How do we prevent dating violence and sexual assault?

While there is no easy, one-size-fits-all answer to this question, Tri-Valley Haven offers a dedicated Prevention Education Program for teens. We hope that by educating local youth about dating violence prevention, we can prevent domestic violence in future generations.

As the lead Preventionist, I visit local schools with a dedicated team of volunteers to educate teens about healthy relationships, dating abuse and bullying prevention, and bystander intervention  year-round. We offer classroom presentations, lunchtime school events,  parent workshops and staff training through the program.

In our classroom presentations, we help students focus on healthy relationships, personal boundaries, assertive communication and safe and effective bystander intervention strategies. We approach all of these topics in age-appropriate way and tailor each presentation to fit the school because know each school community is unique.

How can you support our prevention efforts?

• Get the facts. Sadly 1 in 3 teens have experienced abuse from a dating partner. Find out more about this statistic and others at Love Is Respect.org.

• Talk to your teen. Educate your child about healthy relationships and personal boundaries. Start with these useful guides: Teen Dating Abuse: How To Help My Child from Love Is Respect and Bullying: Help Your Child Recognize the Signs of Bullying from National Bullying Prevention.

• Join our “Orange Hearts” online campaign. Take a selfie with your pledge to take a stand against teen dating violence and share it on social media to spread awareness.

• February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. Get involved online and at the Haven. Visit our website www.trivalleyhaven.org to see what’s happening in February!

• Request a presentation. If you work with a group of teens, consider scheduling a presentation for your club, after-school program, religious youth group or community group! Contact our Preventionists at (925) 667-2727 or visit www.trivalleyhaven.org

• Donate to our Prevention Education Program. We currently provide presentations to local Tri-Valley area high schools and Livermore middle schools. Next year we hope to expand our program to include all Tri-Valley area middle schools. You can make this possible by donating to our prevention efforts.

Tri-Valley Haven’s heart pledges at Dublin High School last year.

In addition to providing advocacy for survivors of sexual assault, Jessie is the lead Preventionist for our Prevention Education Program at Tri-Valley Haven. Learn more about our teen presentations our Teen page on our website.