Peru State Sponsors SAAM 2021

(Peru, Neb.) – April was Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM). The Peru State campus was able to experience SAAM to its fullest without the concern of a pandemic as it did in 2020.
 
The campus committee began planning for the month in late February and had a robust agenda for the month. The following is a small summary of how SAAM was shared on the College's campus.
 
The first sign of activity began on April 5 as students, faculty, and staff tied hundreds of trees and light poles in teal, the SAAM awareness color. It was estimated that over 1,000 yards of ribbon was tied on the campus and nearby areas. In addition, 25 yard signs were placed throughout the campus to ensure everyone understood why the teal ribbons were installed. Also, 50 table tents with a calendar of SAAM activities were place on the cafeteria dining tables in the Student Center.

 
"Wear Teal Tuesdays" were introduced with over 650 awareness ribbons and 600 fabric facemasks being distributed throughout the month. The Bobcat softball team took part by wearing teal ribbons in their hair at one of their home softball games.
 
On April 7, the documentary, "I Am Evidence," was shown in the Performing Art Center (PAC) with over 60 attending the event. Following the documentary, a panel moderated by Stephanie Huddle, instructor of criminal justice at the College, discussed aspects of the film and responded to questions. Those on the panel included Jodi Hayes, a MSN, RN, BC, SANE-A, Forensic Nurse Examiner (FNE), and SANE Supervisor for the CHI Health System and Brittny Hermann and Trisha Cusick, both BSN-RN and FNE at CHI St. Mary's Hospital in Nebraska City. The event counseling support was provided by Jamie Eberly, one of the College's licensed student counselors.
 
The event's audience evaluation was very positive with all noting that it exceeded or met their expectations. One of the many comments from the evaluations noted, "I hope this will bring more awareness to this issue and in the future, more rape kits will be tested, especially in Nebraska since we had representatives of CHI St. Mary's. Another thing that I hope changes in the future is more compassion for victims."
 
Another part of the month-long events was the installation of "What were you wearing?" which was a survivor arts installation. It was displayed in the upper level of the PAC from April 6-30. Art students interpreted survivor statements and contributed the clothing in the display. The installation was directed by Susan Moore, assistant professor of art at the College. 45 individuals signed the guest book during the month. There were 19 messages left in support of the installation.
 
On April 22, the Cats 4 Consent March and Cover the Cruiser event was held. The event was attended by at least 50. Remarks were presented by the College's First Lady Elaine Hanson, Alyssa Cline from Project Response, Samantha Hernandez – 2021-22 Student Body President, Janell Moore – Licensed Student Counselor, Tim Robertson – Campus Security Director, and Dr. Susanne Williams – SAAM planning committee chair. Peru State junior Matthew Leininger (Auburn) led the march with his drums. Media coverage was provided by NewsChannelNebraska.
 
"Natural Shocks" was presented on April 27 by the Peru Theatre Company in the PAC. The staged reading featured Joslyn Edmond (Odell) and was directed by Laura Lippman, assistant professor of theatre arts. Aly Foster (Indianola) served as the assistant director and provided stage directions. A total of 41 individuals attended the two different performances which included a panel discussion by Edmond, Foster, Lippman, Moore, and Cline.
 
As part of the month-long activities, the Peru Association of Student Athletes (PASA) challenged its respective teams to gather supplies for Project Response. The team collecting the most donations would earn $100 for their fundraising account. The bowling teams led the way with 228 items. In total, 661 items were donated to Project Response. Heading the challenge for PASA were competitive dance team member Addison Gyhra (Auburn), volleyball player Mattie Nichols (Auburn), and football player Garrison Dodge (Oakland).
 
A SAAM information table was set up in the lobby of the Student Center for the entire month with a variety of items which were available for anyone to take and use. This included the facemasks, ribbons, pledge cards, bracelets, and a variety of handouts.

 
The Clothesline Project took place near the end of the month. Twelve shirts were decorated by students in the residence halls. On-duty resident assistants encouraged students to decorate a shirt with messages of support or anonymous personal stories. The installation was placed on the second floor balcony of the Student Center.
 
The month-long events received a lot of play via different means of social media. On the @pscbobcats twitter, five (5) different posts had 6,993 impressions, 175 engagements, 20 likes, and 12 retweets. On the College's Facebook page, the eight (8) different items reached 17,751 people, had 3,049 engagements, had 430 likes, and were shared 53 times. In addition, there were additional numbers on the Bobcat Life App and the Bobcat Life Facebook page.
 
In data provided by NewsChannelNebraska employee Dan Swanson, the SAAM story written by Swanson, had the following media coverage: B103 FM Facebook Page – 1,915 reached and 35 engagements of post clicks, likes, comments and shares; Otoe County Country Facebook Page – 587 reached and 16 engagements; and NewsChannelNebraska Facebook Page – 4,636 reached and 46 engagements, including seven (7) shares. It was estimated that via B103 FM's website that the story reached at least 20,000.
 
Of those responding to the end-of-the-event survey, 96% attended or participated in at least one SAAM activity or event. In addition, 62% of the respondents were somewhat (37%) or absolutely (25%) more confident to talk to others about sexual assault because of the campus observation of SAAM. Also, 56% noted they had engaged in at least one conversation about sexual assault because of the campus observation of SAAM.

 
The most impactful aspects of SAAM were identified by survey respondents as the "What were you wearing?" survivor installation and the visibility of teal worn by people and installed throughout the campus. One of the more interesting comments came from an Admissions Office ambassador who stated, "I was giving tours and the parents and students asked about it. They saw the effort and engaged in conversation."
 
SAAM committee chair Susanne Williams was happy with how the month went. She noted, "Because of our collaborative efforts, SAAM 2021 engaged our campus community at every level. Students, staff, and faculty could choose the degree to which they wanted to be involved. Whether it was simply wearing a teal awareness ribbon, attending a presentation, or marching in the Cats4Consent walk, together, we reinforced our culture of respect, compassion, and support for victims of sexual violence."
  
Members of the committee joining Dr. Williams in the planning included faculty members Stephanie Huddle – Criminal Justice, Laura Lippman – Theatre, and Susan Moore – Art. Staff members included Eulanda Cade – Human Resources, Clara Edwards – Res Life, and Ted L. Harshbarger – Athletics. Student committee members were Addison Gyhra – PASA rep, Daniels Lagunas (Hastings) – resident assistant, Gretchen Tharp (Rock Port, Mo.) – resident assistant, Samantha Hernandez (Columbus) – Student Senate, and Sophie Horvath (LaVista) – Student Senate.