While the ASU Police Department launched a Special Victims Unit to combat sexual assault on campus this semester, there is another resource they've been providing for a decade designed specifically for women to teach them self-defense.
Rape Aggression Defense classes are 12-hour self-defense courses designed to teach women how to defend themselves in times of crises. The courses are taught by ASU police officers, who are also certified R.A.D. instructors, in four hour increments over the course of three days. The classes aren't exclusive to female ASU students, but to any woman within the community.
One in five women and one in 16 men are victims of rape during their college career, according to a study by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center.
ASU PD has offered the classes for more than a decade, but this year they have been working to get the word out by advertising the courses on social media.
ASU PD Sgt. Joseph Morel, a R.A.D. instructor at the West campus, said he enjoys teaching students how to defend themselves and watching them grow throughout the course.
"The self confidence they display before leaving the class is a huge improvement compared to when they first enter," Morel said.
Morel said the classes were designed to teach participants much more than basic self-defense moves.
"This training also touches on teaching the students to develop a plan mentally and physically should they ever be attacked," Morel said. "If we are proactive in our strategies, it might just keep one from freezing when an attack actually occurs."
The first four hours of the course includes a PowerPoint presentation and the remaining eight hours are the "demonstration and then performance of the skills and techniques," Morel said.
ASU students & community members can sign up for free R.A.D. courses. Participants get free binder w/ tips and moves pic.twitter.com/Qo6xCwS2AZ
— Allie Bice (@alliebice) November 4, 2015
Morel said self-defense classes don't ensure sexual assault prevention, but simply act as another tool for prevention.
"No one knows how anyone is going to react to an attack," Morel said. "But what we want to do is introduce our students to different options to make sure they survive if an attack occurs."
ASU had four participants for their October sessions on the Tempe campus and nearly 30 at the West campus for their November sessions.
Cindy Arroyo, a criminal justice sophomore, said she signed up for the R.A.D. classes on the West campus so she could learn how to properly defend herself.
“I wanted to take the extra step and put in the effort to protect myself, in case I were to ever be put in that situation,” Arroyo said.
Arroyo said she’s also hoping this class will teach her valuable moves so she can show other women the importance of these classes.
Although some see self-defense classes as an integral part of preventing sexual assault, some ASU student organizations aren’t as supportive of the idea.
Kaelyn Polick-Kirkpatrick, executive board member of Devils in the Bedroom, a club committed to sexual assault awareness and prevention, said she'd advocate for sexual education before any kind of self-defense training.
"It's definitely something we would not advocate for sexual violence prevention," Polick-Kirkpatrick said.
Students can report sexual assault crimes with the ASU Police Department, the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities if the offender is another students or the Officer of Equity and Inclusion if the offender is a staff or faculty member. Students can also report anonymously by calling the ASU Hotline at 877-786-3385.
R.A.D. classes are offered on all four of ASU's campuses and will start up again in January.
Additional resources are available here.
Related Links:
5 Common Self-Defense Misconceptions
Tempe apartment complex hosts self-defense classes for women
Reach the reporter at ambice@asu.edu or follow @alliebice on Twitter.
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