News and Media

NEW RESOURCE TO COMBAT HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND FRAUD IN HIGHER EDUCATION

September 1, 2022

Contact: Tiffany Inghram
Manager - Communications
tinghram@fsmtb.org/913.681.0380 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 31, 2022

NEW RESOURCE TO COMBAT HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND FRAUD IN HIGHER EDUCATION

OVERLAND PARK, Kansas – August 31, 2022 – The Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards is thrilled to announce the release of a new resource, co-authored by our executive director, Dr. Debra Persinger – A Toolkit for Identifying Human Trafficking and Fraud in Higher Education. The toolkit, co-authored with Lorna Candler of the Colorado Department of Higher Education, is a practical guide for state authorizers to identify and take action on human trafficking in higher education institutions. The toolkit is specifically designed to assist state regulators and agencies, organizations, or entities that regularly intersect with the responsibilities and duties of state regulators, and it aims to answer three key questions:

  1. How do I identify if a school is engaged in trafficking?
  2. Do I have authority to act, and what do I do next?
  3. How do I support the victims, and when should I engage law enforcement?

This tool focuses on sex trafficking that is increasingly perpetrated in higher education by organized, sophisticated criminal enterprises that stretch regulatory and enforcement resources. The toolkit provides a list of red flags that may indicate to regulators that further investigation is merited, and examines best practices for interagency collaboration and how and when to engage partners.

Authors Persinger and Candler are on the front lines of this work, leading the field in combating this issue. In addition to the hours spent protecting students, they have dedicated their time to educate their peers and colleagues through conference panels, direct outreach, and the creation of this toolkit.

We are grateful to the Seldin/Haring-Smith Foundation for their support of this project. To learn more about the issue of trafficking in higher education, read the front-page USA Today article from 2021.

About FSMTB
Established in 2005, the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB) is an autonomous, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization comprised of state regulatory boards and agencies that regulate the massage therapy profession. All revenue collected by the organization is used to enhance FSMTB programs, maintain and improve the quality of the Massage & Bodywork Licensing Examination (MBLEx®) and provide support to FSMTB Member Boards in fulfilling their responsibility of protecting the public. For more information, please visit www.fsmtb.org.

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