New Article on Campus Sexual Assault

The Center for Public Integrity has released another article in its ongoing coverage of campus sexual assault. http://www.publicintegrity.org/articles/entry/2747/

NCHERM Expert Witness and Litigation Services Lead to Recent Victory

For Immediate Release

October 4, 2010. Malvern, PA. Recently, the Court of Common Pleas of Delaware County, Pennsylvania granted summary judgment to Widener University in the wrongful death and premises liability case of Lacey v. Widener University. Widener successfully repelled the plaintiff's efforts to expand institutional liability to off-campus injuries in Pennsylvania.

NCHERM is proud of the role it played in helping Widener to prevail on its summary judgment motion. NCHERM partners Saundra K. Schuster and Brett A. Sokolow filed a brief as amicus curiae in this case on behalf of AICUP, the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania.

The NCHERM brief has been posted at http://www.ncherm.org/witness-litigation.html for your access. Judge Pagano’s reconsideration of his denial of summary judgment and order granting summary judgment in favor of Widener is posted as well. NCHERM extends congratulations to Rocco Imperatrice, lead litigation counsel for Widener, of the firm of Imperatrice, Amarant, Capuzzi & Bell.

NCHERM's work on behalf of AICUP is a typical example of the effective litigation support consultation and expert witness services NCHERM provides to colleges and universities across the country. Similar recent efforts include:

Assisting Notre Dame College of Ohio in its voluntary participation in a compliance review and resolution with the OCR. Ongoing.

Defense expert to West Virginia Wesleyan University in a campus security and premises liability negligence action for a student sexual assault. Settled with plaintiff.

Defense expert to private liberal arts college in Iowa in a premises liability negligence action against the college and the president is his personal capacity. Ongoing.

Defense expert to a New Jersey school district in a school security and negligence action. Ongoing.

Expert witness to a plaintiff suing a Pennsylvania school district in a Title IX sexual assault/harassment and retaliation action. Ongoing.

Plaintiff's expert witness in John Doe et. al. v. Sewanee, the University of the South in a student discipline, “due process” and negligence action. Ongoing.

Plaintiff's expert witness in Padiyar v. AECOM, Inc., an appeal of a student discipline expulsion and allegation of sexual orientation discrimination. Case dismissed on procedural grounds.

Defense expert to Chi Psi Fraternity in Lanahan v. Chi Psi Inc., a wrongful death, hazing and alcohol action. Settled with plaintiffs.

Plaintiff's expert witness in Candace Minear v. Sigma Kappa Sorority, Inc., Sigma Kappa Sorority Delta Upsilon Chapter, Sigma Kappa National Housing Corporation, Inc., a negligence action for injuries resulting from a sorority initiation. Settled with defendants.

Defense team in the US Department of Education and US Department of Justice Clery Act investigations of La Salle University. Successful result.

Defense team member in an NCAA investigation of a Division I Athletic Program. Successful result.

NCHERM’s experts are well-versed in:

Title VII and Title IX (Equity, Harassment, and Sexual Assault)
General Tort Liability Issues
Student Conduct/Discipline (academic and non-academic) Issues
Other Discrimination Complaints
FERPA/HERA/Clery Act Complaints
OCR/Clery Act/FPCO/DOJ Investigations
Internal Misconduct Investigations

NCHERM’s experts represent leadership in the field of higher education through professional associations, as practitioners and as consultants. Our ranks include one current and two past presidents of the Association for Student Conduct Administration (ASJA, now ASCA), a former vice president of the ACPA Commission on Student Conduct and Legal Issues, the current president and president-elect of the National Behavioral Intervention Team Association (NaBITA) and the current president of the American College Counseling Association (ACCA).

For more information on NCHERM's litigation support services, please contact Samantha Dutill, NCHERM Client Relations Coordinator at (610) 993-0229. Email: Samantha@ncherm.org Website: www.ncherm.org

Threat Assessment on Campus

Colleagues,

Brett Sokolow's recent article "How to Do Threat Assessment Right on a College Campus" was recently featured in the Newsletter of the Association of Threat Assessment Professionals (ATAP -- www.atapworldwide.org).

Please find the article here: http://www.atapworldwide.org/associations/8976/files/documents/ATAP_Newsletter_Vol-2_Iss-3.pdf

Regards,

Brett A. Sokolow, Esq.
Managing Partner, NCHERM

Campus Mental Health Resource

Colleagues,

NCHERM-Affiliated Consultant Brian Van Brunt has passed along a terrific new resource. http://www.campusmentalhealth.com/

Regards,

Brett Sokolow

NCHERM Announces Campus Sexual Misconduct Investigation Trainings

For Immediate Release


September 24th, 2010 – Malvern, PA – The National Center for Higher Education Risk Management (NCHERM) announces a series of Campus Sexual Misconduct Investigation Trainings to be held in November 2010. NCHERM and ACPA co-sponsored three national Institutes on Sexual Misconduct in July of 2010 attended by over 300 college and university administrators across the country. One of the clear needs emerging from these events was a training program addressing the creation and operation of an effective investigation model for campus sexual misconduct, including sexual assault and harassment. NCHERM has designed the upcoming events to address this need for both student and employee-related misconduct.


The Investigation Trainings will be divided into two thematic sections. In the morning, participants will focus on the question of how to develop or refine the right model. The afternoon session will focus on the training skills investigators need and will finish with a case study to deploy those skills. Three of the foremost nationally-known experts on this subject, NCHERM partners Brett A. Sokolow, Saundra K. Schuster and W. Scott Lewis, will serve as trainers for these events.

Why Is This Training Needed Now?

For years, campuses have sought models of resolution for campus sexual misconduct complaints that provide fairness, balance, and a measure of satisfaction with the fairness of the process for the participants. We’ve tried adversarial hearings. Administrative hearings. Shuttle diplomacy. Mediation. Restorative justice. And, hybrids of each of these. For the most part, these approaches to addressing sexual misconduct have been ineffective because we’re trying to fit campus sexual misconduct into a student conduct/discipline framework like hazing, a roommate conflict, or some similar developmental challenge.

Campus sexual misconduct is more accurately seen not as a conduct issue, but as a civil rights/ discrimination matter. We need to take a page from HR and create a civil rights investigation model for addressing campus sexual misconduct. Civil rights investigations are not police-led investigations, and are not the same as investigating student conduct violations. They require a very specific, highly specialized skill-set. But, where do you to get the training you need on how to develop, implement and operate a civil rights investigation model for campus sexual misconduct? This event is designed for you.

This training will benefit you, whether you work in student affairs or student conduct and need a new model, or work in campus law enforcement or HR, and need to sharpen your civil investigation skills. In fact, anyone investigating any type of civil rights complaint will benefit from this training, including those investigating hate crimes, gender bias, racial, religious, ethic, and other discriminatory acts against any group or protected class. Prosecutors, sex crimes investigators, magistrates, victim advocates and judges are welcome too. We’ll address the confluence of campus, civil and criminal processes and how we can all do our jobs cooperatively and collaboratively without obstructing each other.

For an outline of the content and to register, visit: http://www.ncherm.org/webinars.html#UML

The three, one-day events will be held at:


n University of Massachusetts Lowell in Lowell, MA on November 2nd, 2010

n Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA on November 9th, 2010

n The University of Colorado -- Boulder in Boulder, CO on November 15th, 2010

n Additionally, the University System of Georgia will be hosting three events for system campuses in December, 2010. Outside registration is not accepted.

n An abbreviated version of this training will be provided on October 14th, 2010 at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA. Please check the NCHERM website for details.

For more information, please visit www.ncherm.org or contact NCHERM Client Relations Coordinator Samantha Dutill at (610) 993-0229 or Samantha@ncherm.org

2nd Annual NaBITA Conference on Behavioral Intervention and Threat Assessment

For Immediate Release

September 13th, 2010 – Malvern, PA – The National Behavioral Intervention Team Association (NaBITA) announces its 2nd Annual Conference to be held from December 1st – 3rd, 2010 at Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. 175 participants gathered for an impressively substantive conference last year, and this year’s event will be both bigger and better. What’s new this year?

• New host location – Tulane University
• Our first pre-conference session
• The new four-day Campus Threat Management Institute Track
• An opening reception sponsored by Health Management Systems of America, Inc.
• Two Keynote sessions

For 2010, the NaBITA Annual Conference will have two Keynote speakers who will be contributing to a conference strongly focused on the practical mechanics, administration and application of risk and violence assessments. The conference will open with law and policy expert Gary Pavela, J.D., addressing the question, “Should students at risk of suicide be dismissed?” Former FBI Agent Mary Ellen O’Toole will give the keynote presentation on the second day, focusing on the “Mission Oriented Shooter”.

The conference will feature the pre-conference session, two keynotes, nine invited speakers, 18 concurrent sessions, and several roundtable discussions. The Conference Committee expects this combination of learning formats will create a dynamic and progressive curriculum for participants.

NaBITA is also introducing its first Campus Threat Management Institute this year. NaBITA 2009-2010 President Brett Sokolow said, “Each year, we strive to expand programmatic events and learning opportunities for our members. This year, we have created our first NaBITA Campus Threat Management Institute, allowing participants to attain a Campus Threat Manager Certificate of Completion after four days of engaging, interactive training.” Designed as an annual event, the NaBITA Institute offers an intense level of depth and training for those charged with campus behavioral intervention and threat assessment responsibilities.

The NaBITA Institute runs concurrently with the NaBITA Annual Conference, and then continues for two additional days. Institute registrants will attend the NaBITA Conference, in a special track for Institute registrants. The Conference concludes after a closing lunch panel on Friday, December 3rd, and the Institute continues for the remainder of Friday the 3rd, all day on Saturday the 4th, and then concludes at 1:00pm on Sunday, December 5th, 2010. The Institute is capped at 35 registrants. With seven faculty members, the Institute has a 1:5 faculty/participant ratio, and participants will have individual and small-group opportunities to interact with each of the expert faculty members throughout the week.

NaBITA is an organization created to support and provide professional development in the field of behavioral intervention for team members in schools, colleges and workplaces. NaBITA is committed to providing education, resources and support to professionals in schools and in the workplace who endeavor every day to make their campuses and workplaces safer through caring prevention and intervention.

For more information, please visit www.nabita.org or contact NaBITA Associate Executive Director Samantha Dutill at (610) 993-0229 or Samantha@nabita.org

Campus Sexual Assault Study

COPS, under the DOJ, has released a new report, Acquaintance Rape of College Students. It is worthwhile.

http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/pdf/e03021472.pdf

Brett Sokolow