DATE SAFE Project Comes to Upper School
On Monday, October 1, guest speaker Mike Domitrz is coming to speak to all Upper School students about “Safer Choices” and the topic of consent. He brings his educational program “Can I Kiss You? Dating, Communication, Respect and Sexual Assault Awareness” to our campus. As the Founder of The DATE SAFE Project (www.DateSafeProject.org), Mike Domitrz works closely with students, parents, and educators across the country to produce national initiatives resulting in new ways of thinking about America’s approach to dating, respect, and intimacy.
As Mr. Domitrz notes, “Today’s students face an overly sexualized culture where dangerous behaviors regarding intimacy, alcohol, drugs, and “hooking up” are continually promoted in various entertainment mediums. Consequently, schools throughout the country are seeing alarming rates of sexual misconduct, pregnancies, and sexual assault cases among their students.”
For over a decade, the DATE SAFE Project has been presented to students in high schools and colleges, to businesses, and to the military. Response has been very positive, and we believed the topic and message are essential for our students to hear. Recent news stories underscore that the issue of consent is one that has garnered national attention. As a college prep school, we have a responsibility to address the topic of sexual assault, which is a major issue on college campuses as well as society as a whole.
In preparation for the Town Hall presentation, students have received some materials and have had preliminary discussions in their advisories. One clever video that students have watched, and which has been a social media hit, is called “Consent As Tea.” I recommend it as a starting point for family discussion as well. (By the way, we showed them the “clean” version: https://vimeo.com/128105683)
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