On Dec. 11, the UNMC Title IX Office celebrated the successful launch of the mandatory Students Sexual Misconduct and Bystander Intervention Training with the UNMC student facilitators.
A total of 14 facilitators were recognized for volunteering their time to advance the safety of all students on the UNMC campus. Each earned a certificate of achievement and a “bee” pin.
Carmen Sirizzotti, UNMC’s Title IX coordinator, told the facilitators that they are the “worker bees” of this training and without them the initiative would not have been successful.
Since October 2024, UNMC student facilitators in the Title IX Office have been training first-year UNMC students on sexual misconduct and bystander intervention. The training is a 90-minute interactive session facilitated via Zoom by two UNMC student facilitators and Title IX staff member.
The training is due to the compliance requirement described in Executive Memorandum No. 44 Sexual Misconduct Minimum Training Standard. Learning outcomes include understanding Title IX policy, types of sexual misconduct, consent, the bystander effect, understanding the barriers to active intervention and learning how to safely intervene when witnessing unsafe or inappropriate behavior.
Title IX Student Facilitators completed training last fall to understand program concepts and best practices for facilitation techniques.
Research and development of the training started in July 2023 with the UNMC Title IX Office coordinating with UNMC students. Eight UNMC students provided research and designed the presentation used during the mandatory training sessions.
To date, 1,005 first-year UNMC students have been trained.
“It’s refreshing to see students engaged in these topics, and it’s clear they care about their peers’ wellbeing,” said Jess Hack, a Title IX student facilitator. “Students’ responses to the scenario questions are consistently empathetic, courageous and thoughtfully apply the bystander intervention model. My hope is that our first-year students will continue to carry this admirable spirit to their campus communities and UNMC as a whole.”
The Title IX Office currently is recruiting additional student facilitators. Colleges who have year two-plus students who display strong leadership and communication skills are encouraged to recommend students to Rita Laughlin, Title IX education manager, via email.