Billie-Jo Grant, Board of Director
Dr. Grant is a nationally recognized expert in school employee sexual misconduct prevention. She has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles on the prevalence and prevention of school employee sexual misconduct, policy implementation, and implementation of federal and state laws. She has served as an advisor to the Office for Civil Rights regarding school employee sexual misconduct prevalence and Title IX implementation, the Department of Education, Study of State Policies to Prohibit Aiding and Abetting Sexual Misconduct in Schools, and the Ontario College of Teachers, Professional Advisory: Professional Misconduct of a Sexual Nature. She has been integral in providing legislators with evidence to pass state and federal legislation to better protect students from sexual misconduct.
Dr. Billie-Jo Grant is a research and evaluation consultant, the COO of McGrath Training Solutions where she provides training to help schools become safer, more effective learning environments and a great place to work and grow, including the McGrath Response System Intake and Investigation Sexual Misconduct, Sexual Harassment, Bullying and Discrimination/Title IX Compliance course, and SUCCEED with TRUE-SPEAK Communication course. Her diverse background includes experience in the design, administration and analyses of randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental studies, and cases studies involving the evaluation of preschool to higher education curricula, sexual harassment research, and prevention programs funded by organizations such as the Department of Justice, the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, the U.S. Department of Education, and the National School Board Association. She has experience developing and administering training curricula for school districts to effectively respond to sexual harassment and misconduct, discrimination and bullying.
Dr. Grant was the Principal Investigator for a Department of Justice School Safety study titled Sexual Misconduct by School Employees: Policy Implementation and Effectiveness. This two-year multi-centered study involved document collection, interviews, and focus groups with school employees and county officials directly and indirectly involved with incidents of school employee sexual misconduct across the U.S. The purpose of the study was to learn from school districts who have recently had incidents of school employee sexual misconduct in order to develop updated best practices for preventing and responding to these types of incidences.
Billie-Jo holds a Ph.D. in Educational Research, Statistics, and Evaluation from the University of Virginia. She serves as a faculty member at Cal Poly State University, San Luis Obispo and has taught graduate courses on statistics, survey design, measurement theory, and qualitative and quantitative methods. She has worked as a volunteer with legal aid groups, providing educational advocacy for low-income children. Billie-Jo has three children and was a four-time All-American NCAA Track and Field athlete.
What do you hope to accomplish with S.E.S.A.M.E.?
My goal as a member of S.E.S.A.M.E. is to find funding to conduct much needed research in this area. First and foremost I hope to work with S.E.S.A.M.E.’s team to apply for funding to conduct an updated generalizable student prevalence study (the last survey was collected in 2000). Without a more accurate prevalence rate of school employee misconduct, policymakers and school officials do not have the data needed to make informed decisions regarding school employee sexual misconduct prevention and investigation. This study is needed to better protect students and keep molesting school employees out of our schools.
In addition to research, I hope to make a difference by creating public awareness, assisting victims and survivors, advocating for improved policies and laws, and developing better training for students and staff.
Articles:
Title IX and School Employee Sexual Misconduct: How K-12 Schools Respond in the Wake of an Incident
Prevention of preK-12 School Employee Sexual Misconduct and Abuse
K–12 School Employee Sexual Abuse and Misconduct: An Examination of Policy Effectiveness
Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of PreK-12 Students by School Personnel
Exposing School Employee Sexual Abuse and Misconduct: Shedding Light on a Sensitive Issue
K–12 School Employee Sexual Misconduct: Lessons Learned from Title IX Policy Implementation
“The Challenges of Keeping Sexual Predators Out of the Classroom”
Preventing School Employee Sexual Misconduct: An Outcome Survey Analysis of Making Right Choices
“I Didn’t Know Where To Go”: An Examination of Stop It Now!’s Sexual Abuse Prevention Helpline
