Contact: Sammy McDavid
Advocacy, information and education are the goals of Sept. 20-24 Sexual Assault Awareness Week at Mississippi State University.
"Do You Know 'NO'?" is the theme of more than 30 public events being organized and supported by nearly 20 campus and community organizations.
Most activities will be held in the Colvard Union. Others on campus will take place in the auditoriums of Lee and Simrall halls and the Bost Extension Center.
The schedule begins at 6:30 p.m. on the 20th with a presentation at Starkville's Trinity Presbyterian Church titled "It Could Happen to You." The church is located at 607 Hospital Road.
At mid-week, three programs will be led by this year's keynote speaker, Luoluo Hong of Louisiana State University. Wellness education coordinator for the LSU Student Health Center, she is an authority on violence reduction, substance abuse prevention, sexual health, and related areas.
Hong, also now serving as chair of the American College Health Education Association's Campus Violence Task Force, will speak on the 23rd at sessions in the union's third-floor small auditorium. Her presentations include "The Date that Lasts a Lifetime" at 10 a.m., "Leadership into the Next Millennium" at a noon brown-bag lunch and "When Someone You Know is Raped: Responding to a Crisis" at 2 p.m.
Concluding the week will be a campus "Take Back the Night Rally" at 6 p.m. on the 24th. Beginning near the intersection of Hilltop Circle and Hillside Drive (south Sorority/Fraternity Row area), the 75-minute gathering will travel to the MSU Amphitheater for a candlelight ceremony commemorating all sexual assault victims. Professional counselors will be available.
For a complete schedule of the week's many events, telephone Leigh Jensen in the Division of Student Affairs at (601) 325-2218.