As members of the Shepherd community, students and faculty have the right to a safe and respectful campus environment. If any student feels that they are being unfairly targeted or mistreated, the University’s Civility Response Team (CRT) can assist them with finding the appropriate resources to help with their concerns.
The CRT was founded in 2005 and Joe Jefferson is the current chair. The team aims to create a safe place for students to discuss any issues that they may have. “Promoting civility and fostering a respectful campus community” is the CRT’s mission, according to the organization’s website.
A total of 10 faculty and staff members from a variety of departments serve as team members. The team’s members are trained advocates and students should feel comfortable voicing their concerns to any of them, according to Richard Stevens, co-founder and former chair of the CRT and assistant professor and program coordinator of the department of psychology.
The CRT creates a safe place for students to discuss any problems concerning incivility on campus and also helps students find the resources they need to deal with their concerns, according to Heidi Hanrahan, CRT member and associate professor in the department of English and modern languages.
What type of concerns should students report to the CRT?
“Students should report harassment and anything they feel as targeting them based on their identity,” said Stevens. This includes, but is not limited to, a person being targeted because of their gender, sexual orientation, religion, race, age or disability.
“I didn’t know that harassment was such a big issue, but the Civility Response Team seems like a great resource for students who have concerns about the campus environment,” said Robert Dugan, MAT student at Shepherd.
The CRT has not had very many student concerns brought to their attention recently, but they did assist students who were victims of the car vandalism that took place last year, according to Hanrahan.
Stevens said that graffiti and vandalism that appear to target a specific group of people is a problem in which CRT team members can assist students. The CRT advocates for diversity and equality within the campus community and encourages students to voice any concerns they may have.
There is currently no student representative serving on the CRT, and the team members do not meet regularly as a committee. The team members participate in training to prepare for them to serve as advocates for those that come to them for assistance.
The 10 faculty members who serve on the CRT are can be found in a variety of departments across campus. A complete list of the team members and a directory of additional resources can be found at the CRT’s website: www.shepherd.edu/equity/crt.
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