R.A.D. Training

Rape, Agression, Defense training (R.A.D training) is being offered by Missouri University of Science and Technology’s University Police for female students at four pm both Thursday, September 2nd and Thursday September 9th. The classes are free to both Missouri S&T students and employees, in order to be considered to complete the course, participants must be at both of the sessions (September 2nd and September 9th). Although, if a participant is unable to attend both sessions, it is still encouraged for them to attend a session if possible.

The sessions are being led by University Police Officer Molly Kaufman; the comprehensive, women-only course begins with awareness, prevention, risk reduction and risk avoidance, and progresses on the basics as of hands-on defense training. Students and employees can enroll in the program by emailing Molly Kaufman at kaufmanmm@mst.edu.

I personally have been to these classes pre-COVID-19 shutdowns, and it was one of the most informative classes on these subjects that I have been to. Not only do they give you a presentational breakdown of situations women find themselves in on a daily basis, they give you the resources to be able to successfully and completely avoid putting yourself into potentially dangerous situations and how to react when put into those situations when unavoidable. It is common knowledge that the ratio of men to women on Missouri S&T’s campus is very skewed and male dominated, which can lead to women on campus not feeling safe and comfortable on and off of campus. This leads to these training sessions being more important than ever, and I personally can say that attending these seminars have made me more cognizant of my surroundings and adjusting my everyday schedule in order to be better prepared and protect myself. With the opening of campus, socials and parties are also being opened back up to the Missouri S&T population. These trainings can potentially be preventive of rape cases on campus and protect women and allow them to protect themselves and others from potentially damaging and dangerous situations.

The University creating and curating these training sessions is creating a safe space for the female population on campus and helping young women to recognize unsafe environments and be able to develop the skills necessary to step out of those positions and defend themselves if necessary. I am personally very glad and grateful that Missouri University of Science and Technology offers this program for us because as a young woman in Rolla, I have seen myself and my friends in positions of potential issues and after being able to identify them and find channels to leave those situations it has made me a lot more comfortable and confident in going into male dominated and densely populated social situations. So, offering these programs throughout semesters (they typically happen about twice a semester and SWE [Society of Women Engineers] typically hosts one once a semester) creates a safe environment for women to be educated on the dangers of being alone and can be prepared for situations they could potentially experience at any point in time in their lives.