ISSUED: 5 March 2024
MEDIA CONTACT: Cecelia Mason
SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV — The Common Reading program is hosting “Community Alternatives to Violence” on Tuesday, March 19, at 6 p.m. in the Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History and Education auditorium with information about a local program that supports restorative justice and violence prevention. The Shepherd University Foundation is sponsoring this event, which is free and open to the public.
Violence is a learned behavior; therefore, nonviolence, respect, and healthier responses can also be learned. Battering intervention and prevention programs such as Community Alternatives to Violence (CAV) in Martinsburg, West Virginia, work with individuals who have been referred to their program or who voluntarily enroll. CAV Executive Director Jo Elliott will discuss how such programs teach responsibility, accountability, respect, compassion, and empathy.
About the Common Reading program
Shepherd’s Common Reading program provides a common academic experience for all first-year students. The program aims to provide a shared intellectual experience; create a sense of community; encourage reading; promote critical engagement of ideas; set academic expectations; create dialog between students, faculty, staff, and the community; promote interaction between Shepherd and the community; and introduce students to community resources. The program is sponsored by the Shepherd University Foundation. This year’s common reading book is “No Visible Bruises: What We Don’t Know About Domestic Violence Can Kill Us” by Rachel Louise Snyder.
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