Sexual Assault Awareness Month 2026

April is designated as National Sexual Assault Awareness Month(SAAM). Sexual assault is an issue that affects our entire community. The goal of SAAM is to raise awareness about sexual violence and to educate communities and individuals about their role in prevention. SAAM has been recognized at UC San Diego since 2007 with efforts led by CARE at the Sexual Assault Resource Center and campus partners.

This year’s theme, Power in Prevention: A Love Letter to the Future, is inspired by Josef Canaria’s keynote speech at last year’s National Sexual Assault Conference, where he reminded us that the seeds of prevention we plant today help us grow into the community we want to be. Our theme is centered on the premise that it is within all of our power to re-imagine the world into one free of sexual and relationship violence; we can create a safer and more joyful future for our communities.

SAAM Materials

Click here to download the SAAM 2026 poster (PDF format).

Click here to download the SAAM 2026 poster (PNG format).

Click here to download and use our SAAM 2026 zoom background.

SAAM Events

WEEK 1

CARE at SARC | SAAM Tabling for School of Medicine and Health Sciences

Come win CARE at SARC swag and learn more about SAAM! Pick up a free teal ribbon to wear all throughout the month. 

• Date: Wednesday, April 1
• Time: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Medical Education and Telemedecine (MET) Lawn
• Activity type: Tabling
• Open to all UC San Diego students, staff, and faculty

Craft Center & CARE at SARC | CARE Crafty Hour: Mini Wheels

Sign up to learn how to make mini pots on mini pottery wheels in this workshop, which is designed to encourage participants  to have fun, get a little messy, and enjoy making (less than perfect) miniature pottery! Participants will get to choose their favorite pieces to have fired in the kiln and return 2-3 weeks later to pick up their tiny treasures.

• Date: Friday, April 3
• Time: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Craft Center in Sixth College
• Activity type: Healing in Community Workshop
• Limited to: 8 students
• Registration: Register on the Craft Center website
• Open to all UC San Diego students

WEEK 2

Craft Center & CARE at SARC | CARE Crafty Hour: Block Printing

Sign up to experience the joy of transforming a simple image or pattern into a block that you can print multiple times. Using traditional printmaking methods, participants will learn to carve out their design, ink the block and print the image on a variety of papers to create a series of prints.

• Date: Monday, April 6
• Time: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Craft Center in Sixth College
• Activity type: Healing in Community Workshop
• Limited to: 9 students
• Registration: Register on the Craft Center website
• Open to all UC San Diego students

CARE at SARC | SAAM Day of Action (Wear Teal Day)

Come win CARE at SARC swag and learn more about SAAM! Pick up a free teal ribbon to wear all throughout the month.

• Date: Tuesday, April 7
• Time: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Farmers Market at the KAHNOP Walkway
• Activity type: Tabling
• Open to all UC San Diego students, staff, and faculty

The Zone & CARE at SARC | Succulents for SAAM

Join us in taking a break and recognizing the resilience of sexual assault survivors by planting succulents. We are partnering with The Zone to raise awareness and honor survivors this SAAM. All supplies and materials will be provided free of charge. The event is first-come, first-served.

• Date: Thursday, April 9
• Time: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: The Zone in the Price Center
• Activity type: Event
• Limited to: Drop-in style for 35 students
• Open to all UC San Diego students

CARE at SARC Student-led Project | Reimagining Justice: Restorative Approaches to Sexual Violence

What happens when the justice system fails to meet survivors’ needs? This workshop explores the concept of “justice gaps” in cases of sexual violence and introduces restorative justice as an alternative approach. Through collaborative discussion, a guided worksheet, and a creative collage activity, participants will reflect on accountability, harm repair, and community responsibility.

• Date: Friday, April 10
• Time: 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Cross Cultural Center Library (Price Center, 2nd level)
• Activity type: Workshop
• Open to all UC San Diego students

WEEK 3

Craft Center & CARE at SARC | CARE Crafty Hour: Fused Glass

Sign up to create an abstract or representational design of your choice and adhere it onto a 4”x 4” glass base “canvas” using a colorful array of provided glass pieces and embellishments. Your piece will be fired in a glass kiln and ready for you to hang or display it the following week!

• Date: Thursday, April 16
• Time: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Craft Center in Sixth College
• Activity type: Healing in Community Workshop
• Limited to: 9 students
• Registration: Register on the Craft Center website
• Open to all UC San Diego students

CARE at SARC Student-led Project | It's Not Your Fault: The Neurobiology of Sexual Assault

Come join us for this tabling event to participate in an engaging activity about neurobiology, ask questions, and connect with trauma-informed campus support services. During this event, we’ll also be distributing copies of a new “Neurobiology of Sexual Assault” handout. This STEM-informed resource unpacks how sexual assault trauma, memory, and healing are grounded in biology in order to combat victim-blaming, reduce survivor self-guilt, and empower survivors to better understand their experiences.

• Date: TBA
• Time: TBA
• Modality: In person
• Location: TBA
• Activity type: Tabling
• Open to all UC San Diego students

WEEK 4

Craft Center, LGBT Resource Center, & CARE at SARC | CARE Crafty Hour: Ceramics Sampler in observance of SAAM and Out & Proud Week

Sign up to experience the stress-relieving and playful nature of shaping clay into something beautiful and functional. Instructors will provide a brief overview of the different traditions of ceramic arts: hand-building and wheel throwing and facilitate participants’ exploration of the medium in a supportive environment designed for a range of skill sets. Each participant will create a clay art piece by hand which will be glazed and fired at the Craft Center. Projects will be available for pick up approximately 2-3 weeks after the workshop date.

• Date: Monday, April 20
• Time: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Craft Center in Sixth College
• Activity type: Healing in Community Workshop
• Limited to: 19 students
• Registration: Register on the Craft Center website
• Open to all UC San Diego students

CARE at SARC | How to Support a Student Survivor via UC Learning Center

How can UC San Diego staff and faculty best support survivors while fulfilling their reporting responsibilities? This training provides a brief overview of CARE services, the dynamics of interpersonal violence, the reasons survivors choose not to seek support, and CARE’s Five Steps of Responding to Disclosures. Participants then apply this knowledge through case studies and skills-practice scenarios to gain confidence in supporting survivors as responsible employees.

• Date: Friday, April 24
• Time: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
• Modality: Virtual via Zoom
• Activity type: Staff Training
• Limited to: 25 staff
• Registration: Register on UC Learning Center
• Open to all UC San Diego professional staff

CARE at SARC Student-led Project | Crafting Empowerment: Zine-Making as Resilience to Queer Violence

Attend a zine-making workshop on Queer violence to learn about how gender-based violence disproportionately impacts the Queer community and how they used zines as a form of resilience to this violence through the power of activism and raising one’s voice. Learn how to create your own zine as a form of empowerment about an issue or topic you feel specifically passionate about!

• Date: TBA
• Time: TBA
• Modality: In person
• Location: TBA
• Activity type: Workshop
• Open to all UC San Diego students

WEEK 5

Sorority and Fraternity Life & CARE at SARC | Denim Day

Come learn about the history of Denim Day, how to support survivors, prevent violence and win swag!

• Date: Wednesday, April 29
• Time: 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Library Walk
• Activity type: Craft Event
• Open to all UC San Diego students

Women’s Center & CARE at SARC | Denim Day Workshop

UC San Diego students are invited to attend the Women's Center Denim Day Workshop. Attendees will learn more about the history of Denim Day, Consent in a Digital Age, and Naming Rape Culture. Light refreshments will be provided.

• Date: Wednesday, April 29
• Time: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM
• Modality: In person
• Location: Women's Center
• Activity type: Workshop
• Open to all UC San Diego students

CARE at SARC Student-led Project | Unpacking Machismo Culture

Unpacking machismo means exploring how culture shapes the expectations of machismo. Through reflection activities and open discussion, participants will examine societal pressures placed on masculinity and how these expectations influence identity, relationships, and emotional expression. The session encourages participants to share experiences, challenge harmful norms, and explore what healthy masculinity can look like in their daily lives. By the end, participants will develop personal strategies to promote empathy, accountability, and positive forms of masculinity.

• Date: TBA
• Time: TBA
• Modality: In person
• Location: TBA
• Activity type: Workshop
• Open to all UC San Diego students

Take Action During SAAM

• Participate in a SAAM event with a friend or colleague
• Wear a teal ribbon or display a SAAM poster in your residence hall, apartment, or office
• Wear Teal on the SAAM Day of Action (4/7) and throughout April
• Wear Denim on Denim Day (4/29)
• Follow and engage with CARE at SARC on Instagram (@ucsdcare)

Requesting a Program During SAAM

CARE staff will have limited availability during the month of April. We will not be able to fulfill the majority of program requests, and priority consideration will be given to requests submitted before March 1st. We encourage you to promote and attend the SAAM events listed above.