In this Feb. 6, 2016 photo provided by Connecticut College, the men's hockey team lines for a game against Tufts, wearing a special patch to mark the fifth annual Green Dot hockey game, on the campus in New London, Conn. The U.S. Air Force visited the college in March to get an up-close look at a school that has been using the Green Dot program to stem sexual assault, a problem that has been the target of crackdowns in recent years in higher education and the armed forces. The Air Force is introducing the program at all installations across the service. (Bob McDonnell/Connecticut College via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT
In this Feb. 6, 2016 photo provided by Connecticut College, the men's hockey team lines for a game against Tufts, wearing a special patch to mark the fifth annual Green Dot hockey game, on the campus in New London, Conn. The U.S. Air Force visited the college in March to get an up-close look at a school that has been using the Green Dot program to stem sexual assault, a problem that has been the target of crackdowns in recent years in higher education and the armed forces. The Air Force is introducing the program at all installations across the service. (Bob McDonnell/Connecticut College via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT Credit: ap/Connecticut College — Bob MacDonnell

Hartford, Conn. — As the U.S. Air Force prepared to roll out a new sexual assault prevention strategy, it sent a delegation to Connecticut College, a small liberal arts school that introduced the same program several years earlier.

The visit last month — including conversations with students, athletic coaches and others — was the latest example of the military taking cues from colleges and universities to try to stem sexual assault, a problem that has been the target of crackdowns in recent years for both higher education and the armed forces.

As Congress stepped up pressure to curb rape in the military, Defense Department officials began visiting colleges around the United States, taking notes on approaches that worked best.

The scenarios used in college training sessions often are adapted to a military setting, with characters in uniform to help them resonate with service members, said Nate Galbreath, the senior executive adviser for the Pentagon’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office.

But there is significant overlap, given the large numbers of young people at the greatest risk for sexual assault, he said.

“They’re certainly analogous,” he said. “We’re dealing with people between the ages of 18 and 24. What research tells us is that people in this period have yet to actually become adults, at least as far as their brain structure goes.”

The Air Force visited Connecticut College in New London to get an up-close look at a campus that since 2010 has been using the Green Dot program, which stresses the role of each individual and peer influence in eliminating tolerance of violence.

The Air Force is introducing the program at all installations across the service.

“This is a total force effort,” said Col. Mark Ramsey, a division chief for the Air Force Sexual Assault Prevention Office.

On the campus visit, Ramsey said, he was impressed to see the program’s teachings adopted by the entire campus, including men’s athletic teams.

The Pentagon has been working to change behaviors since the problem gained new attention in recent years with reports on elevated rates of assault in the ranks.

Earlier this year, the Defense Department said reports of sexual assaults surged in the previous school year at its own service academies, though officials said the increases were due largely to students’ growing confidence in the reporting system and expanded awareness programs.