talked about enough.
HC: What is the mission of KBEP and how do you plan to help them achieve that?
JA: KBEP’s mission is to spread awareness about relationship/dating violence though educational programs in hopes of eliminating it. They do this through educating students and adults about the warning signs of dating violence and how to know when you should escape and exit a relationship. We have a few different goals to help them achieve this mission, one of them being the RSVP event that we are hosting.
HC: Tell us a little about the Relationship and Sexual Violence Program (RSVP) that you are hosting.
JA: RSVP is a seminar that we are hosting in M33 and M39 on Wednesday, November 15th, at 4:00pm. This educational program will be similar to a gateway session, but is taught by two educators from KBEP. It will be an interactive program that will discuss what dating violence is, what the warning signs are, and what consent is.
HC: Why do you think that this is an important message to display on college campuses?
JA: We feel that there is a gap in discussing dating violence at Bryant University. We talk about Title XI and domestic violence during orientation and the ethics events, but we don’t necessarily talk about dating violence on campus. This is an issue that is active, and people don’t know about it, or don’t feel like it happens. We want to raise awareness for this issue and give people the tools they need to understand if they are in an unhealthy relationship.
HC: Can we expect to see any other events following RSVP?
JA: There probably won’t be any more events this semester from us, as KBEP is a small organization with only three educators to give all their presentations at many different schools, but definitely expect to see more from KBEP in the future at Bryant.
HC: How can we all help KBEP make an impact on ending dating violence?
JA: You can help make an impact by attending the event, donating to our gofundme, or going to our Chipotle fundraiser on November 13th, from 5pm-9pm. Donating to the cause allows KBEP to hold more programs on campus and continue to educate students on this topic.
HC: What have you personally taken away from working with KBEP and organizing RSVP?
JA: One thing I can take away from this experience is that non-profits need help from the community to function. There are usually not a lot of workers, and their goal is to help the greater good but they cannot do that without the support of the community.
Please help support KBEP and learn more about the warning signs of dating violence by attending the RSVP event in M33 and M39 on Wednesday, November 15th!
Her Campus Bryant is a proud supporter of this event