Culture of Caring
Tri Sigma is dedicated to fostering a safe, supportive environment. Our commitment to harm reduction empowers members to make responsible choices and look out for one another.
Harm Reduction
Tri Sigma is committed to preventing high-risk behavior and takes a health promotion approach when educating students and advisors. The national organization upholds the following philosophy toward harm reduction:
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The sorority urges all members to practice the principles of personal dignity, self-discipline, and dedication to social standards worthy of Tri Sigma.
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Through education, training, and mature adult guidance, we provide the tools to help students make responsible healthy choices and to understand the consequences of their choices. The organization will hold chapters and individual chapter members accountable for the choices they make.
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The sorority expects personal responsibility from its members and accountability through local chapter procedures.
Harm reduction is less about policies and more about taking care of one another, creating a culture of care, and caring enough to confront another member if they demonstrate harmful unhealthy behaviors.
This program has been recognized with the CPN Seal of Prevention, an honor awarded to institutions of higher education and fraternity/sorority organizations that have demonstrated leadership in digital prevention programming focused on student safety, well-being, and inclusion.
To help members recognize these harmful behaviors and to provide outlets for reporting, the following health promotion education is provided to Tri Sigma collegiate members.
This multi-module health promotion program is grounded in Tri Sigma’s Member Development framework and core values. The program focuses on:
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Alcohol and the body – Alcohol use, how it impacts the body, and ways that individuals can make smarter and healthier choices regarding alcohol consumption.
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Anti-hazing – Tri Sigma’s definition of hazing, the nuances of hazing, and how members can recognize and respond to hazing behaviors within Tri Sigma.
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Cannabis – An in-depth lesson on cannabis use—including the different chemicals at play and how they interact with the body—and legal, regulatory, and policy considerations.
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Responding to sexual and relationship violence – An introduction to these concepts with a focus on empathy and understanding, practicing survivor support skills, trauma–informed approaches that may influence individual responses, and resources available through Tri Sigma to help members take action.
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Prescription and other drugs – Information on social norms information, the primary, secondary, and long-term effects of use, and strategies to respond to concerning behaviors.
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This program provides an introduction to mental health topics, including:
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How mental health and wellbeing can influence one’s collegiate experience
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Tools to support personal wellbeing
This module will place added emphasis on trust building, vulnerability, and protective factors associated with personal and collective wellbeing.
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Reducing High-Risk Behaviors
In-person experiential programming is provided to student leaders and collegiate chapters. Click on each program name to learn more about our offerings.
The Prevention Institute is an in-person program focused on helping students develop the skills needed to create their own local prevention plan, including chapter retreats to proactively prevent high-risk behaviors within their chapter. This program won the 2020 AFA/CoHEASAP Award for Outstanding Alcohol/Other Drug Prevention Program. Winning programs must demonstrate creativity and overall effectiveness in alcohol/other drug abuse awareness and education or leadership that supports the elimination of high-risk drinking behavior.
Collegiate chapters receive ongoing education to help reinforce concepts introduced to new members. Members complete the e-learning content individually, and National Headquarters provides chapters with debrief guides to dive deeper into the content and apply the lessons to their daily lives.
In addition to facilitating the Prevention Institute, SAFE Team volunteers assist assigned chapters with a harm reduction program for all chapter members. The goal is for each chapter to receive a proactive visit each triennium. The half-day program focuses on engaging all members in being harm reductionists, building communication and conflict resolution skills, and identifying and confronting high-risk behaviors in their community.
Collegiate chapters that violate the National Policies of Sigma Sigma Sigma are placed on a 4-step Chapter Supervision Program.
If a chapter struggles to follow sorority or university policies, a 3-day STRIDES program (Sigma Training on Risk – Intervention, Member Development, and Chapter Evaluation for Success) is hosted by the SAFE Team and utilizes Appreciative Inquiry to guide the chapter through their challenges to create positive change.
Tri Sigma won the Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors (AFA) Oustanding Change Initiative Award in 2020 for our work on the STRIDES program. This award recognizes major initiatives or long-term plans that have led to positive changes within the campus fraternity and sorority community or the inter/national organization and measured improvements, results, and positive outcomes.
Taking Action
Tri Sigma is proud to participate in National Hazing Prevention Week and sponsor the Anti-Hazing Hotline—an anonymous, toll-free number anyone can call to report hazing.
We encourage all sisters, new members, parents, etc. to call (888) 668-4293 if you have any concerns about hazing on your campus.
To report a chapter concern, complete this online form. It is our standard practice to keep those who report concerns anonymous; however, it is helpful to know the submitter’s name and email for any follow-up questions.
For more information, visit our Policies & Position Statements page.