Over 300 junior enlisted members received bystander intervention training during their “A” school indoctrination period. Encouraged by Training Center Yorktown’s command leadership, four passionate victim advocates have led multiple sessions of apprentice-level training.
The new training program - Recognize, Evaluate, Assess, Confirm, Take Action (REACT) - incorporates five steps to disrupt behaviors on a continuum of harm. Participation in REACT builds a culture where members feel they have the skills to safely intervene and question situations that appear inhospitable to our Coast Guard Core Values. Training resources include the “three D’s” to deploy when intervening: be direct, distract or delegate.
Petty Officer 1st Class Toqua Fore commented, “REACT has the ability to change bystander culture in the Coast Guard. I would have benefited from this program as a new member and am proud that it is giving our junior members the tools needed to be comfortable with confronting uncomfortable situations.”
Training uses real world scenarios to run through the REACT model and guides students to pick a path to deescalate the staged situation. Five victim advocates teach REACT: Chief Lee McMillan, Petty Officer 1st Class Elizabeth Haworth, Petty Officer 1st Class Toqua Fore, Petty Officer 1st Class Christopher Sheffield and Lt. Cmdr. Tasha Sadowicz all based at TRACEN Yorktown.
The team of advocates provide this training to provide future petty officers – the peer leaders within the workforce - information and tactics to prevent sexual assault or harassment.