U.S. Sen. Blumenthal: You ought to be very proud of this college

Students Casey Dillon '14, Julia Cristofano '14, Alia Roth '14 and Carter Goffigon '14 were among the many participants in the roundtable discussion with Sen. Richard Blumenthal. Photo courtesy of Alia Roth '14.
Students Casey Dillon '14, Julia Cristofano '14, Alia Roth '14 and Carter Goffigon '14 were among the many participants in the roundtable discussion with Sen. Richard Blumenthal. Photo courtesy of Alia Roth '14.

In a thoughtful “roundtable” discussion, Connecticut College students told U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal Connecticut College is taking the right approach to preventing sexual assault on its campus.

“Our culture is empowering,” senior Alia Roth told Blumenthal. “As students, we’re taught how to harness our outrage and our power for good – and we’ve created a culture shift in a community that is invested in keeping our students safe.”

Blumenthal hosted the discussion on campus Friday with President Katherine Bergeron, students, faculty, staff and guests from the Coast Guard Academy, Safe Futures and Connecticut Sexual Assault Crisis Services (CONNSACS). The discussion was the seventh in a series the senator has facilitated to learn more from students in Connecticut about how their colleges and universities are dealing with the issue of sexual assault. Blumenthal plans to present his findings to the White House task force on preventing sexual assault on college campuses throughout the nation.

“You ought to be very proud of this college for what it has done and the frankness and courage it has shown in addressing this very sensitive and difficult issue,” Blumenthal said after hearing students articulate their involvement in a variety of sexual assault prevention, education and awareness activities and programs that are managed through the College’s Think S.A.F.E. Project.

Darcie Folsom, the College’s director of sexual violence prevention and advocacy, told The Day of New London that she was “impressed with how articulate and passionate the students were” in talking about this important issue.



April 29, 2014