SA to continue It’s On Us campaign

Student+Association+President+Nathan+Lupstein+works+at+his+desktop+on+May+4+in+the+Campus+Activities+Board+office.+Lupstein+wants+to+incorporate+sexual+assault+awareness+into+UNIV+101%2F202.+%C2%A0

Student Association President Nathan Lupstein works at his desktop on May 4 in the Campus Activities Board office. Lupstein wants to incorporate sexual assault awareness into UNIV 101/202.  

By Jackie Nevarez

Student Association President Nathan Lupstein said the SA will continue to promote the It’s On Us sexual assault prevention campaign with a demonstration day in November.

The SA partnered with It’s On Us, a presidential task force that aims to work with universities to prevent sexual assault in fall 2014 and is one of more than 200 student leader groups the White House has partnered with for the national campaign.

“We don’t think, as a cabinet, that it gained enough attention last year,” Lupstein said. “There’s a lot more that we could’ve been doing and that we can still be to make sure that presence is much stronger on campus.”

At the event, which will take place Nov. 17, students will be encouraged to sign the campaign’s pledge, available on itsonus.org/#pledge, in the Martin Luther King Jr. Commons. The pledge involves committing to keep men and women safe from sexual assault by recognizing and identifying sexual assault while intervening and creating a safe environment, according to the It’s On Us website. Lupstein said It’s On Us shirts may also be available that day.

Lupstein said he met with the office of First- and Second-Year Experience over the summer to begin to incorporate sexual assault prevention and awareness in the UNIV 101/201 curriculum. UNIV 101/201 courses, which are available to incoming first-year and transfer students, are designed to assist new students in adjusting to NIU.

The SA will also act as a facilitator in providing student organizations with a contact to representatives from Safe Passage, an agency that provides services like crisis intervention and legal advocacy for victims of domestic and sexual violence.

Lupstein said groups may contact the SA to have representatives from Safe Passage speak to them. The SA may be reached at 815-753-0483 or [email protected].