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MCC Daily Tribune Archive

WXXI Radio Promotes Violence Prevention Program


Beth Adams, local host of NPR’s “Morning Edition,” interviewed Christine Plumeri, associate professor of sociology, about the Mentors in Violence Prevention program that will take place Thursday through Saturday (March 21-23) at the Damon City Campus. Christine is a certified mentor in violence prevention who will conduct the training with Joe Sturnick, associate professor in law and criminal justice.

Christine explained the purpose of the program, its significance to the community, and the range of professionals who have received the training over the past three years. The interview first aired Friday morning (March 15) on WXXI AM 1370.

On Saturday, about 25 new graduates of a violence prevention program at MCC will join 87 community members who have become empowered through their training to take an active role in promoting a positive environment in schools and their communities.

Participants in the three-day Mentors in Violence Prevention program gain awareness about gender violence, bullying, and school violence. They learn to intervene, act when confronted with threats of violence, and create lasting social change. Those who complete the training become certified to train others.

Since 2010, members from about 15 different community groups and agencies have earned the credential. Program graduates include members of the Rochester Police Department, Alternatives for Battered Women staff, University of Rochester’s M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence, the nonprofit Chances & Changes, and educators from Keuka College and Buffalo City School District. Several of them have used their training to work with or for Rochester-area social justice agencies and organizations. For example, an MCC criminal justice student worked as an intern for one semester with Stand Up Guys, then continued through the summer as a volunteer, producing a video and leading a workshop. Another program graduate served as a speaker at The College at Brockport's Take Back the Night rally last year, held to increase awareness of domestic violence and to mourn the loss of a Brockport student found murdered in her dorm room.

MCC is one of only three schools — and the only community college — in the world to offer this free training and to infuse it into academic coursework, including internships. The training imparts the teachings of Jackson Katz, an author, filmmaker and a leading educator in gender violence issues.

Hency Yuen-Eng
College and Community Relations
03/18/2013