NCHERM Client Testimonials

Here Is What Our Clients Think About Our Services

wesley college

NCHERM Partner W. Scott Lewis is in invaluable resource when dealing with complex code of conduct issues on campus. He is thoughtful and provides options to meet the needs of the student and the college. Additionally, his training style has been effective with our students, faculty and staff and helped our campus have a better understanding of students rights and responsibilities. We have benefited from our relationship in terms of training, evaluation of our printed materials and in terms of his perspective in helping resolve student conduce issues in a fair equitable manner.

Mary Alice Ozechoski
Dean of Students
Wesley College (DE)

amherst college

I had the pleasure of working with NCHERM Partner Saunie Schuster at two institutions. While at Amherst College, Saunie trained our Title IX Administrators, as well as students, faculty, and staff with various roles in the student conduct process. Saunie’s training provided hearing board members a space to think critically about their responsibility in making decisions on serious policy violations by using interactive case studies and challenging them on appropriate questioning and decision-making. By bringing her to campus for two days, we had the opportunity to invite colleagues from across campus to attend presentations on Title IX, sexual harassment compliance and reporting responsibilities, model hearing processes, and a conversation on consent with the students, and the reviews were rave. Saunie revealed her expertise, energy, and commitment to helping Amherst further develop skills and best practices for student conduct procedures, and we are excited to continue to work with her in the future. On a personal note, she has also been an inspiration to me as I have watched her make a difference on campuses where I had primary responsibilities for student conduct. Thanks, Saunie!

Liza M. Nascembeni,
Assistant Dean of Students and Dean of Student Conduct,
Amherst College, Amherst, MA

concordiA UNIVERSITY (TX)

Our partnership with Scott Lewis has been invaluable to this institution over the last several years.  Scott’s unique perspective from both the legal side and the Student Services side has provided us with practical, real-life and real-time advice that has been very beneficial to us at all levels of the University as we seek to improve our process.  He is both knowledgeable and likeable and relates well across all constituents – faculty, staff, students and administrators.

As a result of our partnership with Scott and NCHERM, we have completely revised and improved our Code of Conduct and Conduct Process and made improvements to our Behavioral Intervention Team process.  His presentation to students on alcohol was one of our top rated presentations that semester.   Faculty, more than a year later, still talk about the lessons they learned from him in regards to classroom management and BIST team protocols. He has worked with us on issues as diverse as training our Conduct Hearing Boards; participating in discussions on Admissions staff salaries; providing guidance around policies and protocols related to Suicide and Student Death and Involuntary Medical Withdrawals; and providing immediate guidance for real-time student discipline issues as they develop.

Kristi Kirk
Vice Provost – Student & Enrollment Services
Concordia University Texas

Southwestern College

Dear Brett,

I send a written note to thank people for amazing experiences.  But I know that you are traveling on to Texas, so I decided to send an “impersonal” email because I wanted to respond to you today.  You were remarkable.

I will be honest, when a big name consultant comes to campus, I am usually skeptical.  The consultant thinks that by scaring you or making you feel incompetent, you will immediately sign up for their expertise. They think that the small schools are easy pickings, low self esteemed by their responsibilities.  The consultant tries to impress with big name clients at elite schools with their huge projects.

You were different.  You worked it.  I observed you in multiple settings. You worked each audience with ease, confidence, and simplicity.   I watched you with members of my Student Life staff (usually suspicious). I watched you with faculty (usually cynical).  I watched you with students (usually leery). You overcame all the obstacles.  You showed care and true understanding of our institutional profile.

You ended each session and the day with a positive spirit.   True change occurs in small increments through time, empowerment, slight urgency, and positivity.  You gave us ”specific” tasks and the tools to accomplish it.  We never felt like a small rural and incompetent college.  Instead, you made the school feel good.

Thanks for all you did today. When you give hope, people respond.  You gave Southwestern that.  And I assure you, you have not heard that last of us.  We are a special place with plans for greatness.

Good luck on your work.  You are truly making a difference in higher education.

Dawn Pleas-Bailey, Ed.D.
Vice President of Student Life, Special Assistant to the President
Southwestern College

columbus college of art & design

Saunie Schuster has provided extraordinary help to me and to my campus as we’ve navigated the complicated waters of legal and regulatory requirements involving students.  She approaches her work with a perfect balance of experience and knowledge in both law and student affairs practice.  It’s been an immense comfort to me knowing that the advice and training we receive from her is grounded in a solid understanding of legal requirements, good risk management practices, and the real-life work of student affairs practitioners.  She is professional, bright, accessible to her clients, and a lot of fun!  I know you will enjoy working with her as much as I have.

Dwayne K. Todd
Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
Columbus College of Art & Design

US Naval Academy

SUBJECT: “Drunk Sex or Date Rape?” Program

Sir [Brett Sokolow],

I just got back to my room after your brief and debated, as I was leaving, of coming up to you and talking to you briefly but opted not to do so unfortunately… I will be honest that I was not looking forward to this “brief”, as we refer to these events on The Yard, because they are often boring and uninformative or even slightly helpful. I must now say that I thoroughly enjoyed your presentation. I am one that enjoys debates and I’m sure we could have gone on for another couple hours debating Todd and Amy. I had a love/hate feeling for the way you seemed to play devil’s advocate in a sense when we stood to justify our individual rulings and yet I think that is what it is supposed to be like. I think the position you took fostered a very healthy open discussion that promoted from hearing from both sides of those whom voted “guilty” and those whom voted “not guilty.” The greatest thing I can say I learned is that sex one night is just not worth a lifetime of consequences; I’d rather play the safe side and be totally sure one way or the other of whether there is consent or not. I think it is scary hearing Todd’s story and felt bad for him and his destroyed future. I did vote “not guilty” and still believe that verdict. I also feel bad for Amy but I think she held some of the responsibility knowing the conditions of college parties and still acting the way she did just in fact of having 5 drinks within the first hour actively all on her own.

Your presentation definitely hit me and I think will stick with me. I would like to thank you for taking time to share with us your experiences and give us insight into this case in the way you did. I am a “hands-on” learner and the way you presented the case unbiased and making us come to a conclusion was the most effective way it could have been approached to leave a lasting impact. I saw your very busy schedule and I thank you for visiting our campus.

Sincerely,

A US Naval Academy Midshipman

lone star college system

Scott Lewis brings a unique mix of expertise and practice to the table.  Scott’s knowledge of higher education law paired with his experience in both the classroom and in student affairs provide him with great credibility on the subject of risk management in a higher education setting.  Participants in a recent workshop commented that his riveting stories brought the subject to life in a way that will positively impact their work in the future. I believe my colleagues left the sessions both enlightened and empowered.

Zack T. Coapland, Ph.D.
System Director, Professional Development
Lone Star College System

Yale University

Brett… Your presentation last night on Drunk Sex and Date Rape was unbelievable. You created a comfortable forum for discussing a sensitive issue, which made the overall message that much more powerful. And just as you predicted, at lunch today we ate and discussed why we felt Todd was guilty or not guilty. Thank you for coming to Yale, and please do come again.

Danny Silverman
Class of ’09
Yale University

Mount Saint Mary College

Brett presented a dynamic program for our students and received very positive feedback from the audience. I want to thank him for bringing such an important program to our campus and for presenting in a style which engaged the audience and encouraged them to analyze the topic.

I look forward to inviting Brett back to Mount Saint Mary College.

Jacqueline Santiago
Director of Counseling
Mount Saint Mary College

Santiago Canyon College

Brett was just wonderful!

We had approximately 95 students in attendance for his presentation.

The students were responsive and appropriately interactive to Brett’s compelling portrayal of this enormous social challenge we face. Our Human Sexuality Faculty was also appreciative of the content and the presentation. I suggested to Brett that we to plan for an annual event provided my line item for guest lecturers remains healthy! We will need to touch base in the fall for the Brett’s schedule in spring 2008.

Beth Hoffman
Santiago Canyon College

Old Dominion University

Everything was great last night! We had about 80 people and they really seemed to enjoy the presentation and how interactive it is. We both loved the presentation and meeting Brett! Hopefully we can invite him back again in the future…

Alexa A. Priddy
Assistant Director, S.A.F.E. Coordinator, Women’s Center
Old Dominion University

Westfield State College

Last night’s program was great! It was a small group of students who attended the program but they really enjoyed it and they thought Brett was a great speaker. I look forward to having him come back in the future.

Chaitali Brahmbhatt
Westfield State College

University of Montevallo

I believe the program went well. Brett did a great job! We had about 175 students there (who) were very attentive and interacted well with Brett during the discussion part. I would call that a success!!

Theresa Pritchett
Director of Counseling and Health Center
University of Montevallo

Barton County Community College

I think the visit was outstanding. I had complete confidence in Brett, but I am impressed with our staff’s involvement. While our numbers were not what I expected, I think we had the correct people in the room to make some improvements to our campus. I appreciate Brett’s flexibility with the schedule changes and the unique settings that were thrown at him.

Brett’s student and campus presentations sparked a desire to improve our campus practices. I think we are enlightened about the ever-changing risks associated with the college students of today. I wanted to give my thanks to you for the coordination efforts.

Jason Halling
Barton County Community College

The University of Miami

Thank you for coming to speak to our campus for National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week. I have had nothing but positive feedback from the students who were fortunate enough to attend your presentation.

It was truly a pleasure working with you, and I appreciate your willingness to talk with me prior to the presentation, to tailor your presentation to our campus. In addition, your flexibility to meet with our SART members before the evening’s event is admirable.

Prior to attending the session, a few students had expressed their concern that we had brought in an alcohol speaker that would use scare tactics to prevent them from drinking. The fact that you hold true to a harm reduction strategy delighted the audience. The students were also appreciative of the casual atmosphere after the presentation that allowed them to ask even the most personal questions.

Nanette Vega
Asst. Dean of Students
The University of Miami

Saint Leo University

Great job!!!!!!!!!

The program was absolutely fantastic. I was worried about Brett being able to hold (the students’) attention for three hours, but he did, and did so wonderfully. We had amazing participation in the audience and I received a multitude of compliments on how wonderful a speaker he was. He truly spoke to the culture of our campus. I believe that Brett’s presentation made an impact on the 180 students that attended. The students appreciated his interaction and not preaching method of presentation. I will recommend Brett to anyone searching for a speaker. I thank you so much for your help in making this Leadership Conference one of the best that Saint Leo has ever had.

Mary Major
SGU Executive Secretary
Saint Leo University

Newberry College

Personally, I really enjoyed his program last night! From what we heard from other students, they really enjoyed it as well!! Here are a few comments from several students:

“I liked his aura about him, he came across a pretty cool guy”

“I liked the fact that he was so open and honest with what he was saying”

“I was afraid he was going to stand up there and preach about the same old stuff, but before we knew it an hour had gone by”

Thank you so much for working with us in having Brett come to Newberry College. We HOPE to have him back in the near future!

Thanks again for all of your help!

Marie Lynn Waxel
President, Sigma Sigma Sigma Sorority-Eta Beta
Newberry College

Framingham State College

Brett,

I want to thank you for an outstanding day yesterday. Many students and staff were thanking me at the end of the event (and I was thanking them for their support and participation) so unfortunately I was unable to thank you properly on your way out.  I also know you needed to get on the road! Hope you were able to get home before the snow started.

Your message at the event really hit home — I found the end to be especially effective in commanding the students’ attention.  Thank you for highlighting the alcohol poisoning information and the importance of saying “good night” when either parties have had too much to drink.  I also liked how you spoke about how a jury would decide their fate in the end — not what they thought about the situation.

Linda Adoniou
Framingham State College

University of South Alabama

I know it’s a little after-the-fact, but I wanted to share with you some of the feedback I’ve gotten from the Epsilon Area Resident Advisors and Peer Advisors about the workshop and program they attended featuring Brett Sokolow. It was overwhelmingly positive.

They said they learned a lot about the following:

• Helpful tips to share with friends about careful drinking and staying safe at parties
• What you should watch for in a guy who is a predator/the steps a predator goes through to find a victim
• Different interpretations of the laws concerning rape
• How much alcohol different types of beverages contain
• Interesting facts about alcohol consumption
• How alcohol can cause you to black out even while you may still act normal and do routine habits
• How situations concerning alcohol are handled in the legal system
• What exactly qualifies ability vs. inability to consent
• How one night can really affect your future
• Myths about alcohol
• Being responsible for your decisions
• Statistics about how often and what type of people commit date rape
• There is a huge grey area when it comes to these issues

They said they liked the following about Brett Sokolow as a speaker:

• He did a great job and shared very useful information
• He was very interactive with the audience
• He presented in an interesting, interactive way that made me listen to every word
• He inserted facts about alcohol and date rape while presenting his case
• It was captivating the way it was presented, with the audience being the jury for the case
• He avoided any bias while sharing the information
• He challenged people to think
• He knew what he was talking about and keeps on top of the latest information

They said the following about suggestions for improvement of the workshop/program in the future:

• None, it was great (majority response)
• Limit the attendance so that smaller groups can have more discussion
• Maybe have students who are comfortable with sharing their own experiences talk
• The peer workshop could have been more structured

I attended both events and found Brett Sokolow to be a well-researched, engaging speaker. Talking about date rape is a sensitive subject, but I thought he did an excellent job in conveying his message to students. I would highly recommend him and his program to be repeated in the future…

Heather Lovallo-Mize
Epsilon Area Coordinator
University of South Alabama

Ohio Wesleyan University

Brett,

So far I’ve heard tremendously positive feedback about your program last night. I’ve also gotten an email from a young woman on campus who told a friend at another school about the program, and the friend expressed interest in bringing you to her campus. I’ve forwarded her NCHERM’s contact information. I’ll let you know what else I hear, but just wanted to let you know that the feedback has already been extremely positive. I don’t think I could be happier with what I’m hearing people thought of the program and the messages they took away from it.

Jeff Sindelar
President, Student Government and the Gentleman’s Club
Ohio Wesleyan University

Lewis & Clark College

It has been wonderful to work with NCHERM around issues of Clery Act compliance. The knowledge and understanding of the reporting and other requirements of the Act that NCHERM brings to the table have enabled us to focus on the spirit of the law—ensuring that we are working effectively to make our campus as safe as it can be.

Jon Eldridge
Dean of Students
Lewis & Clark College

Grinnell College

Brett, I would say that trying to tackle the multidimensional, complex and slippery issues which are lurking underneath the task of writing policy about campus sexual assault is enough to make most caring and intelligent administrators cry. Having you provide the underlying structure on which to base sound policy and then molding it to fit our campus culture saved us hundreds of hours of research and meetings, and a lot of pain.

Amy Graves
Director of Community Service
Grinnell College

Lewis & Clark College

NCHERM’s services have been invaluable as we have worked to craft sexual misconduct policies that are truly effective. Their guidance and services have resulted in a more comprehensive approach to sexual misconduct and has made it much easier for us to adjudicate cases expeditiously and fairly. NCHERM also assisted us in refining our entire Code of Conduct, a review process that I am confident makes our approach to disciplinary matters even more educational and effective.

Jon Eldridge
Dean of Students
Lewis & Clark College

Idaho State University

It was a pleasure to have you at Idaho State University again. Your workshops and presentation were very helpful and I enjoyed the time with you personally.

I wanted to let you know that Lee Krehbiel was very pleased and said that your participation in his meetings was well worth the money he committed. I was also very pleased with the relaxed way you dealt with our schedule.

You took in stride the 50 mile drive between our two campuses and were open to spend extra time above and beyond what we expected. You also were very flexible in dealing with questions which were outside the subject matter we had asked you to address. I was also very pleased with your presentation on conversations about consent. I did some fallow up with our students and they said they learned a lot and there was a great deal more involved than they had originally thought.

Thanks again… I will also be happy to speak on your behalf with prospective institutions who may be interested in working with you.

Ernest Naftzger
Assoc. Dean
Idaho State University

Saint Leo University

As Gender Equity / Sexual Harassment Officer for Saint Leo University I feel that I was extremely fortunate to make the acquaintance of Brett Sokolow, J.D., and I feel that my university was equally fortunate to have him come to our campus to work with our students and with our faculty, administration and staff.

On the first day of his visit, Brett met with students representing a variety of campus organizations, sports teams, sororities and fraternities to offer his workshop on the risks involved when alcohol mixes with sex. From the ease with which he handled their sometimes difficult questions and challenges, it was clear from the outset that Brett had considerable experience interacting with such students on these issues, and had an impressive knowledge of the relevant factual information as well.

Similarly, on the second day of his visit, Brett demonstrated his considerable knowledge and experience when offering a seminar to faculty and staff on “Sexual Assault, Sexual Harassment and Title IX: Managing the Risk on Campus”. For several days after his visit, conversations centered on the topics discussed during those meetings, and how our university should deal with the issues that those discussions had raised.

Our university is a complex institution, offering classes both on our main campus in Florida, and at distant centers from Texas to Virginia, not to mention courses being offered online. To deal with the complexities of the legal issues surrounding risk management that we face, it will require an expert who specializes in just those issues, an expert like Brett Sokolow.

Everyone who attended Brett’s seminars was greatly impressed by his background, his knowledge, and his natural poise as a speaker and seminar leader. He hadn’t even left the campus and we were all discussing when we could have him back again. His workshop and seminar gave us everything we had hoped for and more.

Richard L. Bryan
Professor of Psychology
Saint Leo University

Hastings College

I wanted to say that I think you are an amazing speaker and your [Drunk Sex program] gave everyone who attended good information and certainly a lot to think about when it comes to making decisions. I am also very proud to say I am part of the group that brought such an outstanding speaker to our campus.

Jay Holmes
student CARE member
Hastings College

Central Washington University

Brett,

Congratulations and thank you for your commitment to campus law enforcement through your titanium level sponsorship in IACLEA.  I spent time 6 years on the board of directors and truly have an appreciation for what you have done for IACLEA and for the campus public safety profession.  Your behavioral assessment training I attended in Newark awhile ago has been very beneficial in my role as chief of police and in formulating and training our behavioral assessment team here at Central Washington University.  I am fortunate that I also do some consulting work for other campuses throughout the country and often make reference to your program and to the resources that you make available on your Web site.

Your work and your commitment to the safety of our nation’s students, faculty and staff does not go unnoticed.

Steve Rittereiser
Assistant Vice President
Business Auxiliaries & Public Safety
Central Washington University

Wartburg College

I am in the process of grading my CA 112 Live Speaking Event Evaluation assignment and I thought I would share some feedback with you.  Many of my students chose to attend [Brett Sokolow's Ten Things Every Student Should Know About Drinking program] and wrote down that they really enjoyed his message and his style of speaking.  They wrote that they came away with a new perspective and felt that his message had impact.  One of the biggest comments they made is that they didn’t feel his presentation was long enough!  This must be saying something considering most of my students dread sitting through other speakers.  I know that many times you don’t get to hear outside feedback on the effectiveness of a speaker, but I believe that this one is particularly impactful and relatable to the students.  I hope you consider having him come back in the future for a longer period of time!

Hiliary Burns
Assistant Director of Forensics/Adjunct Professor
Wartburg College

College of the Holy Cross

I’ve worked with Brett in the past, and will again in the future.  Saunie and Scott’s training was great, informative and well developed.  The best thing about the NCHERM training is that they are always ahead of the curve and dead on with trends.  What I learn I take back to campus implement and when it is considered best practice a year or two down the line I get to shine.  There are so few of us on a campus dealing with these issues it is great to hear from such experienced folks.   Thank you for the work you do.  The fee is fair and compared to what take-aways there are at national conferences, a real bargain.

Paul Irish
Assistant to the Vice President for Student Affairs
Director of Student Conduct & Community Standards
College of the Holy Cross

Short Takes

“Brett’s presentation was excellent. He made a difficult topic easy to discuss.”

“Brett is interested in what he does and the knowledge he shares. This passion and enjoyment give him the edge of spreading interest in his learning.”

“Overall, this program is outstanding. Brett knows his stuff and he makes you stop and think through the process.”

“He was very entertaining and knew his stuff. I learned a lot!”

“This whole exercise and presentation was excellent. Articulate, knowledgeable, able to keep focus with good humor and knowledge.”

“Brett is obviously an expert on this subject.”

“Too short… would love more.”

“Used language I could understand to set the framework.”

“This is not easy information, but Brett did a great job at making it user-friendly.”

“I enjoyed the way in which Brett challenged our thoughts and helped us to really think through the cases.”

“I learned new things about my own skills that I was not aware of before.”

“This was really helpful. Well done and well-taught.”

“Appreciated how open he was to questions.”

“Brett provided a consistent level of openness, tact and expertise for the whole day.”

“This program was outstanding! Brett really connected with our students.”

“This program was perfect for undergraduates. It was very involved and cleverly educational.”