Dear Colleagues,
Two weeks ago, a member of the AUCCCD (Counseling Center Directors) listserv posted an inquiry about the value of attending an NCHERM seminar. List responses were less than glowing, focusing on two critiques:
1) NCHERM is in this field to profit and therefore of questionable merit;
2) NCHERM seems to make ever-growing claims to areas of expertise that are suspect.
NCHERM clients on the AUCCCD list concerned with the tenor of the exchange let me know, and I forwarded an email to their list as a response. Here is what I wrote:
"Dear list members,
I heard that I have come up in discussion on your list. An NCHERM client who participates in your list contacted us today in distress over comments being made about NCHERM and me. While details were not provided, some of the substance was. I am glad you are questioning the sincerity, expertise and/or validity of the contribution we make at NCHERM. If I were in your position, and an outsider like me who has no experience working on a college campus claimed expertise that would be valuable to you, I’d have hesitations, too.
I entered into higher education with a single purpose, to help colleges and universities prevent sexual assault. The experiences of the women in my life have made that a command for me, not an option. I am an activist, and I am passionate and dedicated. I never expected that NCHERM would become the wide-ranging source of risk management expertise it has, but as my work became known and trusted, our clients called upon us for help with more and more of the issues vexing higher education…alcohol, hazing, campus security, etc.
I am not an expert in all things and don’t claim to be. I do diligent research, and I talk to lots of people who are experts who are a lot smarter than I am, and they inform my perspective. Your colleague Brian Van Brunt has been an excellent teacher. I teamed with my partner Scott Lewis on a webinar on Returning Veterans issues to force myself to learn more about this population who are challenging us to serve them better. I am not and have never held myself out to be an expert on veterans’ issues. Scott is, and he took the lead on that event. In fact, when a campus called and asked me to consult with them on veterans, I refused the engagement, because I am not an expert on veterans.
NCHERM was created to have a positive impact on student health and safety – these have been and continue to be my passions. It is true that NCHERM is also how I make a living, but to imply that I do this solely for money is contrary to my work history, ethic, and ignores the fact that I could have made money in any area of law. I will not apologize for making a living and providing for my family, as I suspect none of you would.
Also, I’d like to think that NCHERM is a good corporate citizen. We give generously to higher education foundations, and of our time in volunteering. Our websites are full of free resources. When we created the CUBIT model in 2007, we could have charged for it, but that is not our mission. If it can help to improve the safety of campuses, it is not our philosophy to consider it proprietary. It is free and posted on our website. We are a not-for-profit corporation, and not many law firms are. That doesn’t mean that we are a charity or tax exempt foundation, but it does mean we take seriously our obligation to give back and benefit not just ourselves, but our field and community.
Value received for value given is honest, ethical and part of the integrity of who we are and what we do. It’s not a detriment to charge for our services, it is a compliment that more than 1,800 colleges have done so in the last nine years.
It is true that I have never worked as a college or university administrator. That means I can’t see some things that you can, but could it also mean that I may objectively see some things that you can’t. NCHERM consultants visit almost 200 colleges a year. Our national travel and constant campus-hopping actually give us a perspective on trends as they are emerging that a geographically fixed perspective cannot provide. We can synthesize what is going on across campuses in a way that is unparalleled, because of our reach and access. And both of my partners have long careers as college administrators, rounding out our skill set very nicely. My purpose in writing this is not to advertise NCHERM to you. Instead, I’d like to ask you to judge us on the quality of our work, as that is the only way you really have a basis from which to accurately critique. I invite each of you who has never attended an NCHERM regional event to come to one in the next year. Your registration fee is waived. Please be our guest. Then, feel free to come to us, as others have, with the perspective of what you saw, what you learned, and whether you feel our contribution to the field is deserving of merit or demerit. This is one way in which we grow and learn as well. Thank you for this opportunity to address your list, and thank you for what you all do to advance the health and safety of our campus communities.
Brett A. Sokolow, Esq."
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I am saddened but not surprised by the response from the AUCCCD- we are struggling with the same obsolete ways of thinking internally at our institutions.
ReplyDeleteIt reminds me of primitive societies that believed volcanic eruptions were inevitable unless you sacrificed maidens to the fire gods. Thank goodness science has enabled us to reasonably predict and safely respond prior to an eruption.
NCHERM has the same effect.
While as Scott Lewis says, "you can't prove a positive", in that we don't know what isn't happening. What I do know is that at our institutions, these tools work!!
In our brief association with NCHERM,and implementation of their CUBIT model, the effect has been palpable. Students feel empowered to focus on learning, faculty is liberated to focus on teaching, and administration can focus on providing an environment conducive to learning, and not fettered by fear as had been the case. We do not have Ivy League schools, our students come from projects and ghettos and live with violence every day. And many have been living in fear.
After a 4 hour training recently in Chicago, one student commented, "it wasn't long enough". Students, faculty, and staff are hungry for this information, and as a risk manager, I had not been able to find a resource to provide this information, until we found NCHERM.
Value? We have spent around $400 dollars to date, and the ability to achieve our mission statement is priceless...to borrow a phrase. This information has given us what $600,000 in security cameras and PA systems could not- the ability to provide the campus community with the tools to address concerns before they erupt into violence.
I am sorry to hear that AUCCCD doesn't yet appreciate the value of identifying and addressing concerns while they, as mental health professionals, can be the most effective. Sadly, like some of our own Administrators at Alta, they are still a little too willing to sacrifice innocents because they don't yet understand there is a better way.
Gayle Johnson
Risk Manager