Empowered Bystander Basics

For just over a year, Student Health Promotion and the Dean of Students office have partnered with Student Judicial Board, Civic Engagement, Greek Life and Athletics to offer Sexual Misconduct Policy and Bystander Intervention training to over 700 students. Through training and education, Student Health Promotion is able to provide students with skills and strategies to prevent sexual violence. Bystander Intervention training equips students with skills that positively impact our campus and our community. Preventing sexual violence can be as simple as checking in to make sure a friend is ok, encouraging others to use mobile safety apps like Circleof6 or calling for a Georgia State University Police escort.

Bystander intervention involves noticing an event, interpreting it as a problem, assuming personal responsibility and then implementing help. In situations that involve sexual violence, intervention could be walking someone home who has had too much to drink or challenging sexist or homophobic language. When seeing or hearing something we find problematic, we often wait for others’ response to determine if we need to act. If something does not seem right to you, do something about it; this is assuming personal responsibility and implementing help.

In honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, Student Health Promotion challenges each member of our community to think of one way that he or she can prevent sexual violence on the Georgia State University campus. Student Health Promotion’s website provides more information about ways to prevent sexual violence. Individual students, student organizations or groups who are interested in receiving bystander intervention training should complete a program request form.