By Ella Franzman – Editor-In-Chief

Members of the junior and senior classes at Jonathan Law High School had an informational assembly in the auditorium on October 23 in honor of Domestic Violence Awareness Month. 

The assembly focused on domestic violence and its impacts on teenagers. Alexis Ruhlen, who is a domestic violence survivor and works with the Office of Violence Prevention, met with members of the junior and senior classes to share her story of both physical and mental abuse, the lessons she learned, and how she uses that trauma to empower young men and women nationwide.

Ruhlen grew up in Bergen County, New Jersey, where she played softball and volleyball, and was also a captain of the cheer team. She is also currently a senior at Ramapo College of New Jersey. 

“I feel that my story is important to share because I never want anyone to feel as alone as I did,” Ruhlen said. “After sharing my story, a lot of people came forward with their own stories of domestic violence. It made me realize that it is more common than we think, and using my strength is a way to inspire other victims or survivors to reclaim their own strength.”

Ruhlen worked alongside Jonathan Law’s Courage Club, a nationally recognized club whose mission is to end teen dating violence before it begins. The club scheduled this event for October so it coincides with Domestic Violence Awareness Month. 

“It was important to have the assembly because the topic needed to be discussed,” Senior Courage Club President and Founder Lily Baird said. The club wanted to see people talk about an issue that is often overlooked, with more discussion involving domestic violence and youth relationship abuse awareness, a big impact can be made. We felt it was best to center the assembly around our Alexis Ruhlen’s story. Her story is very moving and being the advocate that she is, we believe students were definitely able to receive her message and understand that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.”

The hope is that students were able to walk out of the assembly knowing they have resources and an understanding of who and where they can go in the event they are in a bad relationship. 

“I think it’s important to have discussions with students that can have a positive impact on them,” Law Principal Mr. Darcy said. “I also hope the students can feel empowered to speak up for a friend or themselves if they need to.”

The club is pleased with how the assembly turned out and is hoping that students learned how truly important the topic is and how relevant it is in the world today. 

“I am really hoping that students were impacted by my story,” Ruhlen said. “I hope that they are aware of the warning signs and can recognize any if present in their or their friends’ relationships. I also hope that it makes them more mindful about the normalization of toxic behaviors that have been common in relationships, and how to bring them to an end.” 

The statistics about the prevalence of domestic violence are always staggering, but hearing a firsthand account of a young woman’s story seemed like a great way to raise awareness about the issue. 

“As I have been an English teacher for twenty-two years, I’ve learned that students listen more intently – and often learn more – from their peers,” Courage Club Advisor Ms. Evans said. “Once Lily Baird came across Alexis’s story, Mr. Darcy and I agreed that having students learn about teen domestic violence from a young woman would be resonating.”

Evans emphasized how impressed she was with students’ engagement and behavior during the assembly and hoped students felt compassion for Ruhlen and any other abuse victims they may know.