NU Bystander Intervention
About NU Bystander Intervention
NU Bystander Intervention is an initiative that aims to create a safer, more caring and inclusive community by engaging all students, faculty and staff and asking them to play a role in shifting our campus culture.
Bystander intervention is a type of training that was developed to help people identity and interrupt moments of harm or potential harm. While initially implemented around topics of sexual assault, relationship violence and stalking on college campuses, the training has been broadened to think about how people observing a situation can take an active role in intervening to stop immediate harm, and ideally future harm, from happening.
NU Bystander Intervention is a collaboration between Center for Awareness, Response and Education (CARE) and Social Justice Education (SJE).
Bystander Intervention Training
We are offering limited training this Winter 2022. If you feel that your training rises to high priority, please contact our Graduate Assistant for Bystander Intervention, Grace Harrison, at grace.harrison@northwestern.edu. Otherwise, we invite you to contact us to receive a recording and instructions to self-lead a bystander workshop with your organization. For this option, contact our team at socialjustice@northwestern.edu.The NU Bystander Intervention training curriculum is a 60-90min training that overviews the process of being an active bystander, introduces basic tools to safely and effective intervene in situations, and provides scenario practice. Participants leave having reflected on their own motivations and barriers to intervention as well as strategies they can implement in a variety of contexts.
Session aims include to:
- Recognize reasons why people may not intervene.
- Develop specific intervention skills.
- Increase motivation and confidence to help.
- Empower participants to act on their values.
- Create a safer, healthier, more caring environment
Winter 2022 we are aiming to train a group of student facilitators and at least 10 faculty and staff who are committed to facilitating bystander workshops on the Northwestern campus. More details to come by early January 2022. To learn more, contact our Graduate Assistant Grace Harrison at grace.harrison@northwestern.edu.
Bystander Intervention Scenario Practice Group
The Scenario Practice Group was developed in August 2020 as a space for sustained and continued learning to understand social identities and bystander concepts, in order to be more active and effective at interrupting moments of harm and violence.- The Practice Group is open to all Northwestern staff, staff, post-docs and graduate students in teaching positions. The Group meets for an hour three times a quarter and is facilitated by members of the group and staff of Social Justice Education, Center for Awareness Response and Education, and Office of Equity.
- Staff and faculty who have participated have described the space as valuable, reflective, and vulnerable. They have appreciated the opportunities to build authentic and deep connections with other people in the program and have nuanced, complex conversations on how identity, power, context and who we are can impact intervention.
- To join the practice group, contact Qiu Fogarty at qfogarty@northwestern.edu.
Bystander Intervention Committee
We are in the process of visioning our Bystander Intervention Committee. Check back here for more information in the future!
Questions
Contact Assistant Director of Social Justice Education, Qiu Fogarty at or Assistant Director of Prevention and Masculine Engagement at Center for Awareness, Response, Education, Dr. Saed Hill.