STCC, YWCA present ‘Vagina Monologues’ fundraiser for V-Day
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Springfield Technical Community College and the YWCA of Western Massachusetts will present two performances of “The Vagina Monologues” as part of the V-Day campaign, One Billion Rising: Revolution.
V-Day is a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls. The benefit performances at STCC will raise awareness and funds for the YWCA’s domestic violence and rape crisis programs.
“The Vagina Monologues,” a play about the experiences of women, will be performed Feb. 11, 6:30 p.m., (doors open at 6 p.m.) and Feb. 12, 3:30 p.m., (doors open at 3 p.m.) at the theater in Scibelli Hall.
Tickets cost $5 for STCC students, whether bought in advance or at the door. Students who pay at the door will need to show their student IDs. Tickets for non-students are $10 in advance or $15 at the door. To buy tickets in advance, contact the YWCA at (413) 732-3132, ext. 121, or email vdayspringfield@gmail.com or sspalding@ywworks.org.
The event will feature 12 monologues performed by YWCA staff and volunteers, STCC students and employees. Created by Eve Ensler, a Tony Award winning playwright, performer and activist, “The Vagina Monologues” has been described as funny, poignant, occasionally angry and at times heartbreaking.
Ensler met with a group of women and established V-Day on Valentine’s Day in 1998, two years after “The Vagina Monologues” premiered off-Broadway in New York City.
According to vday.org, each year more than 5,800 V-Day benefit events take place in February produced by volunteer activists in the United States and around the world, educating millions of people about the reality of violence against women and girls. All proceeds from the play are donated to local and national organizations to help stop violence against women and girls. Money raised from the STCC performances will benefit the YWCA of Western Massachusetts, which is the local rape and domestic violence counseling provider in the Springfield community.
In 2012, V-Day launched the One Billion Rising: Revolution campaign, an anti-violence-against-women initiative. The effort began as a call to action against the statistic that one in three women will be beaten or raped during her lifetime, according to vday.org. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls, according to vday.org.
Cheryl Rogers, the Title IX coordinator for STCC, said the college is hosting the performances as part of its goal to support violence prevention education events throughout the year. STCC last year received a three-year, $300,000 federal grant to launch a campus program to boost efforts to prevent domestic violence and help victims of abuse.
February also has been designated as Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, a national effort to raise awareness about abuse in teen and young-adult relationships and promote programs that prevent such violence.
About Springfield Technical Community College
Founded in 1967 and located on 35 acres of the Springfield Armory National Historic Site, STCC is a major resource for the economic vitality of Western Massachusetts. As the only technical community college in Massachusetts, STCC, an Achieving the Dream Leader College, offers a variety of career programs unequalled in the state. STCC’s highly regarded transfer programs in business, engineering, liberal arts, science and technology continue to provide the most economical options for students pursuing a four-year degree. With an annual enrollment of more than 8,500 day, evening, weekend and online students, STCC is a vibrant campus rich in diversity.
For more information about STCC, visit www.stcc.edu. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter (@S_T_C_C).
Media Contact:
Jim Danko, coordinator of media relations
jdanko@stcc.edu, (413) 755-4812