We're promoting the efforts of UMBC's Green Dot program during Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Please see below and submit your Green Dots to help create awareness about bystander intervention!

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UMBC Green Dot is proud to be part of UMBC’s virtual Sexual Assault Awareness Month, which brings people together to create and generate discussion and skill-building on how to prevent sexual violence in our schools, workplaces, and communities. We won’t be able to physically come together this month to do the work of changing our campus culture to make sexual assault, relationship violence, and stalking unacceptable. However, we have this opportunity to reflect and plan on the steps each and every one of us have taken or will take to do so.

Please take a few minutes and navigate to this page to share your Green Dots.

Tell us how you have or will take a stand to prevent power-based personal violence. We will curate and post your responses next week.

And be sure to follow UMBC Green Dot on myUMBC, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for updates and information all year long!

In the absence of physical space to learn, create, and come together, the Women’s Center is taking Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) 2020 online. Each week during April, we will focus on a specific topic/theme as it relates to sexual violence awareness and prevention (see image below). Together, via out social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, we can watch videos, read articles, and engage in other content for learning and skill-building.

Were you taking a break from social media last week? That’s great! But it doesn’t mean you have to miss anything. In addition to posting on social media throughout the month, at the end of each week, we’ll provide a round-up of all the content we shared along with some action items to consider doing.

We just wrapped up week three of SAAM and spent the last several days discussing the importance of believing and honoring survivors stories through the following content:

1. Have you heard of the Clothesline Project?  Every year students, faculty, and staff  make t-shirts describing their experience with relationship violence and sexual assault. Typically these t-shirts would be hung shoulder-to-shoulder on a clothesline for public viewing, as if the survivors are there themselves, telling us their stories. The Clothesline Project gives voice to the experiences of survivors, victims, family, and friends who have been affected by violence. This year, we are creating a virtual Clothesline Project as a way of continuing to honor survivors stories.  Submissions can be found on our social media.

2. Take Back The Night

Take Back the Night is an annual event that brings awareness to sexual violence and creates public space for survivors of sexual violence to share their stories. It’s something many of us look forward to every year as a time for community, strength, and healing. It would have been held on April 16th.  Although we couldn’t come together in person, we still wanted to honor the stories of survivors at UMBC. Watch this video to learn more.

3. Chanel Miller’s book “Know My Name”

Chanel Miller’s book is a powerful memoir of strength and survival. Read her words and honor her story, and the stories of all survivors. 

Important Take-Away:

→ Listen to Survivors stories. Without judgement and without questions.

→ Believe Survivors. No matter what they were wearing, what they were drinking, or what they did afterwards. Believe them. 

Now that you’ve got some good items in your tool kit, what will you do with them? Here’s some Action Items:

• Watch a movie or TV show centered on survivors’ experiences.  “The Hunting Ground” and “Unbelievable” are unflinching looks into the reality of the sexual assault crisis in the United States. “Nanette” and “Rape Jokes” are hilarious comedy specials that critique rape culture from a survivors perspective. 
• Listen to Chanel Millers “Give a Damn Speech”. Delivered at the Glamour Woman of the Year awards, her speech is an important reminder to not just believe survivors, but give a damn about them. The speech can be found here.
• Reflect on how you interact with the survivors in your life. Take what you’ve learned and implement it!

Follow the Women’s Center on myUMBC,  Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for SAAM updates and information throughout the month of April. You can also stay up-to-date by following #UMBCsaam 

Throughout this time of distance learning, campus staff are still here and available for support. Do not hesitate to reach out for questions, concerns, or care.

On-Campus Resources Available for Virtual Support: 

• Counseling Center
• Office of Equity and Inclusion 
• University Health Services
• Women’s Center
• Visit Retriever Courage for a full list of campus resources and support to include resources for USG students, faculty, and staff 
• For up-to-date details on how to access these resources during this time of distance learning visit UMBC’s COVID-19 resources page.

To report a complaint of sexual misconduct or discrimination, please submit this online form. 

Bringing Theory to Practice (BTtoP) supports practices in undergraduate education that "nurture active and integrative learning, personal well-being, preparation for meaningful work, and democratic citizenship." With a Multi-Institutional Innovation Grant from BTtoP, David Hoffman and Romy Hübler from UMBC's Center for Democracy and Civic Life, along with national partners, are developing tools for educators and students to use in cultivating, practicing, and promoting civic courage.

The April 15, 2020 edition of Bringing Theory to Practice's newsletter Bringing It features the project in a Grantee Spotlight prepared by the people collaborating on the project:

At a moment when we must practice social distancing to sustain life and health, all of us in higher education can plant the seeds of enhanced civic proximity. With support from a BTtoP Multi-Institutional Innovation Grant, David Hoffman and Romy Hübler (Center for Democracy and Civic Life, UMBC), Melissa Baker-Boosamra (Office of Student Life, Grand Valley State University) and Craig Berger (Community Engaged Learning, Kent State University) are developing tools educators and students can use to build skills and foster dispositions to support civic proximity and engagement in a wide variety of settings, including within institutions. The initial products of their collaboration, a Civic Courage Reflection Workshop facilitation guide and worksheet, help workshop participants to recognize aspects of civic courage beyond a willingness to take a risk for a cause, reflect on their past experiences with this expanded understanding of civic courage in mind, and identify opportunities to practice civic courage now and in the future. 

Participants in pilot workshops have shared that they have gained new insights about how to deal with challenges in their own workplace and organizational settings by using foresight, looking for opportunities to collaborate, and practicing strategic patience. The facilitation guide, worksheet, and other tools to be developed align with theCivic Learning and Democratic Engagement Theory of Change, which describes how higher education can extend and deepen its support for students as co-creators of a thriving democracy.

Please register to attend and post any questions you may have.

Virtual Town Hall: Research and Creative Achievement under COVID-19

Friday, April 17 from 11:00 am to 12:30pm

Panelists:

• Karl V. Steiner, Vice President for Research
• Dean Drake, Associate Vice President for Research
• Don Engel, Assistant Vice President for Research
• Chuck Bieberich, Associate Dean for Research, CNMS
• Erin Lavik, Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Development, COEIT
• Preminda Jacob, Associate Dean for Research and Community Engagement, CAHSS

Agenda:

• UMBC Research Maintenance Mode: Status and Update – Karl Steiner
• UMBC Research Financials in FY20, Recent Faculty Success and Looking Ahead – Karl Steiner
• Sponsor Guidance related to COVID-19 – Dean Drake
• Funding Landscape in Response to COVID-19 – Don Engel
• Internal Resources – Stan Jackson (OSP), Tim Sparklin (ORPC), Aimee Howell, Joanna Napoli (OCGA), Chanell Rome (RAS – Kuali), Wendy Martin (OTD)
• Considerations for Re-opening of Research and Studio Facilities – Karl Steiner, Chuck Bieberich, Erin Lavik, Preminda Jacob
• Q&A – Karl Steiner, Moderator

Questions:

Due to the expected number of participants, we ask that you submit questions in advance. Please submit your questions when registering for the Town Hall – see below.

Registration:

Please register in advance for this Virtual Town Hall and submit questions at the Town Hall website. Upon registration you will receive a confirmation email with details on joining the WebEx meeting.

For more information, please visit the OSP posting or contact OSP directly.

**Global Pathways for Students (GPS) program connects 20 - 25 globally minded, rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors to international companies here in Baltimore. The program aims to expose these students to a wide array of companies, careers, and opportunities in international business.  The goal is to keep global talent local and to help these students build their professional networks.  Due to current conditions, GPS will be virtual for this year’s program and will run from May 27th to June 5th.

We expect the virtual program to offer all of the same transformative content, plus more and we’re extremely excited. Some of this year’s participating companies include: Lockheed Martin, Stanley Black & Decker, Ciena, and McCormick & Company. Here’s a quick video recap highlighting last year’s program. 

For more information visit:  http://www.wtci.org/gps/. The application deadline is April 30th so please apply sooner than later! There is a $250 program fee, but WTCI is aware of the financial implications of COVID-19 on many students and have scholarships available to subsidize the program cost for students in need.**

In the absence of physical space to learn, create, and come together, the Women’s Center is taking Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) 2020 online. Each week during April, we will focus on a specific topic/theme as it relates to sexual violence awareness and prevention (see image below). Together, via out social media platforms like Facebook,Twitter, and Instagram, we can watch videos, read articles, and engage in other content for learning and skill-building.

Have you been taking a break from social media? Missed a few posts? That’s okay! In addition to posting on social media throughout the month, at the end of each week, we’ll provide a round-up of all the content we shared along with some action items to consider doing.

We just wrapped up week two of SAAM and spent the last several days exploring rape narratives and myths through the following content:

1.What is rape culture? Rape culture is a sociological concept for a setting in which sexual violence is pervasive,  normalized, or encouraged due to societal attitudes about gender and sexuality. As exemplified in this image, tolerance of things at the bottom leads to excusing the behaviors at the top. 

2. The prevalence of rape myths reinforces a very narrow definition of what sexual violence/rape is and how and when it happens. By deconstructing rape myths, we enable survivors to better access support and healing by ending a culture that blames victims. Learn more at Everyday Feminism

Want even more to read about this topic? Check out this list of books!

3. The phrase “Boys will be boys” is an “explain-away” that can work to reinforce rape culture (think back to that pyramid!). 

Here is a helpful article from the Good Men Project that further explains the importance of unlearning to use this phrase, but first, take a listen to one of Dua Lipa’s newest songs, “Boys Will Be Boys” which adresses sexual harassment some women (and also some LGBTQ folks) experience. What do you think?

4. What about implicit biases? So much of media is focused on “the perfect victim,” but this stereotype perpetuates dangerous myths that limit our understanding of the broad ways in which rape impacts people. Check out this video to learn more. 

What about LGBTQ survivors?  We live in a world where “heterosexuality” is default, and also where we are told that victims are women and rapists are men; however, in creating and perpetuating this rape myth, we are silencing a vast majority of survivor stories whose experiences reflect their LGBTQ identities. Read more in this vice article.

Important Take-Away:

→ Remember the pyramid! Tolerance of sexist attitudes, rape jokes, and catcalling all contribute to perpetuating rape culture. 

→ Examine your implicit biases. There’s no such thing as a “perfect victim”, and far too many LGBTQ survivors are silenced by steryotypes and rape myths. 

→ Cut out language that promotes rape culture. Never say “Boys will be boys”! 

Now that you’ve got some good readings in your tool kit, what will you do with them? Here’s some Action Items:

• Reflect on any implicit biases you might not realize you have. Read some of the articles we posted, reflect on your own beliefs, and start a conversation. 
• Share one of the articles above on your social media platforms. Ask your friends or family members if they’d be willing to engage in a conversation with you about one of the takeaways that stood out to you.
• Learn more about how to cultivate a culture of consent. Here’s one more video on consent you can watch and share! Are you on twitter? Read more tweets written by Spring Up here, and feel free to use their proposed tweets – they gave their consent! 

Follow the Women’s Center on myUMBC,  Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for SAAM updates and information throughout the month of April. You can also stay up-to-date by following #UMBCsaam 

Throughout this time of distance learning, campus staff are still here and available for support. Do not hesitate to reach out for questions, concerns, or care.

On-Campus Resources Available for Virtual Support: 

• Counseling Center
• Office of Equity and Inclusion 
• University Health Services
• Women’s Center
• Visit Retriever Courage for a full list of campus resources and support to include resources for USG students, faculty, and staff 
• For up-to-date details on how to access these resources during this time of distance learning visit UMBC’s COVID-19 resources page.

To report a complaint of sexual misconduct or discrimination, please submit this online form.