“Isn’t this just letting sex buyers off easy?”

No. SEP is not a replacement for accountability - it is accountability. Participants are required to attend as part of their sentence, pay course fees, and engage in a day of intensive education that directly challenges their beliefs, choices, and behaviors. Unlike fines or jail time alone, SEP is designed to change behavior and reduce the chances of reoffending.

“Why not just increase fines or jail time?”

Evidence based on numerous studies show that punishment by itself does little to reduce recidivism. In fact, harsher penalties often make people more secretive without changing the underlying beliefs or behaviors that drive sex buying. SEP focuses on criminogenic needs - distorted thinking, impulsivity, and antisocial beliefs - which evidence shows is the most effective way to reduce future crime.

“How can you change someone’s life in one day?”

The short answer: you don’t - at least not completely. What SEP does is start a process of change that many participants have never engaged in before.

Every SEP class is a reflection of the diversity of the community:

• We’ve had participants in their late teens, showing signs of pornography or sex addiction.
• We’ve had participants in their 80s, some grieving the loss of a spouse.
• One Columbus man shared he had just celebrated his 50th wedding anniversary, but his wife was living with dementia and no longer recognized him. In his loneliness, he turned to sex buying as an unhealthy coping mechanism.

These stories show that no two participants are alike. The “why” behind buying sex is different for every person - and so the path forward has to be different, too. That’s why SEP avoids a “cookie-cutter” model.

Instead, SEP:

• Creates a space for participants to recognize and reflect on their own reasons for soliciting sex.
• Challenges harmful beliefs and thought patterns that fuel demand.
• Introduces participants to a range of follow-up resources - from addiction support groups to counseling to community accountability - based on their unique needs.

By initiating these difficult but essential conversations, SEP makes it possible for the justice system to go beyond punishment and into therapeutic jurisprudence - holding offenders accountable while also connecting them to the individualized support that leads to long-term change.

“It’s two consenting adults — why not just legalize it?”

We recognize that some individuals willingly choose to engage in sex work, and SEP does not seek to stigmatize them. However, decades of research and lived experience show that the sex trade as a whole is not built on equal power or opportunity. Many who are involved face economic pressure, past trauma, addiction, or direct exploitation through force, fraud, or coercion.

A substantial body of research also suggests that areas with legalized sex work experience increases in human trafficking. Legalization expands the overall market for commercial sex, which increases demand for both legal and illegal sex workers. Traffickers exploit this enlarged market by blending into the legal sector, making it harder for authorities to detect and prosecute exploitation.

For these reasons, legalization does not resolve the harm. Instead, it risks making exploitation more widespread and harder to control.

SEP’s mission is not to judge sex workers, but to hold sex buyers accountable. By reducing demand, we make it less likely that vulnerable people will be exploited and help create a safer, more just community for everyone.

“Does SEP stigmatize sex workers?”

No. Our curriculum is intentionally designed not to stigmatize people engaged in sex work, whether by choice or through exploitation. We use the phrase “compulsory sex work” to help buyers understand that while some individuals choose to engage in sex work, many are there through force, fraud, or coercion. SEP’s focus is on changing buyer behavior - not blaming sex workers.

“How do survivors benefit from SEP?”

All profits from SEP go back into local survivor care initiatives. We also partner with survivor-led organizations such as She Has A Name and utilize the products and services vendors like Freedom a la Cart to ensure buyer accountability supports restorative justice. Survivors also contribute to the curriculum through storytelling and lived experience, giving participants a direct window into the harm caused by demand.

“What’s the difference between SEP and a John School?”

It’s true that SEP falls within the broader category of “John Schools” - but not all John Schools are SEPs. Over the years, cities across the U.S. and Canada have tried different approaches, ranging from one-day seminars to multi-week classes. Many of these programs were created with good intentions, but the limited research available shows they often had minimal long-term impact and, in some cases, unintentionally stigmatized sex workers instead of addressing the demand that fuels exploitation.

The Columbus Model of Solicitor Education was developed after years of analyzing sex buyer intervention programs nationwide and comparing them to recognized, evidence-based practices in the criminal justice field. SEP is not just another class - it is a research-backed, survivor-centered intervention designed to actually reduce recidivism.

What makes SEP different:

• Rooted in criminological research on reducing recidivism.
• Targets the four core criminogenic needs most strongly tied to reoffending.
• Built in collaboration with survivors, justice partners, and educators.
• Informed by local ACEs research studies,, and feedback surveys from over 1000 participants since 2007, showing that unhealthy beliefs about sex and relationships, unresolved trauma and maladaptive coping are often at the root of sex-buying behavior.

“What data shows this approach works?”

SEP is built on both local research in Columbus and national criminological studies, creating one of the most evidence-informed buyer education models in the country.

20 years of data from over 1,000 Columbus sex buyers: Since 2007, sex buyer programs in Columbus have collected and analyzed surveys from program participants on their demographics, socioeconomics, education levels, reasons for buying sex, and perceptions of program impact. This rich dataset has allowed SEP to continually refine and evolve the curriculum so it is directly responsive to the realities and needs of the intended audience.

ACEs study funded by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office: Conducted in partnership with She Has A Name and Tiffin University, this research found that 43.6% of SEP participants scored 4 or higher on ACEs, compared to just about 16% of the general population. These findings highlight the strong connection between unresolved trauma, maladaptive coping, and sex-buying behavior.

National criminogenic needs research: Decades of studies show that interventions targeting distorted thinking, antisocial attitudes, impulsivity, and unhealthy peer influences reduce recidivism far more effectively than increasing punishment or shame-inducing approaches. SEP aligns directly with these best practices, making it both survivor-centered and evidence-based.

“Can I observe the SEP?”

Our facilitators work hard to create an environment where participants feel safe to share openly and honestly. Because many participants have active court cases and are processing sensitive personal issues, we generally do not allow outside observers.

However, in certain cases we may make exceptions - for example, for justice partners, researchers, or approved stakeholders. In those situations, observers are required to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) to protect participant confidentiality.

If you are interested in observing a session, please contact us to discuss your request.

“Why does SEP exist in Columbus - and why expand it?”

Columbus has been a leader in sex buyer education for more than two decades. SEP is the result of years of collaboration between survivors, educators, justice partners, and community members. As the program has grown, we believe it has become a gold standard model for other cities and states to adopt - combining accountability, survivor reinvestment, and evidence-based curriculum.

Still Have Questions?

We welcome dialogue. If you’d like to learn more, request a presentation, or speak with a member of our team, please contact us here.