2CAB Soldiers Talk About the SHARP Program

Photo By Sgt. Tiffany Mitchell | CAMP HUMPHREYS, Republic of Korea -- Sgt. Devorion Crawford, a native of St. Louis, Missouri, is a multichannel transmission systems operator-maintainer assigned to 1-6 Air Cavalry Squadron, 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Tiffany Mitchell)  

SOUTH KOREA

04.27.2021

Story by Sgt. Tiffany Mitchell 

2nd Combat Aviation Brigade

Annually, Soldiers are required to participate in the Army’s Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Program training to build trust, spread awareness, and create a support network for Soldiers to utilize to prevent and respond to sexual harassment and sexual assault incidents.

“The program is a safe place for us to talk about sexual harassment and assault and that there are ways that we can come together as a unit to prevent it,” said Sgt. Devorion Crawford, a multichannel transmission systems operator-maintainer assigned to 1-6 Air Cavalry Squadron, 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. “If you or someone you know finds themselves in that situation, there are policies set in place for us to get the help we need. You can’t fight that battle alone, because it can take a toll on you mentally, physically, and emotionally. There are people around that can help us get through it.”

Recently, seven Soldiers from the Army’s 18th Airborne Corps, located at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, presented their ideas on how to improve the Army’s approach to sexual harassment and assault training and incidents. Some of the proposed training aids included virtual reality training, a film school-directed video to replace PowerPoint slides, and creating a SHARP app.

“I think there’s room for improvement with how units are teaching the SHARP Program,” said Sgt. Dillon Stein, a geospatial engineer assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade. “The classes have to become more engaging and less repetitive. By including more real-life scenarios and group discussions during the class, it gives Soldiers a better understanding of the information than just sitting through a PowerPoint presentation.”

Crawford believes that investing more time into creating situationally based training videos could help improve how the Army conducts SHARP training.

“I’ve been a part of some sexual harassment and assault skits before and it does provide Soldiers with better examples of how you can deter situations from happening,” said Crawford. “We got to show the importance of being an initial responder and not a bystander. Doing something as simple as sending a text to someone saying ‘hey, I didn’t like that you did this’, or even having someone that you know talk to this person about what happened can make a difference.”

Incorporating a few refresher courses throughout the year is a change that Stein would like to see happen.

“I think that having a refresher course every couple of months would be one way to improve the program,” said Stein. “For me, just having the SHARP training once a year isn’t enough. It’s easy for Soldiers to forget about the resources that are available to them. It’s good knowledge to have and some people need that little refresher every now and then to solidify that information.”

For Sgt. Dong Oh, a Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) Specialist assigned to 4-2 Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade, it’s not about just changing the program but the negative mentalities surrounding sexual harassment and assault incidents.

“Honestly, it’s all the Soldier’s mentality towards the issue,” said Oh. “They have to want to care about the problem. Unless you can change a Soldier’s mindset and stigma that comes with acknowledging and reporting those problems, then I don’t think that just the program alone can fix everything.”

Trust has to be built and maintained between leaders and their Soldiers. Opening up the floor for more discussions about sexual harassment and assault outside of mandatory training will help build the confidence service members have in the effectiveness of the program.

“We have to talk about it even when it’s not during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month or at the couple mandatory training events we get a year,” said Crawford. “Sexual harassment and assaults can happen at any point in time so we have to keep the conversation going.”

• Date Taken: 04.27.2021
• Date Posted: 04.26.2021 23:06
• Story ID: 394831
• Location: KR