It’s hard to believe that 20 years ago, if a student was sexually assaulted, harassed or abused, whether it happened on or off campus, the specific services and support to help that student didn’t exist.
In an attempt to address this void, various campus entities such as the University Counseling & Testing Center, the UO Women’s Center, the Office of Student Life, Assault Prevention Services and the LGBTQA office joined together with off-campus organizations including Womenspace, Lane County Victim Services and Sacred Heart to provide comprehensive services for survivors. They quickly realized that the need was great and the services necessary were highly specialized.
The “Unwanted Sexual Behavior Task Force,” now known as the Alliance for Sexual Assault Prevention, issued a call for the formation of a committee composed of campus and community members to come together to work on creating a new nonprofit organization. Thus, through the work of this group, Sexual Assault Support Services was born in October 1991. Today, SASS continues to offers advocacy for survivors, community education through workshops and presentations, self-defense courses and volunteer opportunities.
It also partners with the UO Women’s Center to organize Take Back the Night, which will take place today at 6:30 p.m. in the EMU Amphitheater.
Unfortunately, sexual violence is still one of the most critical issues affecting the lives of students. According to the U.S. Department of Justice and National Institute of Justice in 2000, 20 to 25 percent of women will be raped during their college career. Based on this research, one in four University college-aged women will experience some form of sexual assault. However, students today no longer need to go through that crisis alone. For less than $2 per student per term, incidental fees for this service cover ongoing sexual assault awareness and prevention activities as well as wrap around care in the form of advocacy and support. This equates to less than 50 cents per student, per term.
Through the collaborative work of SASS and the campus community including Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners through the UO Health Center, Sexual Wellness Advocacy Team, the UO Women’s Center, the Office of Student Life and the UO Counseling Center, an infrastructure of sexual assault prevention programming has developed, making professional sexual assault crisis intervention, support, and advocacy available to all students 24/7.
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