One in eleven female high school students reported being victim to physical dating violence in 2021, according to Hampden County District Attorney Anthony Gulluni. The DA visited the campus of American International College during  Domestic Violence Awareness Month on October 25 to premiere a video featuring the story of Kathryn Mauke, a Springfield teen murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 2015. Kathryn had been planning to attend AIC on a full scholarship before her life tragically ended. Two years later, Kathryn's sister Mariah Mauke accepted the scholarship on her sister's behalf. Mariah went on to graduate from AIC in 2021 with a bachelor of arts in political science and has been working at the College since then as a residence director. She and her family appear in the dating violence video, courageously sharing the story of their tragedy with the hope that it helps to prevent future incidents of relationship violence. Gulluni’s office is making the video available to Western Mass. high schools and colleges to share with students. To learn more about the District Attorney’s “1 in 11” campaign, click here. Read about Mariah Mauke’s journey at AIC in this article posted in the College’s alumni magazine Lucent.  

If you or someone you know is facing intimate partner violence, the following resources are available. 

Website of The YWCA of Western Massachusetts is here 

The YWCA 24-hour domestic violence/sexual assault hotline: 413-733-7100, toll free at 800-796-8711 

The Llamanos Spanish-language sexual assault hotline at 800-223-5001