SACHA is sad and frustrated that we have not been invited back to train McMaster University Welcome Week reps this August.
Since 2014, SACHA has led trainings for McMaster University Welcome Week reps. We take pride in our trainings’ focus on how to take everyday actions to end rape culture and create a culture of consent on campus year-round.
In July, we were told that SACHA facilitators are no longer needed and that McMaster staff will offer their own education instead.
For SACHA, this means the loss of a $9000 contract that will have an impact on our budget. It is also a loss for the McMaster community as it means that the over 1000 faculty and residence Welcome Week reps – whose role is to support first year students during Welcome Week – will not have an opportunity to learn from subject matter experts or learn more about community based resources and practice.
SACHA is not fighting for a spot back at the Welcome Week table. Welcome Week reps will undoubtedly miss out on SACHA’s survivor-centered approach to prevention education. We’re excited about the possibilities of new relationships that this extra time gives SACHA. Partnerships and collaboration are essential to ending sexual violence and a core value of SACHA’s. We can’t do this work on our own and neither can other institutions. Continue reading