On Friday, March 22, Haverford College’s Center for Health and Wellbeing Education and Haverford College Survivor Collective announced a series of events commemorating Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM).
The events are focused primarily on supporting survivors of assault, while also drawing attention to the pervasiveness of rape culture across the Bi-Co. The month will kick off with a “Pledge to ‘Start believing,'” on April 1, from 11 AM to 1 PM at the Haverford Dining Center foyer. Some of the other events include getting confidential support from experts at the Delaware County Victim Assistance Center, or DELCO, watching feminist films, and writing love letters to survivors. The week will culminate with a “Take Back The Night” rally, in which students and survivors will march across Haverford campus to protest the unsafety they feel at night. “Take Back The Night” originated in England in 1877, but was introduced to the United States in 1978. You can find the full schedule below.
The events will be taking place nearly three months after the Bi-Co News reported on a series of alleged student’s rights violations against Bi-Co members who filed Title IX reports against their colleges. Neither Bryn Mawr nor Haverford College have responded publicly to these allegations.
College-age women and nonbinary people are at particularly high risk for being victims of sexual assault. Current statistics from the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, or RAINN, state that 13% of all students have experienced some form of sexual violence. Among just college women, nearly 26.4% are survivors of sexual violence. According to the US Department of Education, there are 175 ongoing sexual violence-related Title IX cases across the nation in post-secondary education alone.
In January of 2024, Haverford College introduced a new position, Director of Health and Wellbeing Education, in an effort to further support students and survivors. Cary Carr, the new director, spoke to the Bi-Co regarding these events and their importance:
“We didn’t really have a whole lot before… and I think we really wanted to raise awareness about sexual violence on campus. And I don’t think that’s where it should end, with [just] awareness. We need to [also] focus on prevention and education.”
Carr also emphasized the important role that Haverford’s Survivor Collective played in helping to organize the event, and stressed the value of student work. Haverford’s Survivor Collective was founded last year with a mission to “create a survivor-centered space on campus.” It is currently co-headed by Paeton Smith-Hiebert HC ’26 and Fiona Pando HC ’25.
“So often, survivors are silenced in many different ways, through victim-blaming, through rape culture. So giving them that space, and a space that honors their experiences, is very important,”
Cary Carr, Director of Health and Wellness Education at Haverford College
Carr also noted that having a space for survivors to feel like their voices were heard was extremely important. “So often, survivors are silenced in many different ways, through victim-blaming, through rape culture. So giving them that space, and a space that honors their experiences, is very important,” she told the Bi-Co.
The week is part of a larger effort by Haverford to roll out more educational programs concerning sexual assault and campus rape culture, according to Carr. “One-off trainings can be really helpful… but I think what is really effective is when we have ongoing education throughout the year,” Carr said.
All of the events will be open to the all Bi-Co Students.
