Violence Prevention & Victim Assistance

A:  No!  VPVA provides services to ALL students on campus, regardless of how they identify.  Students may want to access services to learn how best to help a friend or loved one who has been a victim/survivor, or may want to access resources to learn how to be a better ally.  It’s easy to reach out and schedule a time to talk, regardless of your relationship to a survivor. 

A:  Yes!  VPVA services are all confidential, which means that VPVA is not obligated to share information with staff, faculty, RUPD or Title IX.  The only exception to confidentiality is if a student shares that they are a danger to themselves or to someone else.  VPVA takes confidentiality very seriously. 

A:  VPVA has a text-based helpline called We Chat, which is run entirely by Peer Advocates.  Each advocate is trained in crisis intervention, mental health issues, handling disclosures of interpersonal violence, and can provide non-judgmental support via text, which preserves the student’s anonymity.  All Peer Advocates are RUN students, also bound by strict confidentiality standards.  Students accessing the We Chat Helpline do not need to provide any personal information to receive support. 

A:  VPVA can tailor most programs to fit event or program timeframes, just ask!  We offer We Speak Upstander trainings to staff, faculty and students, general education on consent, interpersonal violence, and will partner with any office or faculty department to conduct more specific sessions. 

VPVA has two opportunities for students looking to get involved!  Students can apply to be trained as a Peer Advocate on the We Chat Helpline, providing text-based support to students in crisis.  Students can also become a member of It’s On Us, the student group extension of VPVA’s office.  Contact run.vpva@rutgers.edu for more information!