Why would I choose to do a School of Public Affairs newsletter recounting the events of Domestic Violence Awareness Month? It seemed pretty limited in its appeal especially to those alumni who had Master of Public Administration degrees, until I actually got involved.

At the beginning of the month, Dr. Katie Kaukinen, Associate Professor at the School of Public Affairs and Dr. Susan Swank, a psychologist at the University Counseling Center, spoke at the Rocky Mountain College Health Association Conference. The Rocky Mountain College Health Association is the regional affiliation of the American College Health Association (http://www.acha.org/), a group whose advocacy webpage is headed “Speak out, Change Policy, Shape the Future. This heading is then explained, “ACHA's Advocacy Coalition continually identifies advocacy issues that are important to those in the college health field and provides members with up-to-date information concerning relevant public policy issues affecting college health.” So this presentation to the RMCHA  on “Interpersonal Violence in the Lives of Students: Addressing Dating Violence” was to an organization that advocates and shapes policy.

Dr. Katie Kaukinen  spoke later in the month to the UCCS community on the fact that domestic violence laws are working and statistics show sharp declines in violence against women over the past 30 years; however, she also noted that a recent shooting at Seal Beach, California and efforts by Topeka, Kansas to discontinue domestic violence prosecutions in the wake of a municipal budget shortfall serve as examples of why community leaders must be vigilant. Again, the connection to public affairs is obvious. (http://communique.uccs.edu/?p=4951)

On October 25, individuals from a variety of offices on the UCCS campus from Public Safety and MOSAIC to Campus Recreation and Recruitment gathered for an activity “In Their Shoes,” a scenario based activity designed to help participants experience what dating violence and domestic violence can be like to the victim. What became obvious to those who attended  is that domestic violence  impacts schools, universities, social services, police departments even city structures and makes blatant their weaknesses and strengths.

Finally, “Reviving Ophelia” was shown to students. What followed was a “powerful” conversation among students revealing how pervasive the problems of domestic and dating violence are.

Domestic and dating violence is an important topic for everyone.

All activities during Domestic Violence Awareness Month were funded by the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) through the U.S. Office of Justice Programs (OJP).

Sincerely,
Cheri Lee
School of Public Affairs