October 10, 2016
Bradley Umpleby
We may encounter unexpected dangers at any given moment, but we can also learn what to do in these situations.
The Student Government Association senate passed Student Bill 01 at their seventh senate meeting on Sept. 29.
SB-01 reestablished the Never-a-Victim Self-Defense Workshop, which is scheduled on Oct. 30 from 1-5 p.m. and Nov. 30 from 5-9 p.m. The decision was passed by a 12-0 vote.
Never-a-Victim covers a variety of topics that will prepare participants for unsafe circumstances.
These topics include statistics on violence against women, prevention, domestic violence awareness, situational awareness and what to do after an attack.
The location for the workshops is currently unestablished, but they are expected to be held in on-campus housing or the public safety building, according to Melanie Strescino, police administrative programs specialist.
SGA allocated $2,467.80 toward the SB-01 bill, according to Shawn Hendrickson, senate pro-tempore. SB- 01 was originally known as SB-02, which previously had $1,412.55 in allocated funds.
The fund increase will change the amount of workshops from three, four-hour sessions to multiple five-hour sessions in the future.
Survey feedback, conducted by UCCS police Sgt. Lisa Dipzinski, suggested that there should be more sessions to help students gain a higher comprehension of self-defense.
Sessions are open to the public, but women mainly attend the workshops.
“As of right now, the workshops are mainly directed toward the female audience, but we are working on making these sessions open to both male and female participants so that everyone can have a higher knowledge in self-defense training,” said Hendrickson.
According to Strescino, all participants are welcome to sign up and volunteer at public safety or register on the events calendar.
“All students have to do is notify public safety, and they will need to sign a waiver prior to participation,” said Strescino.