The Michigan State University Prevention, Outreach and Education Department’s 2020-2021 Annual Report highlighting relationship violence and sexual misconduct prevention programs is now available.

From one staff member and a graduate assistant dedicated to RVSM prevention in the Department of Student Life, POE has grown into a department with 12 full-time employees. POE is now part of the Office for Civil Rights, Title IX Education and Compliance, allowing the department to greatly broaden its scope and impact on the campus climate.

“For the last three years since our formation as a department, we have not only continued to grow and expand our reach, but to improve our work and our impact,” said POE Director Kelly Schweda. “We are committed to continue setting the standard for excellence in prevention of gender-based violence.”

The annual report lists current programming and initiatives as well as their  effectiveness and impact. POE's programs include sexual assault and relationship violence prevention training, which is mandatory for first-year students; bystander network training, which is required for second-year students; and mandatory online prevention education for third- and fourth- year students, faculty and staff.

POE also offers "Greeks Take the Lead" for the fraternity and sorority community; the "It's On Us" Week of Action; prevention programming for Spartan Athletics; faculty, staff and graduate/professional student outreach and education; and campus climate and response programming.

Some of the highlights of the report include:

• Restructuring POE to include a unit with a focus on undergraduate programming.
• Creation of the Student Voices for Prevention Initiative, a platform for continuous student feedback regarding gender-based violence prevention initiatives at MSU.
• Educational initiatives for faculty, staff and graduate students, including the second annual faculty/staff “Navigation Change: Building our Future Together” summit.
• Development of specialized training in partnership with MSU Health Care to engage health care providers, nurses and medical staff.
• Expansion of the Climate and Response unit to support healing for those impacted by relationship violence and sexual misconduct.

“Prevention work is a critical piece to changing the culture on campus to one that prioritizes safety and care,” said Tanya Jachimiak, Office for Civil Rights associate vice president. “I am proud of the work POE continues to do to impact our campus.”

According to the report, POE’s mission is “empowering community commitment to prevent gender-based violence through education, outreach and social change.” It is through this mission the department has trained over two-thirds of the campus community.