Seminole State College Student Support Services, STEM Student Support Services and People Recognizing Individuality Diversity and Equality (PRIDE) recently teamed up to offer an information session raising awareness about domestic abuse. The session was offered in-person at the SSC Virtual Learning Lab and remotely on Zoom, a video conferencing platform.

The two organizations invited Kayla Woody, a Domestic Violence Prevention Specialist from the Citizen Potawatomi Nation House of Hope, to present over domestic abuse, warning signs and prevention. Woody presented statistic for violence perpetrated against both men and women. She also discussed violence that is encountered in the LGBTQ+ community and among indigenous women. Both groups have been neglected in research but experience a high rate of abuse.

“In 2016, 5,712 native women and girls were either murdered or went missing. Only 116 of those cases went into the Department of Justice database,” Woody said. Woody then covered topics like the cycle of abuse and services that are offered to abused persons at the CPN House of Hope.

“PRIDE is the first student organization of its kind on campus, and it is open to any SSC student or employee who is LGBTQ+ friendly. This was our first time to co-sponsor a program at SSC. We are a new student organization, and we want to help make a difference. All students need to feel safe in order to learn in the classroom. If PRIDE can help offer some resources for that, then we are happy to offer it,” Kimi Durr, President-Elect of PRIDE, said.

SSS and STEM SSS are two federal grants serving first-generation, economically disadvantaged and disabled students.

“In our programs, we will have students who are in unsafe situations. As academic advisors, we need to be aware of our resources and how best to help them. We are so grateful that Kayla came to give us a wealth of information, not only to equip us, but also to help the students that were in attendance. We plan to offer more awareness events in the future,” Damon Craves, STEM SSS Advisor, said.

The Seminole State College SSS Project is 100 percent federally funded in the amount of $294,725 annually. The Seminole State College STEM SSS Project is 100 percent federally funded in the amount of $261,888 annually.

For more information about SSS and STEM SSS, please contact Janna Wilson-Byrd at 405-382-9642 or visit www.sscok.edu/sss

For more information about PRIDE at SSC, please contact Lindsey Wise-Talmasey at pridesscok@gmail.com

For more information about House of Hope, visit www.cpnhouseofhope.com