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New Figures Present Encouraging News for Campus Safety

 

 CONTACT:

Brad Beacham, Executive Director

Sigma Nu Fraternity, Inc.

540-463-1869

brad.beacham@sigmanu.org

 

May 5, 2016

Lexington, Va. – Sigma Nu Fraternity Inc. released participation figures this week following the launch last fall of a new educational development program aimed at promoting healthy relationships and bystander intervention. 

Participation numbers were encouraging with over 6,000 Sigma Nu members completing the workshop. In a post-workshop survey, 94% of respondents said their fellow chapter members were more likely to say or do something to intervene in preventing misconduct. 94% said more brothers understood the importance of intervening. 93% expressed feeling more confident in intervening if presented with an opportunity.

“The national conversation surrounding campus safety is starting to shift from raising awareness to pursuing actionable prevention methods,” said Brad Beacham, executive director of Sigma Nu Fraternity. “This program was created and implemented to empower our members to lead these prevention efforts on every campus where we operate. We are encouraged by the positive feedback the program has received so far and look forward to continuing this progress moving forward.”

Participants offered the following comments when asked to reflect on the program:

  • “The Social Strengths workshop was a refreshingly different approach to discussing sexual assault and abuse in Greek life.”
  • The Social Strengths workshop emphasized the importance of being the person to step in and not saying “it’s none of my business.”
  • “My favorite thing about the workshop was how it talked about how to properly intervene in a bad situation and aspiring to be like a man you look up to.”

The Social Strengths workshop is a sexual assault, relational aggression, healthy relationships, and bystander intervention educational program for collegiate members. The two-hour workshop is presented by trained Sigma Nu staff members and delivered to Sigma Nu-specific collegiate audiences as part of the on-site consultations offered to each chapter and colony.

Sigma Nu Fraternity has been educating its members to identify and prevent sexual assault for many years, long before recent media coverage brought the problem of campus sexual assault to the forefront of the issues facing higher education. Sigma Nu was influential in calling for the GreekLifeEdu program that prepares students to prevent hazing, sexual assault and alcohol misuse. Sigma Nu was an early adopter of the course when it launched in 2008.

The Social Strengths Workshop was developed in partnership with Aaron Boe, M.S.Ed., a specialist in non-stranger sexual assault, relational violence prevention, healthy relationships, and bystander intervention. Aaron is the principal of Prevention Culture, where he develops and delivers bystander intervention and sexual assault prevention keynotes and curriculum. The national coalition of partner organizations includes Zeta Tau Alpha, Delta Zeta, Alpha Xi Delta, Pi Beta Phi, Sigma Kappa, Phi Mu, Phi Gamma Delta, Kappa Alpha Order, Phi Kappa Tau, Alpha Tau Omega, and Delta Sigma Phi.

Headquartered in Lexington, Va., Sigma Nu Fraternity was founded in 1869 at Virginia Military Institute in Lexington. The Fraternity currently has 163 chapters and colonies and has initiated more than 235,000 members since its founding.

 

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© 2015-2022 Sigma Nu Fraternity, Inc.
9 North Lewis Street, P.O. Box 1869, Lexington, Virginia 24450
Phone: (540) 463-1869 | Fax: (540) 463-1669 | Email: headquarters@sigmanu.org

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