10/08/2024
National author and speaker Marissa Cohen will seek to lighten the atmosphere while addressing the serious topic of collegiate domestic abuse when she emcees a “Healthy Relationship Trivia” contest on Wednesday, Oct. 23, at SUNY Cortland.
Cohen, who works to create an open and supportive community among those she often describes as warriors — not survivors — of sexual assault and domestic violence, will offer the ice-breaking informational activity from 7 to 9 p.m. in Corey Union Function Room.
“Healthy Relationship Trivia,” which continues the semester’s ongoing Conley Wellness Wednesday series at the university and is part of campus events related to Domestic Violence Awareness Month during October. Events are free and open to the campus community. "Healthy Relationship Trivia" will feature prizes and refreshments.
“Sometimes the best way to retain information is to make it fun,” Cohen said.
The activity will promote safe relationships, identify red flags, field commonly asked questions, present statistics and offer safety tips, according to her. The game answers the most-asked questions, delves into myths and facts and contains surprising information about healthy vs. toxic relationships, abuse, sexual assault, boundaries and other related topics.
Cohen is founder and executive director of the nonprofit Within Your Reach, Inc., which trains advocates around the country in appropriate ways to respond to individuals she describes as “warriors in crisis.”
Her mission is to enable individuals to make informed and educated decisions and recognize red flags immediately. She wants to see all survivors of sexual abuse, narcissism, emotional abuse and domestic violence release their trauma, build resilience and rebuild their lives, so they can feel complete, happy and confident.
“I don’t view my work as a job, but rather a mission and calling to empower those who have been victims of emotional abuse,” said Cohen, who personally surmounted the heavy toll of an abusive college relationship.
Her published, best-selling nonfiction includes Breaking Through the Silence: The Journey to Surviving Sexual Assault (also a 2018 Readers Favorite International Book Award Winner, and No. 1 Amazon International Best Seller); and Breaking Through the Silence: #Me(n)Too (an Amazon No. 1 Best Seller).
Cohen was awarded the prestigious 2024 National Campus Speaker of the Year award, voted by hundreds of colleges and universities around the country. She also received the Purple Ribbon Award for Survivor of the Year from DomesticShelters.org for her work with empowering survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence.
Cohen grew up in Chicago, Illinois, and New Jersey, and was heavily influenced by plays like “Spring Awakening,” and young adult novels like Speak and Perks of Being a Wallflower. As far back as high school, she considered herself a social activist. She has a bachelor’s degree in cognitive psychology and psycholinguistics from Rowan University.
Now living in Chicago, Cohen founded Healing From Emotional Abuse Philosophy, a company in which she created a “3 Key Action-Based Coaching” program to help survivors overcome abuse and narcissistic trauma. More than 2,000 people have used her method to start living a free, confident and peaceful life. She is also a co-founder of the program #IMASTATISTIC, which endeavors to humanize sexual assault survivors.
Cohen also works as a government contractor for the Army Reserve, helping service members with adult life issues.
She trains individuals — from practicing nurses and nursing students to first responders, to students across the country and military leadership — about how to effectively respond to sexual assault and domestic violence survivors.
Her award-winning podcast, Healing From Emotional Abuse, has charted in the top 10% in more than 27 countries around the world.
For more information, contact Health Educator Lauren Scagnelli ’12 M ’14, CHES at 607-753-2066.