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DoN Wraps Up First SARC Summit

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS100325-14
Release Date: 3/25/2010 4:24:00 PM

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class (SW) Rachael L. Leslie, Navy Public Affairs Support Element East

NEW ORLEANS (NNS) -- The Sexual Assault Response Coordinator (SARC) summit hosted by the Department of the Navy (DON) will come to a close in New Orleans March 26.

The summit was held to bring awareness to the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) program, which replaced the former Sexual Assault Victim Intervention (SAVI) program in November 2009.

One in every five female Sailors or Marines is a victim of some sort of sexual assault, and one in 15 - six out of every 100 women - are raped, said Robert O. Work, under secretary of the Navy.

"We need to get serious about our efforts. We need to tell the women in our service that they are not the problem, that the people who commit this crime are the problem," he said.

More than 200 personnel, including SARC representatives, and members of the Navy and Marine Corps medical, legal and chaplain communities attended the five-day conference to participate in training, lectures and group discussions on the newly-established SAPR program.

"A small percentage of Sailors are actually perpetrators," said Rear Adm. Michael Browne, director of personal readiness and community support.

Browne also said most service members really want to do the right thing, and that's why the program is focusing heavily on bystander intervention.

"It's important for shipmates to take care of shipmates," said Browne.

During the conference, those in attendance also heard compelling firsthand stories from two victims of sexual assault in the military.

"With my assault, it (the summit) has helped me by allowing me to spread my message," said Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Summer Kimmel-Borges, a victim and SAPR representative. "Being able to meet with people like the MCPON (master chief petty officer of the Navy) and other senior leaders shows me how seriously they are taking this issue, and it's been a great experience."

As the summit comes to a close, the large group is currently split into smaller groups for more specialized training. One track of lectures and discussion activities was designed for SARCs and the other for non-SARCs.

For more information on the SAPR program, contact your local command SAPR representative.