On Campus Survivor Advocacy
Have you been impacted by sexual violence, intimate partner violence, stalking, or other forms of interpersonal violence, either recently or in the past?
Consider meeting with Safer Together’s survivor advocate.
The survivor advocate provides a totally confidential space for you to process your experience, learn about your rights and options, and decide what campus and community supports are right for you.
To connect with survivor advocate Rehana Franklin:
Call or text: 540-820-4237
Email: rehana.franklin@emu.edu
The survivor advocate is not a crisis service, meaning that she is not available 24/7. Her role is part-time, and appointments must be scheduled in advance. The survivor advocate does not check messages or emails outside of her office hours, so responses may be delayed for several days. The survivor advocate does not work over holiday breaks or summer vacation.
If you are experiencing an emergency or a crisis situation, call 911 or reach out to one of Harrisonburg’s 24/7 service providers:
Collins Center: 540-434-2272
First Step: 540-434-0295
What to expect when you meet with our advocate
Safer Together’s survivor advocate is a safe, confidential, welcoming, and inclusive resource for EMU students impacted recently or historically by dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking. The survivor advocate is not a licensed counselor.
Services are free and guided by and individualized to your needs.
They may include:
- information about accessing academic assistance
- help getting medical care or counseling services
- reporting options and safety planning
- and other resources as needed.
Working with the Safer Together survivor advocate is always voluntary and efforts can be terminated at any time at the request of the participant.
As a participant seeking the services of the Safer Together survivor advocate, you have the right to:
- Be safe and free from violence, intimidation, harassment, and retaliation.
- Free, confidential advocacy and support.
- Be informed of and have access to campus and community-based options and resources.
- Be treated with dignity and respect.
- Make your own choices, request the referrals that are most appropriate for your situation, and follow your own timeline.
- Decide if you want to file a report with campus and/or community authorities.
- Terminate advocacy services at any time.
Referrals to Campus and Community Resources
During your work with the survivor advocate, you may choose to be referred to other campus departments or community agencies for accommodations or additional assistance and support. You can decide how much or how little of the information that you have disclosed to the survivor advocate is shared with others using the “Consent to Disclose Confidential Information” form, which will be provided to you by the survivor advocate upon request. You may alter or revoke the Consent to Disclose form at any time by contacting the survivor advocate.
What does confidentiality mean?
The Safer Together survivor advocate is exempt from Title IX Responsible Employee mandatory reporting. The information you provide to the Safer Together survivor advocate will be kept confidential and will not be shared without your written consent except where disclosure is required by law.
Disclosure is required by law when:
- There is a serious concern that you or another individual will likely cause serious physical harm to yourself or others;
- The information concerns conduct involving suspected abuse or neglect of a minor under the age of 18 or a dependent adult; or
- The survivor advocate is required to disclose information by subpoena, search warrant, court order, or other legal process, including a lawful discovery request.
Except in the above circumstances, the information you share with the survivor advocate is confidential and will not be shared with other individuals or agencies without your written consent.
The survivor advocate
- Is exempt from Title IX Responsible Employee mandatory reporting
- May consult their supervisor in a confidential setting, taking reasonable measures to ensure the anonymity of the participant
- May share overall demographic information (e.g. race, age, gender, and ethnicity) of participants and report information in aggregate, but will not include personally identifiable information.
There is a possibility that you may see the survivor advocate on campus or in the surrounding community. Out of respect for your privacy, the survivor advocate will not acknowledge that they know you or discuss any details about your experiences outside of your scheduled meetings together. However, if you wish to acknowledge the survivor advocate, you are free to do so and the survivor advocate will respond in kind.
Ready to meet with our survivor advocate? Email, call, or text Rehana at rehana.franklin@emu.edu or 540-820-4237 today.
This project was supported by grant 2017-WA-AX-0022 awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, US Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women.
