Consent and Communication:
A Workshop for College Couples
With conversations surrounding consent becoming more prevalent across the nation, particularly throughout college campuses, there is a need to understand and advocate for healthy sexual encounters. The increasing energy surrounding the push toward combating rape culture highlights a desire for a cultural shift in how the Davidson College’s campus views sexual encounters. By focusing on the specific population of college students in relationships, the proposed workshop aims to educate participants on effective communication styles, discuss what a healthy relationship looks like, and engage with the topic of consent. The workshop will strive to provide an environment for couples to explore their preferred communication styles, decision-making as a couple, how they express and abide by boundaries in intimate encounters, and what consent looks like in their relationship. The design of the workshop is built upon existing models with a similar purpose that has been modified to a Davidson-specific context. The ultimate goals of the workshop are to equip participants with skills to be able to have each person advocate for themselves in intimate encounters, learn about the definition that the College uses for consent, know how to maintain healthy conversation in a relationship, and have a complete understanding of how consent is gauged. Improving communication in relationships has the potential to lead to a better grasp on what consent is, as well as the ability to ensure that it is implemented in all sexual encounters.
