The Charlottesville branch of the Sexual Assault Resource Agency (SARA) recently received a grant of $48,000 from the Department of Health for a pilot program. The program began this fall in Jackson-Via Elementary, Walker Upper Elementary, and Buford Middle School. According to SARA’s website, “The aim of this project is to implement comprehensive, school-wide sexual assault prevention strategies. We are using multiple strategies including classroom lessons, peer mentoring opportunities, social marketing, and parent and teacher training.”
The grant helped SARA reach the halfway mark of their goal of $110,000 to sustain and expand the program. NBC29 reported that one in four women and one in eight men in Virginia will experience sexual violence over the course of their lifetime.
