On February 17, Marian University held an event that is relatively new to the Marian Community, titled, “In Her Shoes.” This event aimed to be a resource to prevent domestic and dating violence among teens by providing a simulation-like experience that walking through domestic violence situations.

The event was put on through the Domestic Violence Network, or DVN, a nonprofit organization that provides educational resources in order to prevent this type of violence among adults and teens. DVN is about to celebrate its 25 year anniversary. Ash Rathwell, training services manager, visited Marian to put on this event for students. Ash said, “We really try to empower young people with what to do if they are experiencing this.” DVN visits Marian about twice a year to put on these simulations, and another event will be held in the fall.

Sarah Balana-Molter is a chair with the Marian Coalition to end sexual assault. This group is made up of faculty and staff and aims to provide efforts for the prevention of dating and domestic violence. They are currently providing events on months such as teen dating violence awareness month, and sexual assault awareness month. Sarah said, “I want to make sure we do events like this to bring education to the students.”

While the, “In Her Shoes,” simulation is a relatively new resource for students, Marian also has existing efforts that have already been created and are in place. There are confidential resources for domestic and dating violence with the student counseling center. There are also non-confidential resources with the Dean of Students, Title IX Coordinator, and MUPD. According to the CDC, the numbers for teen dating violence are going down, but are still prominent. 1 in 12 teens experiences physical violence in dating, as well as sexual violence. It is important to put on these events so that awareness and attention are brought to the subject, in hopes that the events will prevent this type of violence.