thedrifter
04-18-08, 06:27 AM
Marines on campus develop self-defense program for students
By: Kristin Zoller
Posted: 4/17/08
Three Marines from Texas are working together to develop a hands-off hands-on women's anti-rape defense program for SFA students.
Angelo Delvecchio, Pilot Point graduate student; Matthew Hueben, Sugar Land sophomore, and Dr. Jay Lee, assistant professor in the kinesiology department, all served in the United States Marine Corps and are now part of the SFA community.
This program is going to be different than other rape prevention courses offered on the SFA campus, because it takes a hands-off hands-on approach. The women in the course will have the opportunity to try techniques with their instructors without any actual physical contact. The instructors hold up pads for the women to hit and practice their moves on so they can learn to be comfortable with the training and not be uncomfortable by direct physical contact.
Lee said police programs teach women how to avoid ending up in bad situations. He has first-hand knowledge on this topic because he worked for the Houston Police Department for 10 years as the tactical training coordinator and developed the defensive tactics program for the department.
"What these two students want is to teach women what they are supposed to do when those situations cannot be avoided," Lee said.
Lee is helping Delvecchio and Hueben develop their rape prevention course because of his expertise, having previously served in the Marine Corps as a knife instructor and later becoming a professional martial artist. For years he made his living by competing and training others.
Delvecchio feels this anti-rape defense program is both necessary and beneficial to SFA students and that more women should acquire the knowledge and skills to protect themselves in case of an attack.
"You'd like to hope it wasn't necessary, but the reality is, rape happens more than people want to admit," Delvecchio said.
Delvecchio approached Lee last semester with hopes of beginning this program and to see if Lee would help refine some of his ideas. After consulting with his Alpha Tau Omega fraternity brother, Hueben, the two began gathering instructors and starting training courses.
The five men aiding Delvecchio and Hueben in the program have attended nine training sessions so far and are still working to develop their program. The first pilot was held Friday, Feb. 29.
"We figured out things that were and were not going to work in this course and that was the whole purpose of the pilot," Hueben said.
Delvecchio, Hueben and Lee have seen numerous attacks in their military careers and know the difference between being taught something in a classroom and being able to use that knowledge in the field or on the streets.
Hueben was a prison guard in Cuba and served his country in Ar-Rutbah, Iraq. An improvised explosive device (IED), which Hueben said is the number one killer of troops in Iraq, exploded near him in Ar-Rutbah, and the shock wave of the air hit his shoulder and moved a bone, which cut a nerve and tendon. He was supposed to be flown out of Iraq for medical aid, but his helicopter flight was cancelled and never rescheduled.
Delvecchio spent five years in Marine Corps infantry. Leaving out details, he said he was awarded for combat valor for operations that took place in Fallujah, Iraq. It was Lee who expanded on this and divulged how Delvecchio was honored for having found unexploded IEDs and for killing a terrorist who was wearing a suicide vest.
Having learned how to handle different situations in a military environment, these Marines are confident that they are extremely qualified to help teach women defensive tactics.
"We want women to have the confidence to be able to protect themselves in all situations," Delvecchio said. "If the things we teach prevent even one rape or violence in a relationship, then we have done our job. As much as I hope nobody will ever have to use anything we teach, there is nothing more rewarding than helping someone change, or prevent change, in their life."
Lee believes the problem with most law enforcement self defense programs is that police programs don't want to take the risk of giving confrontational advice and in doing so they are able to avoid liability. He thinks the men involved in this program are taking a risk and exposing themselves to criticism.
"That makes (beginning the program) bold, by the way, because most programs are based on awareness. Taking a risk by offering confrontational advice in a physical setting is significantly different," he said.
Delvecchio, Hueben and the other men working on this program want to teach women how to feel comfortable enough with their training to apply the moves they are taught in the gym to the real world. They want to teach these women how to use their strengths and what to do if they find themselves unable to avoid an uncomfortable situation. An example of this is setting off a few car alarms in a parking lot if needed to cause a racket and attract attention; the assailant will most likely not want to be around that kind of noise.
"We try to focus on the actual violent act-whether you did everything you were supposed to do to prevent it," Delvecchio said. "The techniques are modeled around things females can relate to so that they spend less time thinking and more time reacting."
The course is designed to take advantage of women's strengths. For example, it teaches women to hit open handed like someone would hit a volleyball, rather than trying to teach them how to, as Lee said, "punch like Rocky."
The three Marines said a good goal for a woman to aim for if being attacked is for women to keep six feet of distance between themselves and their attacker at all times.
"An assailant picked a victim for a reason," Lee said. "They probably have some advantage."
"I would love to have this school-wide as soon as possible," Delvecchio said. He has already begun talking to sororities about the possibility of making this program mandatory and is confident they will work with them, although nothing is official yet.
"I am extremely excited to share what we have worked so hard on with the campus community," Hueben said. "I believe what we are teaching really can make a difference and this is something that can aid women for the rest of their lives. I am very proud to be part of the development of this program."
"This program has potential to be long term and ongoing with the result that women will be safer," Lee said.
There will be an open pilot class held before the end of the semester, and all students are welcome to attend. There will be a 50 student limit to ensure all women get ample time to learn the moves correctly.
The students hope to have this program in full swing for next semester. For more information about this program or to sign up to attend the course, e-mail Delvecchio at adelvecchio@yahoo.com.
Ellie
By: Kristin Zoller
Posted: 4/17/08
Three Marines from Texas are working together to develop a hands-off hands-on women's anti-rape defense program for SFA students.
Angelo Delvecchio, Pilot Point graduate student; Matthew Hueben, Sugar Land sophomore, and Dr. Jay Lee, assistant professor in the kinesiology department, all served in the United States Marine Corps and are now part of the SFA community.
This program is going to be different than other rape prevention courses offered on the SFA campus, because it takes a hands-off hands-on approach. The women in the course will have the opportunity to try techniques with their instructors without any actual physical contact. The instructors hold up pads for the women to hit and practice their moves on so they can learn to be comfortable with the training and not be uncomfortable by direct physical contact.
Lee said police programs teach women how to avoid ending up in bad situations. He has first-hand knowledge on this topic because he worked for the Houston Police Department for 10 years as the tactical training coordinator and developed the defensive tactics program for the department.
"What these two students want is to teach women what they are supposed to do when those situations cannot be avoided," Lee said.
Lee is helping Delvecchio and Hueben develop their rape prevention course because of his expertise, having previously served in the Marine Corps as a knife instructor and later becoming a professional martial artist. For years he made his living by competing and training others.
Delvecchio feels this anti-rape defense program is both necessary and beneficial to SFA students and that more women should acquire the knowledge and skills to protect themselves in case of an attack.
"You'd like to hope it wasn't necessary, but the reality is, rape happens more than people want to admit," Delvecchio said.
Delvecchio approached Lee last semester with hopes of beginning this program and to see if Lee would help refine some of his ideas. After consulting with his Alpha Tau Omega fraternity brother, Hueben, the two began gathering instructors and starting training courses.
The five men aiding Delvecchio and Hueben in the program have attended nine training sessions so far and are still working to develop their program. The first pilot was held Friday, Feb. 29.
"We figured out things that were and were not going to work in this course and that was the whole purpose of the pilot," Hueben said.
Delvecchio, Hueben and Lee have seen numerous attacks in their military careers and know the difference between being taught something in a classroom and being able to use that knowledge in the field or on the streets.
Hueben was a prison guard in Cuba and served his country in Ar-Rutbah, Iraq. An improvised explosive device (IED), which Hueben said is the number one killer of troops in Iraq, exploded near him in Ar-Rutbah, and the shock wave of the air hit his shoulder and moved a bone, which cut a nerve and tendon. He was supposed to be flown out of Iraq for medical aid, but his helicopter flight was cancelled and never rescheduled.
Delvecchio spent five years in Marine Corps infantry. Leaving out details, he said he was awarded for combat valor for operations that took place in Fallujah, Iraq. It was Lee who expanded on this and divulged how Delvecchio was honored for having found unexploded IEDs and for killing a terrorist who was wearing a suicide vest.
Having learned how to handle different situations in a military environment, these Marines are confident that they are extremely qualified to help teach women defensive tactics.
"We want women to have the confidence to be able to protect themselves in all situations," Delvecchio said. "If the things we teach prevent even one rape or violence in a relationship, then we have done our job. As much as I hope nobody will ever have to use anything we teach, there is nothing more rewarding than helping someone change, or prevent change, in their life."
Lee believes the problem with most law enforcement self defense programs is that police programs don't want to take the risk of giving confrontational advice and in doing so they are able to avoid liability. He thinks the men involved in this program are taking a risk and exposing themselves to criticism.
"That makes (beginning the program) bold, by the way, because most programs are based on awareness. Taking a risk by offering confrontational advice in a physical setting is significantly different," he said.
Delvecchio, Hueben and the other men working on this program want to teach women how to feel comfortable enough with their training to apply the moves they are taught in the gym to the real world. They want to teach these women how to use their strengths and what to do if they find themselves unable to avoid an uncomfortable situation. An example of this is setting off a few car alarms in a parking lot if needed to cause a racket and attract attention; the assailant will most likely not want to be around that kind of noise.
"We try to focus on the actual violent act-whether you did everything you were supposed to do to prevent it," Delvecchio said. "The techniques are modeled around things females can relate to so that they spend less time thinking and more time reacting."
The course is designed to take advantage of women's strengths. For example, it teaches women to hit open handed like someone would hit a volleyball, rather than trying to teach them how to, as Lee said, "punch like Rocky."
The three Marines said a good goal for a woman to aim for if being attacked is for women to keep six feet of distance between themselves and their attacker at all times.
"An assailant picked a victim for a reason," Lee said. "They probably have some advantage."
"I would love to have this school-wide as soon as possible," Delvecchio said. He has already begun talking to sororities about the possibility of making this program mandatory and is confident they will work with them, although nothing is official yet.
"I am extremely excited to share what we have worked so hard on with the campus community," Hueben said. "I believe what we are teaching really can make a difference and this is something that can aid women for the rest of their lives. I am very proud to be part of the development of this program."
"This program has potential to be long term and ongoing with the result that women will be safer," Lee said.
There will be an open pilot class held before the end of the semester, and all students are welcome to attend. There will be a 50 student limit to ensure all women get ample time to learn the moves correctly.
The students hope to have this program in full swing for next semester. For more information about this program or to sign up to attend the course, e-mail Delvecchio at adelvecchio@yahoo.com.
Ellie