Caldwell University

Location

Caldwell, NJ

Situation

Caldwell University is a Catholic institution whose core values incorporate the four pillars of Dominican Life: respect, integrity, community and excellence. As a private university in Caldwell, New Jersey, Caldwell is committed to creating and maintaining a safe, healthy and consensual environment for all.

Caldwell’s Director of Advocacy and Prevention Awareness had previously implemented Soteria Solutions evidence-based bystander intervention solutions at other institutions and was in the process of implementing these prevention programs at Caldwell when the pandemic began.

Soteria Solutions:

• Bringing in the Bystander®
• Know Your Power®

Implementation

Caldwell University invested in both Bringing in the Bystander and Know Your Power to implement a comprehensive prevention approach on campus.

Caldwell hosted its own Bringing in the Bystander (BITB) train-the-trainer program on campus led by two Soteria Solutions trainers. The training included 25 faculty, staff and community members, including Directors and Deans representing a broad range of constituents including Counseling, Resident Life, Student Engagement, Health Services and Campus Safety.

Roll-out plans were underway when COVID-19 changed all timelines for implementing BITB. Abdul Staten, Director of Advocacy and Prevention Awareness, had used BITB at another institution and was familiar with KYP, so when the pandemic changed the plans to roll out BITB, Abdul pivoted to adopt elements of Know Your Power to increase prevention awareness among students during these unprecedented times on Caldwell’s campus.

To prepare for the Fall semester of 2021, Abdul was planning for the arrival of the first-year class. With a full orientation schedule, he considered how new students could learn about the important role of a bystander on Caldwell’s campus and how BITB could fit into the orientation schedule, where, by sheer need to provide information to over 400 incoming students, logistical barriers (e.g., sessions were held in large-group formats only) prevented small-group sessions, which is a necessity for the efficacy of BITB.

Seeking other means to educate incoming students, Abdul reach out to Jane Stapleton, President of Soteria Solutions, who offered ideas and advice on how to introduce the role of a bystander and how to incorporate key messages from Bringing in the Bystander into Caldwell’s first-year orientation program.

With stakeholders trained to rollout Bringing in the Bystander, groups of 25-30 Caldwell students learn about the role of a bystander and how to safely and effectively intervene before, during and after risky situations are identified. Caldwell is creatively attracting students to complete the 90 minute sessions by bringing in popular food from local restaurants.

Caldwell University is implementing a variety of efforts to create and maintain a safe, healthy and consensual community for all. The combination of the Bringing in the Bystander program and Know Your Power are increasing Caldwell’s students’ skills to intervene as a bystander.