Government of Canada Takes Action to End Violence against Women and Girls on University and College Campuses

TORONTO, Nov. 14, 2012 /CNW/ - On behalf of the Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women, Joe Daniel, Member of Parliament for Don Valley East, today announced funding to Yellow Brick House to engage young people in addressing violence against women on university and college campuses. Parliamentarians throughout Canada joined Minister Ambrose in announcing their projects locally.

"Our Government is taking action to address violence against women on university and college campuses across Canada," said Minister Ambrose. "We are pleased to support projects that will help make university and college communities safer for everyone."

The Government of Canada is providing 21 organizations with close to $4 million to carry out projects that tackle a wide range of issues related to violence against female students, such as sexual assault and harassment. Organizations will work with college and university campus communities to carry out their projects.

"As part of our Government's commitment to addressing violence against women on university and college campuses, we are pleased to support the partnership between Yellow Brick House and Seneca College," said MP Daniel. "This joint project will tackle a range of issues related to violence and will help to promote safety across all of the College's campuses. By working together and empowering young people from our community, we will make it a safe place to live and learn."

Yellow Brick House is receiving $200,000 in funding for a project that will span each of Seneca's five main campuses and will engage a committee of students and campus community stakeholders to work together with Yellow Brick House to identify issues of violence affecting women on campus. Students will expand their understanding of these issues and help to prevent and reduce gender-based violence in their campus community.

"Yellow Brick House is thrilled to partner with Seneca College leading the project 'Engaging Young People to Prevent Violence against Women on Post Secondary Campuses' by bringing awareness to the issue of violence against young women and creating tangible solutions and  long term recommendations to combat the issues faced by students," said Lorris Herenda, Executive Director of Yellow Brick House. "Dedicating 34 years within this community to empowering women and children to live violence free lives, has enabled us to approach this momentous project with expertise, skill and a clear sense of the goal. We thank Status of Women Canada for being a leader and recognizing the critical importance of creating solutions aimed at preventing violence against all women regardless of race, age, religion, economic or social group."

"Seneca values the safety and security of our students and has a history of providing programs and services to help address these issues," said David Agnew, Seneca President. "This new partnership, made possible by Status of Women Canada, allows us to draw on the insight and experience of Yellow Brick House and provides us with the opportunity to make more informed decisions about safety on our campuses."

The Government of Canada is committed to supporting projects that yield concrete results for women and girls in Canada while strengthening families, communities and the country. Through Status of Women Canada, the government's support for community-based projects has nearly

doubled since 2006-2007, from $10.8 million to close to $19 million, its highest level ever. Since 2007, more than $54 million in federal funding has been approved for projects that seek to address violence against women and girls.

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Backgrounder

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Organizations receiving funding under the call for proposals - Engaging Young People to Prevent Violence against Women on Post-Secondary Campuses:

Corner Brook Status of Women Council (CBSWC), Corner Brook, NL;
Mount Allison Students' Union, Sackville, NB;
Fredericton Sexual Assault Crisis Centre, Inc. (FSACC), Fredericton NB;
Collectivité ingénieuse de la Péninsule acadienne Inc., Paquetville, NB;
Antigonish Women's Resource Centre and Sexual Assault Services Association, Antigonish, NS;
Association chrétienne des jeunes femmes de Montréal (Y des femmes/YWCA Montréal), Montréal, QC;
La Pointe du jour CALACS Sept-Îles, Sept-Îles, QC;
Interim Place, Mississauga, ON;
Ottawa Coalition to End Violence against Women, Ottawa, ON;
Scarborough Women's Centre, Scarborough, ON;
Sexual Assault Centre of Hamilton and Area (SACHA), McMaster University, Hamilton, ON;
Urban Alliance on Race Relations, Toronto, ON;
Yellow Brick House, Richmond Hill, ON;
Sexual Assault Support Centre of Waterloo Region, Kitchener, ON;
Centre for Public Legal Education Alberta, Edmonton, AB;
Sexual Assault Centre of Edmonton, Edmonton, AB;
University of Alberta, Student's Union, Edmonton, AB;
YWCA Lethbridge and District, Lethbridge, AB;
Alberni Community and Women's Services Society, Port Alberni, BC;
MOSAIC (Multilingual Orientation Service Association for Immigrant Communities), Vancouver, BC;
Royal Roads University Student Association, Victoria, BC.

These organizations will work with college and/or university campuses in their communities.

 

SOURCE: Status of Women Canada

Amber Irwin
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Public Works and
Government Services and
Minister for Status of Women
819 997-5421

Nanci-Jean Waugh
Director General, Communications and
Public Affairs
Status of Women Canada
613 995-7839

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