Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Education today announced that 44 colleges, universities, and other postsecondary institutions in Pennsylvania received more than $1.6 million in It’s On Us PA grants to help combat sexual assault on campus.
“PDE is committed to supporting efforts that keep college students and their campuses safe, inclusive, and welcoming for all students,” said Interim Acting Secretary Angela Fitterer. “All Pennsylvanians deserve a safe learning environment, and the It’s On Us PA grant program cultivates change and provides colleges, universities, and postsecondary institutions with the support and resources necessary to protect learning environments and ensure they are free from sexual assault, harassment, and violence.”
The national It’s On Us campaign was created by the Obama Administration to raise awareness about sexual assault, teach participants that assault includes non-consensual sex, advise them on how to identify dangerous situations, empower them to intervene, and urge them to create an environment of support for victims and survivors.
It’s On Us PA is a statewide campaign that invites education leaders and all Pennsylvanians to be part of the solution to protect students from sexual violence.
Eligible institutions and schools with 10,000 or fewer students were able to request up to $40,000; those with more than 10,000 students were able to apply for up to $60,000. Private licensed career schools that do not offer specialized associate degrees could request up to $10,000.
The following institutions received It’s On Us PA grants:
Adams County:
- Gettysburg College, $40,000
Allegheny County:
- Carlow University, $40,000
- Community College of Allegheny County, $60,000
- Duquesne University, $40,000
- Point Park University, $40,000
- Robert Morris University, $40,000
Berks County:
- Kutztown University, $40,000
Bucks County:
- Delaware Valley University. $36,000
Cambria County:
- Saint Francis University, $40,000
Chester County:
- University of Valley Forge of the Assemblies of God, $17,000
- West Chester University, $49,829
Cumberland County
- Dickinson College, $40,000
- Shippensburg University, $40,000
Delaware County:
- Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, $40,000
- Villanova University, $51,957
- Widener University, $35,421
Erie County:
- Gannon University, $40,000
Greene County
- Waynesburg University, $36,540
Huntingdon County:
- Juniata College, $40,000
Indiana County:
- Indiana University of Pennsylvania, $40,000
Lackawanna County:
- Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine, $40,000
- Lackawanna College, $40,000
- University of Scranton, $30,000
Lancaster County:
- Franklin and Marshall College, $27,660
- Millersville University of Pennsylvania, $30,000
Lawrence County:
- Westminster College, $40,000
Lehigh County:
- Cedar Crest College, $40,000
- Lehigh Carbon Community College, $40,000
- Muhlenberg College, $37,868
Lycoming County:
- Lycoming College, $40,000
Montgomery County:
- Bryn Mawr College, $38,000
- Manor College, $40,000
- Ursinus College, $40,000
Northampton County:
- Lafayette College, $40,000
- Moravian University, $40,000
Philadelphia County:
- Chestnut Hill College, $40,000
- Community College of Philadelphia, $60,000
- Holy Family University, $40,000
- Temple University, $20,000
Snyder County:
- Susquehanna University, $27,075
Washington County:
- Penn Western University, $38,614
- Washington and Jefferson College, $36,480
Westmoreland County:
- Seton Hill University, $27,950
York County:
- York College of Pennsylvania, $6,400
Institutions use grant funds to implement strategies on their campuses to address the goals of Governor Shapiro’s It’s On Us PA campaign, which include:
- Improving awareness, prevention, reporting, and response systems regarding sexual violence in schools, colleges, and universities to better serve all students.
- Removing or reducing barriers that prevent survivors of sexual violence from reporting and/or accessing vital resources by creating a more consistent, empowering reporting process for student survivors of gender-based violence.
- Demonstrating significant, proactive, and sustainable leadership to change campus culture by challenging Pennsylvania’s education leaders – including college and university presidents – as well as students, teachers, faculty, staff, families, and communities to pledge to improve their institutions’ climate.
Pennsylvanians are invited to visit the It’s On Us PA webpage and take the pledge to “recognize that non-consensual sex is sexual assault, identify situations in which sexual assault may occur, intervene in situations where consent has not or cannot be given, and create an environment in which sexual assault is unacceptable and survivors are supported.”
For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Education, please visit the website or follow PDE on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or Pinterest.
