The Beginning:
Making Right Choices (MRC) online training “Preventing Sexual Misconduct” took shape in July 2008 when acting counsel for the Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD), Dan Shinoff, Esq. and Superintendent Robert Collins invited Dr. Glenn S. Lipson to GUHSD to discuss with school administrators the epidemic of sexual misconduct taking place in high schools nationwide. Dr. Lipson is known for his expertise in dealing with sexual harassment and misconduct cases in various settings, including schools, private sector employers, religious institutions and youth organizations. The questions that arose during the meeting were both broad and specific: “Why is this occurring?” “What can be done to prevent these types of incidents?” “How should GUHSD respond to this growing epidemic?”
During the meeting it was suggested that there are specific vulnerability and protective factors that employees exhibit. Some of these vulnerable populations include new hires or volunteers, returning graduates, employees close in age to students, and those going through significant losses and life changes. A history of trauma and personality factors may also enhance the risk for boundary violations. The meeting concluded with Steve Sonnich, Assistant Superintendent of HR, and Dr. Lipson tasked to find training programs that might help the district address these concerns.
An assessment of existing courses revealed many elements discussed in the meeting were not included in other online courses. It was clarified in the initial meetings that the District did not want to produce the training and Dr. Lipson agreed to take on this challenge with the understanding that all materials developed would be his intellectual property. After Mr. Sonnich and Dr. Lipson explored various training methods, it was decided that an online approach would be the most cost effective for the 4,000 plus GUHSD employees. Thanks in part to the advocates for this training and their belief in the benefits and efficacy that it promised, this approach was approved unanimously by the elected officers of the GUHSD School Board.
Utilizing Expertise and Experience
GUHSD wanted a course that the entire community could embrace and that meant collaborating with School Resource Officers, Parent Teacher Association representatives, students, clergy and other concerned citizens in the community. Many teachers and school administrators also provided their input. We were working towards a culture change, whereby student-staff sexual involvement would be directly addressed. The benefit of these meetings, which took place over eighteen months, was that they created the foundation and community buy-in for this training.
Meanwhile, Dr. Lipson conducted a review of the literature and interviewed teachers who had become inappropriately involved with students. He found a number of teachers willing to speak with him and was careful not to include cases he had previously been involved in. He was hoping to find a teacher or staff member who would agree to speak on film, since related research and school employees indicated that they would appreciate hearing directly from those involved, their peers, rather than third party experts. Dr. Lipson soon discovered that many of the teachers he interviewed were enthusiastic about telling their story but could not be filmed due to pending litigation, family hesitancy, and their own trepidation or shame.
One male teacher refused to be interviewed because the student he had become involved with had siblings still in school and he didn’t want any repercussions for her siblings. Another withdrew after his wife, who had stood by him during his trial and sentencing, stated she did not want him to participate. Bob Boyce, J.D. was among the numerous attorneys contacted and the District Attorney also provided names of attorneys whose clients had been convicted of sexual misconduct.
Female teachers who had become involved with students seemed to suffer more as evidenced by weeks and months of vacillating about being filmed for the course. Many of these women were hoping that the passage of time would enable them to come forward. Though in the end each decided not to be filmed, valuable insight was obtained from each interview.
Finding an Online Training Partner
The search for an online training developer proved to be challenging and eventually led to a partnership with Jason Franklin who became a pivotal part of the team, helping to design and produce the online course. Mr. Franklin was a perfect partner for Dr. Lipson for many reasons. He holds a Master’s Degree in Psychology with an Industrial/Organizational emphasis, having experience in both qualitative and quantitative research methodology in the areas of sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, organizational change, decision making, pedagogy, and more. Mr. Franklin saw GUHSD’s training need as an opportunity to combine many of his interests and at the same time incorporate the skill set he had developed while working for one of the nation’s top 4 training solutions provider. After being retained he assembled a team to produce the content in a way that would be engaging, instructionally sound, and impactful.
Having ascertained the perspective of students, staff, administrators, legal experts and others, we were prepared to finalize and begin development of the course. During our numerous discussions and meetings, Robert Collins suggested we were trying to help participants in “Making Right Choices” and we had found our name.
What has been remarkable about this project was the amount of time so many individuals devoted to addressing the problem of sexual misconduct. The San Diego District Attorney’s office, under the leadership of Bonnie Dumanis, not only made the time to be videotaped but provided the support of Assistant District Attorneys, investigators and victim rights advocates. Dan Shinoff, Esq. advocated in front of the Board for this training and both attended and sent legal counsel to our meetings to provide input about the law and policy. The trust and commitment to make this project work and the ability of everyone to collaborate with each other has truly been inspiring.
The Message
Whether a staff member, student, administrator, or community member, everyone knows the impact that sexual misconduct has on those involved. There are immeasurable costs to the person violated, the perpetrator, and the community at large. Wanting to help decrease these incidents, many of the individuals involved invested their time and talent without any reimbursement. The excellence that we have been able to achieve is due in large part to the many people who have contributed to this course by sharing their feelings, insights and years of experience. We are committed at MRC to constantly improve this training for the purpose of preventing the harm, injury and suffering that arise from sexual misconduct. We also wish to contribute to the creation of nurturing and healthy environments by strengthening boundaries, deepening awareness and fostering resiliency.
-Glenn Scott Lipson, Ph.D., A.B.P.P.
