AURORA, CO--(Marketwired - Sep 23, 2014) - Eight international and national fraternity member clients of James R. Favor & Company (JRFCo) today announced they are forming a consortium to implement the Fraternal Health & Safety Initiative (FHSI) to fight the most pressing social issues facing college campuses today: sexual and relationship misconduct, binge drinking and hazing. Through the FHSI, the consortium members will take immediate action beginning in the 2014-2015 school year to educate undergraduate members of their fraternities to prevent, identify and intervene against these behaviors.
Beginning this fall, the Lambda Chi Alpha, Phi Delta Theta, Pi Kappa Alpha, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Sigma Alpha Mu, Sigma Chi, Tau Kappa Epsilon and Triangle fraternities will begin to expose their undergraduate members to three unique research-based curriculums focused on the dangerous behaviors college-aged men are at increased risk of exhibiting. The consortium is expected to reach more than 35,000 undergraduate students on more than 350 college campuses with the FHSI curriculum in the first year alone.
"The FHSI consortium represents the first time a group of fraternal organizations is uniting to tackle these societal issues head on," said Marc Mores, Executive Vice President of JRFCo. "As organizations rooted in the principles of leadership and integrity, we share a mission and responsibility to take charge of the health and well-being of our members and their college communities. Powered by our curriculums, ongoing prevention efforts and the collective strength of the consortium, we believe the young men of these eight fraternities can be catalysts for the changes needed to create safer campus environments."
Under the guidance of an advisory council comprised of industry experts, academic researchers and campus-based professionals, JRFCo developed three trainer-led program modules, all focused heavily on bystander intervention to help empower students to recognize, diagnose and, most importantly, intervene in potentially harmful situations. Each module also emphasizes informed decision-making, evaluation of risks/consequences and challenges undergraduates to rethink their actions through the lens of their organization's values.
By forming a consortium and implementing the FHSI, these eight leading fraternities represent a united front and leverage the powerful influence of peer groups1. The FHSI training modules are also designed to help empower members to be change agents in their communities. Fraternity members often serve in leadership positions for other organizations on campus, making them the ideal catalysts for holistic change.
"The power of the FHSI curriculum is that it exposes young men to consistent, authentic techniques no matter their fraternal membership or college affiliation," said Justin Buck, Executive Vice President and CEO of Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity. "By establishing a uniform language, skill set and decision-making framework, the FHSI makes it exponentially easier for undergraduates across fraternal organizations to apply these skills in a practical setting and use the influence of their peer groups for good."
Completion of the FHSI curriculum will serve as the basis for ongoing programming and will be reinforced by advisors, alumni and staff members of the eight fraternities in accordance with each organization's guidelines and policies. Strict criteria for implementation and the measurement of learning outcomes will be upheld by JRFCo and the leaders of the FHSI. Looking forward, JRFCo is poised to collaborate with other organizations and institutions through the FHSI, to further expand and enhance its ongoing prevention efforts.
The FHSI advisory council of distinguished experts who oversaw the programming creation process includes:
- Susie Bruce, M.Ed., director of the University of Virginia's Gordie Center for Substance Abuse Prevention
- Justin Buck, MBA, Executive Vice President & CEO, Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity
- Suzette Cole, M.Ed., Lead Consultant for the FHSI and Former Director of Student Conduct at Illinois State University
- Bridget Guernsey Riordan, Ph.D., Assistant Vice President for Alumni Relations, Parent & Family Programs for Campus Life and Former Dean of Students, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
- Mike Hargis, Gallagher Risk Management Director/Enterprise Risk Director
- Drew Hunter, MPA, Past CEO of the Bacchus Peer Education Network and Immediate Past President of Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity
- John Schwartz, JD, Senior Risk Management Consultant at United Educators
- Jeremiah Shinn, Ph.D., Assistant Vice President for Student Life at Boise State University, Immediate Past President of the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors
- Dave Westol, JD, CEO, Limberlost Consulting LLC, Former Theta Chi Executive Director
- Mary Wilfert, M.Ed., Associate Director of the NCAA Sport Science Institute
About the Fraternal Health and Safety Initiative
The Fraternal Health & Safety Initiative (FHSI) was developed by the James R. Favor & Company in 2013 in an effort to address risk management issues impacting the health and safety of participating fraternity members and guests present within the fraternal community. The FHSI consortium of eight leading international and national fraternities represents approximately 75,000 undergraduate men at more than 550 college campuses. The FHSI provides expertise, leadership and innovation to meet the unique challenges facing fraternal organizations in today's complex world. For more information about the Fraternal Health and Safety Initiative, visit www.FHSI.jrfco.com. For more information about James R. Favor & Company, visit www.jrfco.com.
1 A Systematic Qualitative Review of Risk and Protective Factors for Sexual Violence Perpetration. Trauma Violence Abuse 2013 Apr 27;14 (2):133-67. Epub 2012 Dec 27. By Andra Teten Tharp, Sarah DeGue, Linda Anne Valle, Kathryn A Brookmeyer, Greta M Massetti and Jennifer L Matjasko
Contact Information:
Contact:
Fraternal Health and Safety Initiative
Molly Schlax
312-729-3661