One of the things that we discussed at the Executive meeting yesterday was jobs allocations/portfolio responsibilities for everyone on the Exec. Among the things we discussed was the role of a harassment contact officer, which Sian C has been filling for much of the Club’s existence, and wishes to step down to take a well deserved break from.
The Club had always been an inclusive organisation, and we take seriously our commitment to ensuring that it is a safe place for folk to train in and be part of the wider social community of. I would be great to think that everyone who is a signed up member or supporter would actively work to create it this. Unfortunately, over the years, there have been a few less than stellar moments where the Club’s executive have had to deal with the consequences of people behaving badly.
The harassment contact officer (HCO) is a first point of call for anyone who has an issue with the way that they have been treated by another Club member. This might be a fellow student in a class, and Instructor, or an Executive member. The Club falls under the ambit of USQs framework regarding harassment and bullying, and as such the HCO can help to navigate that process.
We are looking for someone to step into that role. You do not need to have any prior background or training as this will be provided to you. You just need to be someone that others trust sufficiently to come to regarding sensitive matters, and have a capacity to be empathetic, discrete, process focused, and fair minded. We are specifically looking for someone outside the existing Executive to provide sufficient distance from the group of elected executives/instructors/coordinators, so that the processes, should it involve one of these members, can be seen as being appropriately distanced from them.
If you think that you could do this very important job, could you please send an expression of interest to me as President ASAP, and we would like to ensure that this role is being filled.