The Sexual Assault Victim Advocates program changes its name to Lighthouse, the program’s leaders hope the rebranding effort will shed light on the crime and encourage affected students to seek help.
The main reason for the change is to remove the word “victim” from the title, according to Seirra Fowler, Student Health Center promotions coordinator.
“Victims should be taken out because most like to be identified as survivors,” said Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner and Lighthouse Coordinator Mendy Escudier.
The University has about 30,000 students, and Escudier estimated there are about 1,000 sexual assaults each year, only 40 of whom will see Lighthouse, she said.
The name should reflect that the program doesn’t just offer help for sexual assault victims but also assist students with interpersonal relationships, domestic violence and dating violence, Escudier said.
The program is slowly being introduced to the campus by partnering with other University organizations to co-host events like “Can I Kiss You?”, an event that discussed safe dating practices in early September.
Lighthouse leaders plan to officially launch the rebranded program later in the semester. They are going to start by speaking to small groups to get on a personal level with students, said Escudier.
The group has partnered with Campus Life, Residential Life, LSU Police Department, University Accountability and Advocacy and other University organizations to provide students with as much help as possible. Leaders plan to make more partnerships and continue to do more outreach, Escudier said.
Program Leaders also plan to continue providing resources and guidance for victims of sexual assault for the obstacles they might face after the incident, Escudier said.
Escudier said the program will continue to provide free sexual assault collection kits to gather DNA and other evidence for students who are victims of sexual assault up to four days after the incident.
According to Escudier, survivors are encouraged to report the assault to LSUPD or University Accountability and Advocacy, but it is the survivor’s choice to speak out.
The Lighthouse program also provides training for faculty and staff at the beginning of the semester to prepared them if a student tells the organization about a
sexual assault.