Chapman’s women’s defense classes educate students, staff on protecting themselves from aggressors

These courses educate participants on physical defense and avoiding high-risk situations. Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock

Empowerment took center stage during this year’s women’s self-defense course for Chapman staff and students. 

The RAD (Rape Aggression Defense) course is a proactive approach to personal safety in potentially dangerous situations. The course, which took place from April 23 to April 25 this year, has been offered annually at Chapman since the early 2000s.

RAD instructor Michael Kelley, an officer lieutenant for the university’s Department of Public Safety, spoke about the course and its mission to arm participants with skills and knowledge to navigate unsafe interactions with confidence.

After graduating from the Police Academy in Long Beach, CA, Kelley worked in Los Angeles County at Whittier College before joining Public Safety at Chapman in 2007.

“In those 17 years, I have been able to be promoted to a Sergeant and now Lieutenant,” he shared.

When discussing his career, Kelley highlighted his appreciation for Chapman and the opportunities it has offered him to “grow.”

As a show of his appreciation for the school and its community, Kelley became an RAD instructor in 2010 with one goal in mind.

“I (became an instructor) because I wanted to help teach the female students, staff and faculty here at Chapman how to defend themselves if ever attacked,” expressed Kelley.

He then stated that his “main goal” is instilling confidence in women to protect themselves without fear.

The RAD course Chapman offers is a three-part training, with each session lasting four hours. Kelley shared that the course teaches self-defense and educates participants to “not place themselves” in high-risk situations. This training emphasizes multimodal learning and student comprehension, combining lecture instruction with physical self-defense training. 

“The first two sessions are the instructors teaching the students through a short PowerPoint,” explained Kelley. “Then (they) move on to the physical part of the learning, which are the punches and kicks.”

He then went on to share how the third and final session allows participants to test their new skills on mock ‘aggressors.’

“We use real-life scenarios that you would encounter in your day-to-day lives, and the women have to defend themselves,” Kelley said. 

The physical training covers basic self-defense, martial arts tactics and form for punches and kicks. The course content also discusses ‘Flight or Flight,’ a natural state that the body enters when under stress or responding to a threat. Participants are also given a workbook with a summary of the lectures to keep for future reference.

Senior strategic and corporate communication major Renee Moore shared why she appreciates Chapman’s decision to offer the RAD course for women at the university.

Moore completed a similar self-defense course offered by the National Charity League in the past, and she now encourages women to enroll in one “as soon as possible.” Like the course offered by Chapman, instruction included a lecture on potentially dangerous situations and basic physical defense form.

“Unfortunately, (these courses) are necessary in today’s reality,” Moore said.

She then expressed that the training she participated in was “really informative,” and she feels that one offered by the school has the potential to be even more tailored to the college experience specifically.

“As a female student, knowing that a class like this is being offered as a resource is really comforting,” she continued.

Moore's endorsement of initiatives like the RAD course highlights the reassurance these types of programs can provide to female members of the university community. Kelley emphasized that this empowerment is the essence of the RAD course’s mission.

“The RAD Self-Defense Program is a tool (to give) women the confidence that if they are ever confronted by an attacker, they have the ability to be able to protect and defend themselves,” Kelley said.

Beyond its practicality, Kelley emphasized that the course also offers an enjoyable learning experience. 

“It is a very educational and fun course to take,” Kelley told The Panther.

Kelley encourages female students, staff and faculty to participate in next year’s session of the course.