When the Connecticut College women’s lacrosse team takes the field against Roger Williams University on April 4, they’ll be raising awareness for Green Dot, a campus initiative to prevent power-based personal violence through bystander intervention.
Team members and fans will wear Green Dot apparel and trained students will be on-hand to distribute information about the program, part of the College's broader Think S.A.F.E. Project. Funded through a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against Women, the Think S.A.F.E. project addresses sexual assault, dating violence and stalking by integrating prevention, response training and education into the campus culture, building a community coalition and enhancing victim services.
The Green Dot game is the third athletic event — after two men’s hockey games — to connect Green Dot with the College’s athletic programs.
“Research tells us that student athletes are cultural change agents on college campuses,” said Darcie Folsom, coordinator of sexual violence education and advocacy at Connecticut College. “And at a college like ours — where one-third of students are varsity athletes — having athletes involved in initiatives that support healthy relationships is critical to our success.”
Student athletes have been key to building awareness of the College’s Green Dot program since its inception on campus in 2010 and more than 25 percent of the students who have completed the six-hour Green Dot training class are athletes, including 10 of the 24 women’s lacrosse players.
The game is supported in part by a grant from the philanthropic arm of beauty and fashion boutique mark. “m.powerment by mark. Healthy Relationship College Program,” is managed by the Avon Foundation for Women and its Speak Out Against Domestic Violence initiative.
The game is at 7:30 p.m. on Lyn & David Silfen Track and Field.