Bystander FAQ

What to expect at your Bystander Network Workshop

All second-year undergraduate students are required to attend a one-hour workshop that will be facilitated by undergraduate peer educators. The workshop will explore the ways that all students can be active bystanders and delve deeper into what bystander intervention entails. Ways to support survivors and hold each other accountable also will be explored in depth during this workshop. Workshop participants will engage in poll questions and view brief clips that outline different scenarios and topic matters relating to bystander intervention.

The goals of the Bystander Network Program include:

Creating a deeper understanding of the issue of sexual violence and how it impacts campus culture and climate
Educating MSU students about the programs and resources available on campus and in East Lansing
Empowering MSU students to become active in their daily lives in the prevention of sexual assault and relationship violence by providing applicable strategies of intervention
Educating all students to understand that they each share a responsibility in the prevention of sexual violence and the creation of a safe community

If you are having trouble accessing your workshop, it's possible the link has changed. You should have been sent a new link. Please check your spam/junk folders and look for the most recent email about your workshop. If you still can't find it, please contact us at empower@msu.edu and we will get back to you the following day.

We recommend using Chrome to access the online work. Also make sure to clear your cache history to avoid any glitches.

Our workshops are created with a survivor focus and are intentionally made to be sensitive to the topics of sexual and relationship violence. We have had survivor input during the creation of the workshops that help to make them trauma-informed and to present the content in the least upsetting, or triggering, way to folks who have experienced trauma. Our workshops create a space that allows the attendees to feel comfortable and safe, which also includes the option to step out or leave at any time they feel the information is too much. Our peer educators presenting the workshops are also trained to handle difficult situations and check in with those who need to step out and debrief.

Your safety and well-being is our priority. If you are concerned that the workshop might be a difficult experience, you may request accommodations by contacting the Training and Accommodation Specialist at empower@msu.edu.

Yes. For reasonable accommodation requests, please contact the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities (RCPD) at (517) 884-7273.

The Bystander Network workshop is required for all students at MSU for their second year.

Attendance is tracked through Zoom attendance reports from your workshop and by completing a post-workshop survey that includes your MSU email. This survey link is given in your workshop.

You can register for another workshop by following the instructions in your email to cancel your registration and select a new workshop date and time.

Follow the instructions in your email to register again. If workshops have concluded for the fall semester, you must register for a workshop in the spring semester.

All second-year students are on the mailing list to receive notifications about the Bystander Network Workshop. You will continue to receive these notifications until after you have attended a workshop and your attendance has been recorded. Sometimes this can take several days.

This workshop is required for all second-year students, but if you feel that you have exceptional circumstances, please contact our department at empower@msu.edu.

If the university cancels classes due to weather, workshops also will be canceled. However, you will still need to attend a workshop. You can follow the instructions in your registration email to sign up for a new workshop.

While we greatly value the education and experience students have had with gender-based violence prevention, this workshop will give all MSU students a consistent knowledge base about prevention, bystander intervention, and resources of where to get help at MSU.

Prevention, Outreach and Education (POE) hires new peer educators every spring semester to begin work for the following fall semester. Check this website for an online application during the spring.

Please contact our department at empower@msu.edu.