HARRISBURG, Pa. - Governor Tom Wolf announcing his commitment to the 'It's on Us' campaign with nearly $1 million in grants for 38 colleges and universities.
In her nearly 12 years with Millersville University Jayme Trogus has witnessed first-hand the change in how sexual assault is approached and dealt with on-campus.
"People are talking about sexual violence," said Trogus. "When I first started it was kind of this hidden issue."
Trogus credits the nationwide 'It's on Us' campaign aimed at putting an end to sexual assault on college campuses. Pennsylvania was the first state to join the initiative in 2016 and Wednesday, Governor Wolf announced for the 3rd year, he's adding another $1 million in grants for 38 colleges and universities to help address sexual violence and improve student safety.
"So young men and women, our daughters and sons can focus on learning and building their own amazing future right here in Pennsylvania," said Gov. Wolf.
With past grants, Millersville University was able to start the Green Dot Bystander Intervention program, teaching faculty and staff how to intervene when they see a potential sexual assault situation happened. Trogus says the program was huge because when she started, she was the only person on campus trained to deal with victims.
"Now you can go to almost anyone on our campus," said Trogus. "We've been trained, we know how to support survivors."
Shippensburg University plans to implement the same program this year with funds from their grant. By teaching their students how to intervene, they say it will be a tool they won't just use on campus but for the rest of their lives.
"It's not just a campus wide issue, it's a nationwide issue," said Shippensburg University President Laurie Carter. "These grants are really going to change the national dialogue."
While about $1 million in grants is being put into the initiative, there is a $30,000 cap for each college and university.