The Mercyhurst Empowerment and Prevention Project team: Mercyhurst Police Chief DJ Fuhrmann; Residence Life Director Megan McKenna; Attorney Greg Grasinger with SafeNet; project coordinator Rianna Bartlett; project manager Ariel Dodick; Dr. Judy Smith, executive director of wellness; Alice Agnew, Title IX ofcer; and Amy Blackman, director of prevention and education for the Crime Victim Center. ‘IT’S ON US’ MOVEMENT A partnership among Mercyhurst, law enforcement and social service groups to raise awareness and to fght against sexual assault on college campuses. Thanks to a $300,000 “It’s On Us” grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, Mercyhurst has created an All-Campus Violence Prevention Project in collaboration with the Erie County District Attorney’s Ofce, the Erie Police Department, the Crime Victim Center and SafeNet. “The key word here is ‘comprehensive’ in that we are working together as partners to create for our campus the best possible education and response to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking crimes,” said Dr. Judy Smith, executive director of wellness at Mercyhurst, who wrote the grant and serves as project director. Ariel Dodick has been hired full time as project manager and Rianna Bartlett as part-time project coordinator. Both are Mercyhurst alumnae. The frst phase of the three-year grant, which began in October 2017, focused on planning and training. The second phase, which will begin this fall, is implementation, while the third will concentrate on sustaining the project. “We are hoping that together with our partners we can build a program that will make a lasting diference in shifting the culture on college campuses, starting with our own,” Smith said. “We are committed to keeping our students safe and in healthy relationships that respect both men and women.” The grant enables Mercyhurst to create a Coordinated Community Response Team (CCRT) with the goal of expanding victim services and advocacy, prevention education, and staf training at the Erie and North East campuses as well as the Booker T. Washington Center. The Crime Victim Center intends to augment Mercyhurst’s eforts by providing access to support groups, accompanying victims through the legal system and helping with victim compensation. SafeNet provides prevention education, particularly in how to sustain healthy relationships, sheds light on the early warning signs of controlling behavior, and assists victims with Protection from Abuse orders.
Elisa Belfore reads to a class at St. Gregory Preschool.
EDUCATION PARTNERSHIPS DRIVE ACADEMIC SUCCESS
Early on, the Mercyhurst University Education Department recognized the value of partnerships between K-12 schools and universities, both in better preparing the educators of tomorrow and in increasing the academic success of today’s youth. From the university’s pioneering Carpe Diem Academy to its contribution to autism education in the Erie School District, it has opened new pathways to creativity, expression and achievement among young people. The university’s graduate special education program continues to celebrate the success of two longstanding partnerships: one with the R. Benjamin Wiley Community Charter School in Erie, and one with St. Gregory Parish School in North East, both in existence for more than 10 years. Leaders of both institutions said their partnerships with Mercyhurst have played an important role in driving student success. Last year, for example, elementary teachers at the Wiley charter school partnered with Mercyhurst graduate assistants in a concerted efort to heighten reading levels across the population. As a result, the majority of students behind grade-level expectation were able to increase their reading levels to grade-level expectation or above. At St. Gregory’s, educators credit Mercyhurst not only for helping to drive high student achievement but also for keeping the doors open. Enrollment has climbed each year, starting with 72 students in 2013-14 to 97 students in 2017-18. In addition, 6th and 7th graders ranked among the highest nationally on the 2017 TerraNova standardized tests in reading, language and math. And, for the past three years, 8th graders have scored in the 80th percentile in all content areas on the TerraNova standardized tests when compared to the rest of the country. The common denominator in both cases, said Mercyhurst Education Professor Phil Belfore, is that the schools employ master’s-level Mercyhurst students, most of whom are already certifed teachers. “The Mercyhurst partnerships demonstrate the pedagogical leadership role graduate departments of education should be taking within K-12 education,” Belfore said. “With these partnerships, we seek to improve education through our graduate students, who are taught current evidence-based practices, and our professional involvement at each school site.”
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