U.S. student undertakes sexual consent awareness project in Vizag schools

Shruti Attili, a 12th grader at Washtenaw International High School in Ypsilanti, Michigan, the U.S., who conducted a ‘Sexual Consent Awareness and Education’ project at select schools in Visakhapatnam in December 2024 with the support of local doctors, is coming back to the city this December to take feedback and explore new ideas to further improve the methodology.

She has been doing this since 9th grade in Michigan and chose schools in Visakhapatnam because she was born in the city and her grandparents live at Akkayyapalem.

Speaking to The Hindu on Sunday (September 7) on a WhatsApp call from Michigan, Ms. Shruti said she undertook the project at six schools in Visakhapatnam, including government ones, covering nearly 1,200 students.

“I was inspired when I saw how women in Michigan mishandled sexual assault cases. As a peer health educator for Planned Parenthood for schools in our community, I saw students, especially young women, being dismissed when they raised concerns about assault. These experiences made it clear to me that raising awareness is not enough. Education around consent, emotional well-being and access to resources must be structured and ongoing to stop sexual violence. That’s when my idea became a reality,” said Ms. Shruti.

She used the acronym FRIES, which stands for ‘Freely Given, Reversible, Informed, Educated, Specific and Sober’ for consent education. “Since I was born in Visakhapatnam, I do spend at least a month every year here. I know how to read, write and speak Telugu fluently. Over the past 12 years, I have built relationships with the Indian community in Michigan through music, connecting with the culture and teaching Telugu to students in Michigan. This relationship made me want to make a difference in Visakhapatnam as well.”

While talking about her activity in the city, she said many students were familiar with terms like ‘good touch’ and ’bad touch’ but were unaware of locally available community resources or how to access mental health support. “The majority of students expressed a desire for a teacher or counsellor assigned to their school to help them address issues related to puberty, bodily changes and mental health. I found it during my activity in the city,” she said.

“Whenever students and youth are made aware of this concept, it can reduce future sexual assaults. We need to educate students and youth at a young age. It is also important to connect with people emotionally when presenting this sensitive topic – like telling a story. Many students are being assaulted by schoolteachers or family members. Consent education should also include understanding personal boundaries online, how to prevent cyberbullying and what resources are available to report incidents to local authorities,” she added.