MaryAnn Vega, a graduate student in the MAIS program, was recently awarded a fellowship from Futures Without Violence as a part of their Campus Leadership Program. She is one of the ten fellows selected to help raise awareness of domestic violence prevention through establishing FUTURES’ programming here at George Mason.
Futures Without Violence (FUTURES) is a non-profit organization that raises awareness about violence against women and children around the world and offers resources on prevention and assistance to the public. Their Campus Leadership Program is in its third year seeking to create active students that can raise awareness surrounding dating violence, domestic violence, and all forms of sexual assault and harassment present on college campuses.
MaryAnn aims to use the resources offered to her by Futures Without Violence to further destigmatized discussions about sexual assault. She will pursue collaborations from other programs on campus, as well as campus leadership, to continue to work on creating a safer campus for everyone at Mason.
“I want to continue to ensure that all students can feel safe on campus and part of that is creating a space where survivors of sexual violence have a voice and gave feel safe,” Vega said. “George Mason has been taking several steps forward to ensure safety for their students and hopefully, I can work with the school to continue this trend.”
MaryAnn will be flying to San Francisco in August to attend training for FUTURES to learn how to use the programs to advocate for policy change, advertise resources for survivors, raise awareness through public participation and social media, and provide a space for discussion and learning through talks and screenings.
July 21, 2015