Jonathan Kalin ’10

Jonathan Kalin ’10 returned to campus in March to give a presentation in Gardiner Theater to Trinity-Pawling students about “Party with Consent”, the sexual violence awareness movement he started at Colby College in 2012.

The organization strives to promote awareness about consent in attempt to prevent sexual violence through education. Kalin’s movement has a presence on more than 30 campuses nationwide, and he’s become a well-known spokesman for ending sexual assaults on college campuses. “It’s about trying to actively change college campus culture from within,” Kalin says.

In his address to students, Kalin emphasized the power of speaking out, and encouraged students to do so in situations when they felt unsure about whether or not they should. He seeks to include men in the conversation about issues surrounding sexual violence, particularly on college campuses, and he charged the boys with the notion that they, as future college students, have the power to change campus culture.

“Because of my lived experience as a man, I am really excited about the work within all male communities.” Kalin says. “When I was at Trinity-Pawling, I had the lead in the school play, which was something I had always wanted to do. I was also a captain on the basketball team, kind of like Zac Efron in High School Musical,” he laughs. Admittedly though, Kalin wasn’t as confident as Zac Efron’s character in the film. “I definitely benefitted from that narrative, thinking, ‘that guy is so cool that he can be who is he is, and that makes him more of a man.’ But for me it was a little scary. I didn’t want the guys on the team to know I was in the play. Of course, the coach told the team to go see me in the play and give their support. I learned solid values here, and it definitely got me to start thinking more about these issues.” Kalin explains.

Kalin was recently featured in The New York Times Magazine. Read the full article here.