Britt Bardman
Staff Writer
A new four class series about healthy romantic relationships delivered by peer educators through the Family and Consumer Sciences department is coming to the University of Wyoming this week. Relationship Smarts will kick off Thursday, starting with a session about self exploration and development.
Alyssa McElwain, an assistant professor in the department of Family and Consumer Sciences, said her main goal in administering the program is to prevent dating violence and encourage students to have healthier romantic relationships.
“It’s not therapy- it’s really an interactive educational opportunity,” McElwain said. “Students will get a lot out of it by participating, but participating isn’t required. We do games, worksheets, demonstrations, lots of different things- it’s not just a lecture.”
McElwain is also seeking to answer the question “is a peer led program effective for young adults?” She plans to distribute surveys before and after to participants to get a gage on what they learned and if the style of peer education was effective.
“Having peer educators teach is a win. They’re gaining experience they need for their profession since many of them are social science students.” McElwain said she feels the program is beneficial for both students and peer educators. “It’s a lot more fun to be a participant in a class where your peer is teaching you.”
Some people do not have many good examples of healthy romantic relationships, Elwain said.
“It’s not always obvious how to effectively manage anger during heated conversations or we don’t always know the best way to end a relationship.”
Relationship Smarts seeks to provide students with the resources to better understand how to go about finding the right match, communicating effectively with your partner, seeing signs of an abusive relationship, managing anger, ending relationships and more.
Relationships are not always common sense, and Relationship Smarts aims to fill in the gaps. In their description for the course, undergraduate student Katie Kelley and McElwain explain early dating experiences have long-term effects and set the stage for later committed relationships, which can eventually form the foundation of families and influence personal health, worker productivity, parenting and child outcomes.
Providing the tools for adults aged 18-25 to prevent mental and physical health problems, intimate partner violence and higher engagement in sexual risk behaviors are key, especially since those complications with romantic connections can “support or hinder academic achievement”.
Students are encouraged to attend whether they are single, dating or in a committed relationship.
“The main focus is romantic relationships, however a lot of the stuff we talk about can be applicable for other relationships,” McElwain said.
Relationship Smarts is a four session class held once a week for two hours in the Agriculture Building room 237. Students can sign up through the Wellness Center online. The class will continue after spring break, so students unable to make the sessions on Feb. 20, 27, March 5 and 12 from 5:15-7:15 p.m. can sign up for the class on April 8, 15, 22, and 29 from 3:15-5:15 p.m.
“It’s a great, free, and easy opportunity for students,” said McElwain.
