“It’s the people who step in if at parties they see someone who, someone’s groping them or being creepy and so they’ll just step in,” said Dani Smith, Chapman's C.A.R.E.S. coordinator and rape crisis counselor. “This is a chance for people to nominate friends or sisters or brothers or peers who do that all the time and take care of each other, create a safe community.”

The Active Bystander Intervention Award (ABI Award) gives every student a chance to nominate someone on campus who takes care of others and is an active bystander. Previously known as the Men of Integrity/Women of Strength Action event, the ABI Award ceremony will be held at Chapman on Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. in Memorial Hall.

“I think sometimes, unfortunately, I’ve heard that people will just sit back and just you know let it happen,” said Smith “I think one of the things of being an active bystander is that you make sure you’re safe as well, so you get some friends, or you call P-Safe. You make sure that you’re doing something because you can save a person.”

In addition to giving out the award, the event will also show a few bystander videos to help attendees learn more about active bystander intervention. Many of the videos were made by Dodge students who were part of Chapman C.A.R.E.S. Club. Smith has learned from many of her students that the videos are a very effective tool for sexual assault prevention and education because they show students how they can intervene safely, rather than just telling them.

“The last event before we shut our doors (due to COVID-19) before Chapman University went home, was that night we gave the Man of Integrity/Woman of Courage Action Award and then we closed our doors, shut down Chapman and went home,” said Smith. “That was the last time we did that.”

After COVID-19 the award did not immediately return to Chapman, but C.A.R.E.S. students have been trying to get it up and going again. This year they finally succeeded, however, they decided to combine them into one and make it the Active Bystander Award.

“I had a young man who won the award when he was a senior,” said Smith. “(He) came up to me that night he won the award and he said ‘Dani Smith when I was a freshman I remember coming to this event and I said I want to win that award,’ so for four years he was an active bystander, really helping people at parties and things.’”

The winner of the award is chosen by students who are a part of C.A.R.E.S., Smith only oversees the vote, so it’s students recognizing their peers for being active bystanders and making a difference in their community.

“I think those people should be recognized,” said Smith. “It’s someone who just makes sure that person is safe. That’s a hard thing to do sometimes.”