After more than four months of reviewing applicants, the Office of Student Affairs named Kelly Cichy the new director of the Sexual
Assault Prevention and Awareness Center last week.

"I'm very excited, for a lot of reasons," Cichy said of her new
position. She is currently the executive director of Women's Center,
Inc., in Carbondale, Ill but will leave that job for Ann Arbor at the
end of the summer.

In order to receive the position, Cichy was successful in edging out 47 other candidates, including two other finalists -- Joan
Dovekas and Pamela Shitman. Dovekas is the director of Clinical
Services of Lake County Council Against Sexual Assault and Shifman directs the international anti-violence organization Equity Now.

"Its a wonderful opportunity for me in the work that I am doing," Cichy added.

Cichy said she has been working with victims of sexual abuse and
assault for over 20 years.

"A lot of that came from when I was an undergraduate at college, and when either experiences that I had personally or experiences that friends of mine had, we had no where to go," she said. "It was very grass roots at that point."

She was interested in a position at SAPAC because it's close to her family, who lives in Toledo, Ohio, and because she said she's heard good things about the program.

"They are doing tremendously good work already," Cichy said, adding that she still does not know enough about the program to evaluate what she will focus on once she reaches Ann Arbor. Her first mission will be to "take some time and learn what's going on and talk to the staff so we can set our priorities and move forward from there."

But there were several things that she said have been important to her during time at the center that she would like to continue working on at the University, especially reaching out to male volunteers.

Males on campus have already become increasingly involved in anti-domestic and sexual abuse stances at the University by taking active roles in the annual Take Back the Night rally, held last month, and forming the organization Men Against Violence Against Women.

Those who work with Cichy said they would be sad to see her leave because she has been an integral force at Women's Center.

"We're happy to see her getting to a place in her career where things are coming together for her personally and professionally," said Iva Dell Clay, the development specialist for the center. "We are really sad to see her go because she's built a team and it feels like the captain is leaving."

"If ya'll change your mind, send her back," Clay added.