P&S Council discusses Green Dot, campus climate survey
The P&S Council meets in the Gallery Room at the Memorial Union Oct. 6.
March 2, 2017
Ten percent of women at Iowa State have been the victims of unwanted sexual actions, said Nick Van Berkum, representative of the Sexual Misconduct Leadership Committee of the Professional and Scientific (P&S) Council.
Iowa State plans to implement an initiative named the Green Dot strategy in order to decrease this number.
Berkum presented his findings from the Green Dot informational session that the Dean of Students Office and Sexual Misconduct Leadership committee led during Thursday’s P&S Council meeting.
The Green Dot strategy intends to reduce violence in communities by focusing on bystander intervention. It trains people on domestic violence and assault prevention.
It does so by focusing on three main training techniques: direct intervention, delegate and distract.
Iowa State decided to implement the program, with training estimated for the summer of 2017, and rollout for the fall of 2017, Berkum said.
The Green Dot strategy has been proven to reduce violence in colleges that have used the program.
The program is based on extensive research, Berkum said. Berkum has worked with Jazzmine Hudson, sexual misconduct prevention coordinator for the Dean of Students Office, to get this information in place.
The P&S Council also discussed the development of a campus climate survey, which would be carried out in October, P&S Council President Clayton Johnson said.
This type of survey gives administration the statistical information that is needed to determine policies and actions related to the prevention and response to sexual misconduct and assault.
The survey is currently in the creation process, Johnson said. The committee has been working on the specific questions that will be necessary and important to add.
The following persons were elected to the indicated positions during the meeting: Stacy Renfro, president-elect; Bethany Burdt, vice president for university planning and budget; Nick Van Berkum, vice president for university and community relations; Samone York, vice president for equity and inclusion.
