Mother promotes rape counseling

Nearly four years after the suicide of her daughter Kristin, Andrea Cooper spoke in front of an audience of 300 students yesterday evening in the Modern Languages Building to stress the importance of seeking assistance for rape survivors.

Kristin Cooper committed suicide on New Year's Eve 1995 in her family's home in Littleton, Colo. Her death resulted from the depression she experienced after being raped by her boyfriend, her mother said. A friend raped Kristin Cooper the summer before her sophomore year in college, in August 1995.

"You never, never dream that you will lose your child to suicide," said Andrea Cooper during her presentation.

In creating awareness of the signs of rape and steps a survivor should take in seeking help, she discussed the signs of depression. "These are things to watch for," Cooper said. "I want to see if students are familiar with these symptoms."

In her speech, Cooper gave several rape statistics to inform students of the presence of this crime in everyday life.

One out of four college-age women is raped, Cooler said, and more than 50 percent of college-age women have experienced sexual aggression from an acquaintance.

She also said that "suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem," which is why rape survivors must receive the appropriate help so that suicide does not become an option for them. "The most important thing is to

go to counseling for depressions and abuse," Cooper said.

"And if you don't like your first counselor, go to another. Just because that person has a degree doesn't mean they can help," she added.

In her efforts to share her story and to spread the importance of her belief that victims need to find help, Cooper traveled to 26 college campuses last year. She expects to speak at 30 universities this year.

The Sexual Assault and Prevention Awareness Center and the Panhellenic Association sponsored Cooper's presentation.

"We heard of her through the Mid-West Greek Conference in Chicago," said Claire Coughlin, Panhel vice president of programming. "This is a topic that should be discussed on this campus."

Cooper's work has not only involved speaking to students, but also making available to them a 32-page booklet about rape. Cooper gave a copy of the booklet to the Office of Greek Life. She created the book for the purpose of sharing with others professional resources available in assisting people with depression.

In this book, Cooper also shares poetry that her daughter wrote in her journal between the time of her rape and suicide. Cooper said her daughter's words show the strong emotions that Kristen Cooper experienced during her depression. To create the book, Cooper used her daughter's journal and Internet research on rape that her daughter had done before her death.

In addition to her book, Cooper is planning on keeping a journal of personal stories from rape survivors she has met.

She currently teaches piano and guitar to 30 students in Littleton, Colo., but plans on leaving her job to concentrate on networking with more college campuses and making herself more available to more college communities.

10-20-99