Dori Decker tells her students every time they meet: "In a gentle way, you can shake the world."
UMD's Wellness Coordinator uses the words of Mahatma Gandhi to underscore the message of Got Your Back! UMD, a bystander intervention initiative.
Taught by student trainers, the bystander intervention program helps college kids notice potential problem situations and recognize them as such, give them tools and strategies to intervene and gives them the sense of responsibility and confidence to take action.
Here are student trainers Dave Herrera and Lizzie Easter:
The 5 steps to intervention
a. Notice the event
b. Interpret it as a problem
c. Assume personal responsibility
d. Know how to help
e. Take action
