Photo By Sgt. Jacob Nunnenkamp | Sgt. 1st Class Claressa Patterson, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry...... read more read more
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Zagan, POLAND — 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division started the Black Jack Mid-Level Ambassador Training to further educate the mid-level 2ABCT leaders on the Sexual Harassment/ Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) program in Zagan, Poland, Aug. 22 through 23.
The intent of the Black Jack Mid-Level Ambassador Training is to ensure that more mid-level Army leaders know the finer details of the SHARP program and are able to spread essential knowledge throughout the formation.
“Today we’re here to understand the actual step-by-step process of how, as leaders, we can implement the process and explain to Soldiers how important it is to know the SHARP program,” said Sgt. 1st Class Tiffany Johnson, 15th Brigade Support Battalion, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team. “This training has given us motivation and education on how to better implement the program within our ranks and formations.”
Throughout the two-day course, Troopers were educated on Sexual Assault/ Sexual Harassment Reporting 101, leadership and mental health, Special Victims Counsel capabilities, clarity on mandated reporters, re-victimization and leader impacts.
Sgt. 1st Class Claressa Patterson, 2ABCT Sexual Assault Response Coordinator (SARC), and Staff Sgt. Michelle Solis, 2ABCT Victim Advocate (VA), has led the training with a mission of ensuring Troopers are provided with the education and outlets to start a chain of information spreading throughout both the brigade and the Army.
“If I help a Soldier, they can help another one, which helps another one, and it creates a chain effect,” said Patterson. “This is really the biggest part of the fight.”
Patterson and Solis are passionate about what they do, and they have recently been recognized for their impact on the program. Solis was awarded the title of the U.S. Army Europe and Africa (USAREUR-AF) Exceptional Victim Advocate of the Year.
“It’s an appreciation and humbling experience to be recognized,” said Solis. “But, we don’t do this job to be thanked. We do it because we have a passion for it.”
The next step for Patterson and Solis is to get more Troopers involved in the program, which is a significant purpose of the Black Jack Mid-level Ambassador Training. The Army’s mid-level population is intended to be a role model for junior Troopers. To be able to teach, they must be knowledgeable.
“A leader is always a reader,” says Patterson. “If you’re not reading, you’re failing because our policies are changing, and knowing them is what’s expected of us leaders.”
The SHARP program has developed positively in many ways since its implementation in 2008. A more recent development is the Catch a Serial Offender (CATCH) program. The CATCH program gives sexual assault victims who filed restricted reports, certain unrestricted reports, or no report an opportunity to anonymously submit suspect information to help the DoD identify serial offenders.
If your entry “matches” another entry or an investigation, you will be contacted by Sexual Assault Prevention and Response personnel, and you will then decide whether to participate in the investigation.
With the SHARP program constantly evolving, it is crucial to keep Troopers informed and up to date.
“As a leader, it’s my job to take the information learned in the ambassador program and bring it back to the line,” said Staff Sgt. James Webb, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team.
| Date Taken: | 08.25.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 08.25.2023 08:30 |
| Story ID: | 452127 |
| Location: | ZAGAN, PL |
| Web Views: | 22 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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