One in every four women is sexually assaulted. With this statistic in mind, URI’s student athletes have taken an active role in the new URI Standers group, short for the Bystander Intervention Program.

The group grew out of the Peer Advocates program at the URI Women’s Center, founded in 2001 by the center’s assistant director, Keith Labelle ’01, M.A. ’03. From the start, the mission was to educate students about sexual assault and domestic violence. The new bystander intervention training sends Standers—who’ve been trained to hold interactive workshops—out around campus to engage other students in conversation about topics such as sexual assault, domestic violence and stalking. Their workshops emphasize how individuals have a responsibility to step in and say something when they see any of these crimes.

“One in four women is sexually assaulted and one in four women is physically assaulted,” Labelle said. “When that statistic becomes one of your personal friends, it becomes even more real.”

The group signed on to the “It’s On Us” campaign in November, a pledge being taken at colleges across the country to raise awareness and put an end to sexual assault. A stirring video shows URI student athletes vowing to stand up for victims and end prejudice and assault.

—Caitlin Kennedy ’16