Students in Medicine (SIM) and Youth Educators for Sex Positivity (YES+) aimed to educate others about consent under the influence.
Students in Medicine (SIM) and Youth Educators for Sex Positivity (YES+) collaborated to present a talk on the topic of Consent Under the Influence. This presentation was given on October 26 during Substance Education Week, a series of events intended to increase knowledge about substance use, risk factors, and more.
Dr. Amy Patel, Dean of Health and Wellness and Chief Medical Officer, explained the importance of Substance Education Week on campus. Patel also noted the importance of student action and initiative in the execution of the programming.
“Substance Education Week is a student-led event from the Student Wellness Collaborative, with Students in Medicine taking a lead role in planning and implementing the programming centered around education about substances, effects, and campus culture. It is critical that students play a role in developing campus culture, and it was exciting to hear from so many students who are interested in partnering with each other and with adults,” said Patel in an email to The Phillipian.
Jade Shi ’25, a member of both SIM snd YES+, spoke on the purpose that the Consent Under the Influence Talk served. She specified the content which was discussed during the talk, and how it was interactive and open for students attending.
“[The talk] aimed to give students a better understanding of if you can give consent under the influence and how to be safe. We gave a definition of what consent is, then we ran through different questions people may have. For example, what level of intoxication can you be at to provide consent. We also ran through different scenarios. It was a good learning opportunity,” said Shi.
Jay Jung ’26, one of the attendees of the talk, expressed how it was very important to him that the talk was student led. He added that due to the student led nature of the talk, it provided a free space for students to ask questions and have open honest conversations.
“The advantage to having the meeting [be student led] is that the students who are attending the conversation are that we are a lot more open to each other. That’s really needed when we are doing a consent talk. You should ask whatever question you have. Because it was really open and free and just fun, I think that helped a lot. We shouldn’t be hesitant to ask questions in those situations,” said Jung.
EV Heck ’25, a board member of YES+, explained why presenting this information is important in a high school setting. Heck elaborated that the presentation is also helpful for those who are not educated in substance abuse and all that it entails.
“Substances are widespread in every high school. Discussing consent is important because when people are not educated [about] substances, they don’t know what is wrong or right, and what rights they have, so there’s a lot more room for dangerous situations to happen, especially taking advantage of people under the influence. We made this presentation to address that, especially for people who aren’t used to taking substances and having sexual relations so they have something to guide them,” said Heck.
Shi noted that the talk is especially relevant now with larger school-wide events and dances incoming. She argued that since substance use is almost inevitable, it’s essential to teach students precautions and measures to take prior to consuming substances.
“At high schools and colleges, there’s obviously going to be substances on campus. Also with the Halloween Dance approaching and other bigger school activities, I think it’s important for students to know how to protect themselves, stay safe, and to know [the] risks when using substances,” said Shi.
