April was Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM), in which the gender-based violence prevention group at Bellevue had planned to host their SAAM workshop for students. Due to scheduling issues, the workshop had to be canceled. Val Tovar, the person who was hosting the workshop and the director of the gender-based violence prevention group, had a lot of useful resources available for people going through any type of abuse.
The workshop was originally being held with funding from a campus grant that was awarded to the college twice in a row. The grant covers events for three years at Bellevue College, and even though the event was canceled, it will be rescheduled under this grant sometime next month.
In the future, the workshop will be held in partnership with BC’s Counseling Center around the end of May or June, and it will be held as a friend edition. Specifically, this means that the workshop will be directed on how to help your close friends and peers who might be going through a hard time dealing with abuse or violence of any sort.
Just like the other events held on this topic in the past, Tovar will be the director of the events, and will be tailoring them to different situations to help people out in specific areas. Each workshop will be targeting sexual assault, domestic violence and any sort of abuse that may take place on or off campus.
For the people who might not be able to make it to the workshop, some options include just simply going to the Counseling Center and talking out what you are going through. This option is completely confidential unless the victim or the patient is currently in any sort of danger to their own life or the lives of others. All patients have the right to only disclose whatever information they wish to, and the counselors read the patients all the rules before beginning the sessions. They have both remote and in-person appointments. The remote appointments are held Monday to Friday, and the in-person appointments are available on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. To schedule an appointment, whether in person or remote, fill out their scheduling form or call 425-564-5747. Once your information has been received, the Counseling Center will process your request and contact you within 1 to 3 business days.
Another option would be to go to the BC campus advocate, LifeWire. Their domestic violence response services include complete confidentiality, 24-hour helpline, advocacy, legal advocacy, therapy and support groups. They also have housing and rental assistance. Just like counseling, they do have to report to the police if there is any sort of danger that might be indicated from the patient about hurting themselves or someone else. To contact LifeWire, call their 24-hour hotline at 425-746-1940.
Another confidential resource is the King County Sexual Assault Response Center (KCSARC). Their sexual violence response services include a 24-hour helpline, advocacy, legal advocacy, family services and therapy. Just like the other confidential sources, they also do have to report if any danger is indicated towards the patients’ life themselves, or the people around them. To contact them, call the 24-hour resource line at 888-998-6423 to speak with an advocate.
A non-confidential resource on campus is the gender-based violence prevention office. For any information on this option, contact Tovar at val.tovar@bellevuecollege.edu.
Another non-confidential resource on campus is the Title IX office, which is located in C227. Their operating hours are Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Fridays, they take appointments only. A report can be made by anyone by going to their website.
Another great option for non-confidential resources on campus is the BC Public Safety department. Their office is located in B132, and to contact them, you can reach them at, PublicSafety@bellevuecollege.edu or at 425-564-2400. To contact them after office hours, you need to call 425-466-9365.
And lastly, here are some off-campus confidential hotlines:
- The National Sexual Assault Online Hotline: Visit their website to chat one-on-one with a trained Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) support specialist, any time 24/7.
- Domestic Violence Hotline: Call, chat or text with a trained support specialist on the hotline’s website.
- National Teen Dating Violence Hotline: For online chat, calling and texting, visit the Love is Respect website.
