04/28/2020
Domestic violence and emotional abuse are two of the biggest problems facing college students. The SUNY Cortland It’s on Us Action Team will hold the annual Yards for Yeardley event from Friday, April 3 to Sunday, May 3, 2020 to raise awareness of relationship violence.
Due to COVID-19, the event will be held remotely and participants are asked to register teams and log their activity online. The team with the most yards logged by May 3 will be declared the Yards for Yeardley Team Challenge winner. So far, 35 teams are already participating.
Yards for Yeardley is supported by the national foundation One Love, founded in honor of Yeardley Love, a young woman who tragically lost her life at the age of 22 as a result of relationship violence. Students and faculty are encouraged to come together and run, walk, jog or wheel as many yards as they can.
Started in December 2014 by three members of the Boston College and University of Virginia women’s lacrosse teams, Yards for Yeardley has become a community awareness event through which individuals across the country have rallied to honor Yeardley Love and support One Love's mission to end relationship abuse by educating young people about healthy and unhealthy relationships.
SUNY Cortland has already surpassed its original goal of 5 million yards and is attempting to achieve a new goal of 10 million yards. In conjunction with the One Love Foundation, on May 3, Cortland will have an athletic challenge in which varsity teams will compete with one another.
“Though much of our society is on hold right now, we know that relationship violence has not stopped and for some individuals, this is a more dangerous time for them,” said Jonah Reardon, deputy Title IX coordinator for investigations and training. “As a campus community, we are still responsible for bringing awareness to this issue and we want individuals who may be experiencing or witness relationship violence to know that support and resources are still available during this time.”
Any member of the SUNY Cortland community, including students, faculty, staff or alumni, as well as family and friends, can participate in this challenge. It’s an opportunity for you to help bring awareness to relationship violence while staying active and competing against your peers.
Follow the It’s On Us social media pages on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to find out more about prizes, raffles and weekly challenges.
Anyone who would like to report any act of dating or domestic violence may contact Title IX Coordinator Maggie Wetter at 607-753-4550.
Prepared by Communications Office writing intern Erica Mirlas