Tec delivers Culture of Respect impact report to NASPA

Tec de Monterrey has delivered the first impact report from the Culture of Respect initiative to the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA). By doing so, it has become the only educational institution in the country certified by the association.

The purpose of the Culture of Respect initiative is to provide universities with the necessary resources and tools to prevent and address mainly situations of sexual violence. 

In January 2019, the Tec began working with NASPA and the initiative through pilot programs at the Monterrey and State of Mexico campuses.

Both have carried out training for teachers, collaborators, and students on issues of gender violence, awareness campaigns, and other actions.

Out of a total of 36 universities in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, the Tec is the only Mexican educational institution to form part of the Culture of Respect program.

Awareness, prevention, and care

The assessment that NASPA conducts at universities for the Culture of Respect initiative uses measurements based on six fundamental pillars.

• Support and care for those who have been sexual victims, known as “survivors.”
• Clear policies for the entire community.
• Multitiered education with constant training for the community.
• Public disclosure so that there is transparency in the data.
• Schoolwide mobilization involving student groups, alumni, and committees.
• Ongoing self-assessment.

The first step the Monterrey and State of Mexico campuses took was to carry out a self-assessment that allowed them to diagnose each of these pillars. Subsequently, each campus developed a strategy to promote the values of the initiative. 

Among the actions developed and maintained by the two campuses are training on gender violence issues, regular meetings with the community to publicize the care guidelines, and communication campaigns to raise awareness in the community.

The Monterrey campus has also developed a diagram of care processes for cases of sexual violence (medical and psychological), and the State of Mexico campus has linked the initiative to the area of Wellbeing and Counseling.

NASPA’s mission and the Culture of Respect program

Culture of Respect was founded in 2013 by parents of students in the United States who were concerned about high rates of sexual assault at universities.

In 2016, the initiative became part of NASPA and is included in health, safety, and wellbeing programs to create suitable environments on campuses of the universities that are part of the association.

Karla Urriola, national leader for the Office of Gender and Community Safety at the Tec, explained that Tec de Monterrey has participated in NASPA for years and it’s even the venue for conferences in Latin America and other projects run by this association.

“There I learned about Culture of Respect and brought it to the Tec. I think you always need to have a diagnosis and know where we are on these issues. As an institution, we have to dare to do this,” she said.

Karla stressed that the issue of sexual violence has been highly stigmatized but stated that it’s essential to know how to act strategically and preventively and not just reactively.

Luis Hernández, regional coordinator of Points of Care for the Office for Recognition of Human Dignity at the Monterrey, Laguna, and Saltillo campuses, shared more about the strategy for the initiative. 

“This strategy aims to address sexual violence. Culture of Respect tries to attend to situations, moving towards respect, diversity, and rights for everyone.”

“I think you always need to have a diagnosis and know where we are on these issues.” - Karla Urriola

He also expressed how important it is for what is done within the institution to eventually influence what goes on outside of it, and said:

“At the end of the day, by reflecting and changing behavior at the Tec, we can have an impact at a national level. This isn’t exclusive to one institution or population.”

The task: working against resistance to change

For Luis Hernández, one of the main areas of opportunity that he detects when working with the Culture of Respect initiative is that resistance to change is simply due to a lack of knowledge, which generates fear.

“But we can make a real change by working on these aspects.”

Miriam Nava, director of the student wellbeing department at the State of Mexico campus, pointed out the progress she has seen in the campus community.

“I see a difference from when we started this initiative to today. The community has a greater interest in proposing and actively participating. They’re looking for more information so that everyone feels safer on campus,” she said.

Karina Melo, coordinator of student behavior in the Mexico City region explained that one of the advantages of the Culture of Respect initiative is the development of multidisciplinary work in the prevention of sexual violence rather than punishment.

She recognizes that this work must be ongoing, regardless of who leads the program, so that the environment in the community is one of safety, tranquility, and prevention.

“We’ve developed workshops and campaigns to spread the initiative throughout the community. This has allowed us to move forward, but there’s still a lot to do.

“The important thing is to know where we’re at right now in order to know where we need to go,” she said.

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