Each August, Washington University welcomes approximately 1,700 students onto their campus for the next four years of their lives. From Sam Fox School artists to engineers, from one side of the globe to the other, each student admitted contributes something unique to the culture of Wash. U. This culture is kinetic—it is ever-changing. There are norms on this campus that manifest directly from that culture. For instance, you never, ever use a tray in the Bear’s Den and you never, ever call it “The Bear’s Den.” It wasn’t always that way. There was a time when people could use as many trays as their hearts desired and call BD by its proper name without criticism. This is a norm that was established over time, its solidification furthered with the addition of each new class.

A “culture of consent” is a phrase that is often tossed around by programs like It’s On Us and Leaders in Interpersonal Violence Education (LIVE) all the time. But what exactly does it mean? A culture of consent implies a culture in which asking for consent becomes the norm and rape jokes don’t need to be shut down because they’re never said in the first place. A culture of consent means that parents don’t have to remind their kids to “never, ever put your drink down at a party.” We shouldn’t have to practice bystander intervention. We shouldn’t have to pass out resource cards, knowing that a portion of them will have to be used. A culture of consent transforms our campus back into what it was supposed to be: a safe haven for all students to learn and gain life experience during the days that should be “the best days of our lives.” Imagine what our campus would look like if the same culture that established the norm of avoiding the name “The Bear’s Den” like the plague also established a norm of asking for consent or not standing for sexual violence on campus. So, what is the key to creating this culture of consent? The incoming students.

These 1,700 individuals come from all over and no two students are the same. With the multitude of sexual educations practiced by different schools and communities, including abstinence and the refusal to talk about it in the first place, there is an extensive range of education and prior conversations about sex and healthy relationships. But these are conversations that need to be had. These 1,700 new students are the future of Wash. U. They hold Wash. U.’s culture in their hands and they have the power to morph it into whatever they want. Shouldn’t it be our job to empower them with the tools they need to end sexual violence on campus?

While completely eradicating sexual violence on campus seems like a daunting task, the first step is incredibly easy. Talk about it. Sit down, face to face, with the people who are now members of your community and address the problems that aren’t just happening in Hollywood or on your Facebook newsfeed. Turn your attention to what is happening on your very own campus during what should be “the best days of your life.” Acknowledge that Wash. U. is your home and you have the right to live without fear and a responsibility to uphold this right for others.

Facilitating for The Date isn’t just something you do for a few days at the end of summer vacation. It’s putting your foot down and refusing to stand for violence on the campus you call home. Date Facilitators open up conversations about sexual violence and healthy relationships, conversations that some students have never had before but are necessary for everyone to be involved in. Be a facilitator and instill a long-term change in the community you call home.