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The Office of Advocacy and Support
If you are seeking OAS resources, please contact oas
gwu [dot] edu (oas[at]gwu[dot]edu) for more information about support.
Our Mission
The Office of Advocacy and Support (OAS) provides confidential trauma-informed, survivor-centered, empowerment-based support to GW students impacted by sexual violence, domestic violence, and stalking. Guided by our core values of non-punitive harm reduction, trauma-informed communication, collectivism, mutuality, fostering resiliency, and empowering students from all backgrounds, OAS provides support and prevention programming in order to promote student safety and well-being. OAS is proud to work with campus partners in service of this mission.
Advocates provide
- Emotional and administrative support, including coordinating interim measures, accommodations, and other supports.
- Psychoeducation on the impact of trauma and cycle of violence.
- Space to discuss and process feelings and reactions in confidence.
- Referrals and resources both on and off campus.
Advocacy is
- Trauma-informed: meaning we are experts on the impact of trauma on student functioning.
- Survivor-centered: our goal is to reduce the burden on survivors as they navigate their recovery. We recognize that the survivor is the expert in their experience.
- Empowerment-based: We do not believe in telling anyone what to do; rather, we provide information to help survivors make fully-informed decisions.
Advocacy isn't
- A substitute for counseling: Advocacy might feel therapeutic, but it is not therapy.
- Medical Advice: While we encourage survivors to access medical care, we do not provide medical advice.
- Legal advice: We cannot provide legal advice however we work closely with local organizations that provide free legal services for survivors.