Becky Bell, from the University of Arizona, gave a webinar presentation to a handful of students on Feb. 17 in the Platteville Rooms of the MPSC.
During the webinar, Bell talked to the students about successful intervention and tips on how to approach difficult situations. She said that all it takes is one person to lead a group. Bell spoke about five steps people should take before acting as well as thinking about an individuals personality before intervening because that plays a vital role in how the person will react.
“A hero can be any one of us in jeans,” Bell said.
Aside from the webinar presentation, the Dean of Students Prevention and Education Coordinator, Jessi Ensenberger had the students break into small groups and discuss how they would react. These scenarios included alcohol and drug situations as well as moments of discrimination and derogatory comments.
Sarah Olsen from Family Advocates also attended the training because she thought it would be a good learning opportunity to teach students about the benefits of bystander intervention.
“It warms my heart to know that there are students out there that will step in and take the lead,” Olsen said.
Shana Michonski, a junior criminal justice and psychology major, attended the event because she will be setting up an event for Sexual Assault Awareness Month on April 18 called “Dance the Night Away.” Michonski wanted to learn of ways to engage with students and not “just lecture them on how to be a better person.”
“I plan on actually facilitating at high schools,” Michonski said. “They give the mandatory ‘don’t rape’ lecture but I think it would be cool to do something fun and interactive like this with them.”
However, according to the article “ISU Student Severely Injured After Intervening in Street Harrassment” found on iowapublicradio.org, “It’s important to know your boundaries and not step in when you don’t think you can make a difference on your own.”