The Safe Trax program at Utica University has been in place since 2019 on a three year grant from the Department of Justice Office of Violence Against Women Campus Grant (DOJ OVW). This program was designed in hopes to enhance prevention education, and to coordinate responses to current incidents and the history of sexual violence, dating and domestic violence, and stalking in the Utica University community by creating a community coordinated response team (CCRT). Those involved with the Safe Trax Program - confidential resource and program director, Jenifer Jones along with the confidential advocate and prevention specialist, Ann Locke - have done an exceptional job over the past three years with this program.

To give a brief overview, the Safe Trax program has improved the campus tremendously by creating many educational opportunities for faculty, staff, and students to become active bystanders. For starters, Jen has brought a program called Green Dot to our campus. Green Dot is an interactive Bystander Intervention curriculum that is focused on stepping up when someone is being harmed. Those involved with this program are going to be able to identify how to intervene with barriers, how to set new cultural norms that don’t tolerate violence, and how everyone is expected to do their part to make a change. 

Along with that, the Safe Trax program has helped to highlight the importance of the One Love Foundation, which consists of spreading awareness and prevention curricula to educate young people about healthy and unhealthy relationship traits, empowering them to identify and avoid abuse, and to simply learn how to love better. We have hosted many One Love workshops, including peer-to-peer discussions, the Escalation Workshop, and Yards for Yeardley. 

Safe Trax has also introduced the 12 Men Model, which stems from Vera House in Syracuse. This model is based on embracing healthy masculinity and how it builds better and healthier relationships. This program is one that is life-affirming by creating a group of men who lead by example and continue to treat their partners and children with dignity and respect. 

Lastly, Safe Trax has created a required educational program for incoming freshmen that is presented in their classes to elaborate on the importance of Safe Trax and to make it sure that every student is aware of the resources available to them. These presentations are also available for other classes upon the request of the professor. 

In addition to these various supports and educational opportunities, Safe Trax has led campus-wide collections for hygiene products and food pantry items for those in need. Safe Trax’s influence goes beyond providing support for survivors; this program has grown into a safe space for anyone who needs it on our campus. Not only does this program provide theses services related to sexual violence and intimite partner violence, they also provide an open food pantry to student along with hygiene products of all sorts, and a safe space for everyone.   

Jen Jones and Ann Locke have been working as educational support personnel and advocates for survivors of recent or past sexual violence, dating & domestic violence and stalking experiences. This work can obviously be quite taxing, but Jen and Ann have both shown how much they care and how passionate they are about this field. Jen is the full time director of Safe Trax and has been with us since Safe Trax was first implemented in 2019. She is available to everyone and at any time of the day or night. Additionally, Ann Locke was hired in the Spring of 2022 as an advocate and prevention specialist. Ann stays in the residential buildings from 7pm-12am on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. Having someone always available to everyone at the school is very reassuring for both students and their families, as many of us students are living on campus and away from our families and homes. This can be isolating and creates particular risk factors for first-year students who are experiencing life on their own for the first time. With that being said, families have shown extreme gratitude towards this program, as parents of victims cannot always be there physically for their children afterwards. Along with that, this is very sensitive subject for many, and often one would rather talk to a professional in the field rather than their parents; it can take time and support to build the courage and language to talk to a close family member about an event like this happening. This is why Jen and Ann are such assets to our college community as they  are able to do so and be that support that we need during such a hard time.

On the morning of November 2nd 2022, we received an email from program director Jen Jones stating that the grant had expired and we were not one of the few Universities chosen for the grant renewal. With that being said, Jen and Ann will be departing from the institution at the end of the fall 2022 semester due to not having the funds to fulfill the organizations needs along with paying those involved in this program. Students were informed that although the Safe Trax program is no longer going to be active, the support for us is still present. However, this is not the case. The school is pushing the responsibility of the program to other faculty that do not have proper training or the time to assist students in a time of need. Additionally, these newly chosen faculty are not confidential resources, which may deter students from utilizing this support system and finding help. 

Not only is the college removing the Safe Trax program, but they are removing two confidential resources that students have grown to trust and deeply value. Jen and Ann are two of the few confidential resources that students have on campus, and the only one that is available to students 24/7, as Jen and Ann are on call at all hours and are ready to drop everything they are doing to come and assist. The Safe Trax program has had a tremendous impact on our school’s student body and it would be heartbreaking to lose these two wonderful individuals. Jen and Ann have connected with dozens of individuals who have identified as victims throughout their short three years of being a part of our school. 

We are asking you to please consider signing this petition in hopes that the school sees how the community responds to this issue of removing this program and staff. I appreciate your time for reading this and for your help. By signing this, it gives us the hope to help more victims through their journey through recovery with our wonderful trained professionals. 

*** Jen and Ann were told that the last day is at the end of the Fall semester. We need to move fast - please share this petition! ***

Thank you!

Sincerely, 

A group of concerned students