Transforming Leadership: Teaching Power for Responsibility and Respect

Leadership starts with how power is understood, modeled, and practiced.

This week, Howard L. Savage, II Savage shares a quote from Tony Porter, author of Breaking Out of the Man Box and CEO of A Call to Men:
“The problem is not that men have power. The problem is how we teach men to use it.”

This message connects closely to the mission of HASSL, a movement working to tackle harassment and violence against women at the root by shifting responsibility away from women having to constantly protect themselves and onto society as a whole.

Power itself is not the issue. The issue is whether power is taught as control, entitlement, dominance, and silence, or as responsibility, accountability, respect, and care.

In Title IX, workplace culture, campus prevention, and student education, we often see the consequences of unhealthy power dynamics long before a formal report is ever made. Those dynamics can show up in the way people speak, lead, joke, mentor, intervene, or choose not to intervene.

Prevention requires more than policy. It requires culture change.

That means teaching students, employees, coaches, leaders, and community members that power should never be used to intimidate, exploit, pressure, or silence others. It should be used to protect dignity, interrupt harm, and build environments where respect is expected.

Grateful to have Howard L. Savage, II as part of our team, and for highlighting a message that remains deeply relevant to prevention, accountability, and the work of creating safer communities.

#TitleIX #PreventionEducation #CampusSafety #Accountability #Leadership #CultureChange #SexualViolencePrevention #HigherEducation #WorkplaceCulture #TraumaInformed