Funding Awarded to Local College to Fight Against Sexual Assault

A local college is receiving funding to help continue their efforts to fight against sexual assault.

Tuesday, Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler announced that his office has provided a $3,500 grant to Mount Saint Mary College, to assist in the college’s It’s On Us anti-sexual-assault program.

The grant will help support the College’s efforts to raise awareness of sexual assault, by providing the Newburgh based college with funding to purchase literature and other materials that disseminate anti-sexual-assault messages, as well as funding to support the appearance of speakers at on-campus anti-sexual-assault assemblies.

“We are grateful to District Attorney David Hoovler and Robert Conflitti, Counsel to the District Attorney, for their willingness to partner with Mount Saint Mary College to help keep our students safe, and to provide resources to enhance the efforts of the It’s On Us campaign,” Kelly Yough, the College's Dean of Student Affairs stated.

The It’s On Us campaign is an initiative developed by the White House in 2014, designed to change the culture surrounding sexual assault. The initiative seeks to provide Americans with strategies that can help them to recognize sexual assault as it is happening and to safely intervene to stop sexual assault before it is committed.

In December 2015, the District Attorney’s Office launched the first countywide It’s On Us campaign in the nation.

“No one should ever be the victim of sexual assault,” said District Attorney Hoovler, “and the It’s On Us campaign is an important part of our efforts to prevent sexual assault from happening. We are proud to partner with Mount Saint Mary College, Orange County’s other colleges, law enforcement, other agencies, and other members of our community to reduce the incidence of sexual assaults committed against our citizens.”

In Feb. Mount Saint Mary's launched their It's On Us campaign. Hudson Valley Post was there.