Creating Safer, Healthier Campuses with Purposeful Prevention Education

Across the country, higher education institutions are grappling with increasingly complex issues affecting student well-being, from mental health struggles to alcohol misuse and campus harassment. These aren’t isolated concerns, and solving them requires more than meeting regulatory checkboxes.

At Vector Solutions, we partner with colleges and universities to deliver prevention training that helps shift campus culture, not just compliance.

Our latest Course Efficacy Report, based on over 2 million learner surveys between June 2024 and February 2025, shows clear gains in how students, faculty, and staff understand, respond to, and engage with key issues like alcohol use, consent, mental health support, bystander intervention, and reporting systems.

Why Effective Training Makes a Difference on Campus

Today’s higher education leaders are tasked with navigating a fast-evolving campus environment shaped by legal expectations, student demands, and reputational pressures. Prevention-focused learning plays an essential role in helping schools:

• Meet necessary compliance standards, including Title IX, Clery Act, and additional requirements under state statutes.
• Foster a stronger sense of shared responsibility among campus members.
• Reduce the likelihood of harmful incidents and institutional liability.
• Support efforts to retain students by promoting a safer, more supportive climate.

Of course, simply offering a course isn’t enough. What matters is the quality and impact of that training. Vector Solutions ensures that each program is built on research, rooted in behavior change theory, and refined through honest learner feedback.

Proven Results Across Three Core Themes

Across five courses as a result of the training, learners consistently showed:

1. Better Awareness of Support Systems

Students finished courses with a deeper understanding of how and where to report concerns or seek help and increased knowledge of campus resources and services. These concerns often involve alcohol use, harassment, discrimination, and mental health challenges.

2. More Confidence to Step In and Help

Survey data post-course revealed that learners were more likely to intervene when witnessing unsafe or harmful situations. This increased bystander confidence was one of the most consistent findings.

3. A Stronger Sense of Campus Responsibility

Students reported greater alignment with community expectations and personal accountability, especially around helping peers, respecting boundaries, and supporting positive norms.

Data-Backed Courses Designed for Impact

The five featured courses in the report include:

• AlcoholEdu® for College: Teaches students how to recognize high-risk drinking behaviors, make safer choices, and look out for peers.
• Sexual Assault Prevention (Undergraduate and Graduate): Provides tools to understand consent, avoid coercion, support survivors, and report misconduct.
• Mental Well-Being for Students: Encourages help-seeking, resilience, and peer-to-peer support for emotional and psychological health.
• Preventing Harassment and Discrimination for Faculty and Staff: Helps learners recognize inappropriate behavior and respond ethically in academic and workplace settings.

The courses aren’t generic lessons. They are tailored for its audience and backed by national standards, subject matter experts, and on-the-ground data.

Measuring Efficacy Across Campuses

The report’s results come from paired Pre- and Post-Course Survey data. These surveys measured shifts in knowledge, confidence, and intention. To assess practical outcomes, learners rated statements on a 1–5 Likert scale, including statements such as “I would intervene if I saw someone being harassed” and “I know where to go to report a concern at my school.”

Results were aggregated from learners across hundreds of institutions. The courses with the largest sample sizes included:

• Sexual Assault Prevention for Undergraduates (736,626 Learners)
• AlcoholEdu® for College (604,125 Learners)
• Preventing Harassment and Discrimination for Faculty and Staff (203,504 Learners)

By using a consistent, research-validated methodology, we’re able to draw reliable insights across campuses of all sizes and types.

From Insights to Action

The findings show that digital prevention education works best when paired with larger campus strategies, not as a one-off solution. To build on training momentum, we recommend:

• Hosting peer-led workshops or follow-up dialogues.
• Incorporating training themes into orientation or advising sessions.
• Establishing student leadership roles in prevention campaigns.
• Making reporting tools and campus contacts highly visible and accessible.

These strategies can help turn learning into real culture change on campuses.

Explore the Full Report

Let’s work together to build campuses where students and staff are safer, smarter, and better. As your partner, Vector Solutions advances student success and institutional transformation by fostering cultural change, strengthening well-being, and driving lasting impact. Whether your institution is just beginning to reimagine prevention or ready to scale its efforts further, Vector Solutions provides proven tools and strategic guidance to help you lead with confidence.