Prevention Blog Posts

“Teen dating violence [is] far too prevalent and prevents far too many students from being able to focus on their education.”
– Kevin Jennings, the Assistant Deputy Secretary, US Department of Education

Dating abuse, also known as teen dating violence, is the use of physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, or technological conduct by a person to harm, threaten, intimidate, or control a dating partner, regardless of whether that relationship is continuing or has concluded, or the number of interactions between the individuals involved.

Because dating abuse occurs in a relationship characterized by romantic or intimate feelings, there are dynamics that are distinct from other forms of violence.

These distinctive aspects of dating abuse make it one of the most confusing and overlooked forms of violence.

While schools have a duty to comply with civil and criminal orders of protection, some school administrators may wonder on a practical level how school staff can enforce protection orders.

Law enforcement has the legal responsibility to enforce restraining orders, including on school campuses.

Schools have the legal responsibility to keep students safe while they are at school. It’s crucial for schools to enforce court-ordered protective orders for the safety of all students and staff who could be harmed.

Many resources exist to support school districts in crafting and enacting policies and procedures to address dating abuse and support healthy teen relationships.

Fact sheets

Teen Dating Violence – A Fact Sheet for Schools (US Department of Education Office of Safe and Healthy Students)

According to the Research and Evaluation Center at John Jay College, serious violent crimes on school campuses reported by law enforcement such as rape and aggravated assault have declined since peaking in the mid-1990s.[1] This is very positive trend. Yet, a decline in serious violent crimes reported by law enforcement does not mean that schools are safe for everyone.

Dating abuse continues to be a largely overlooked problem on school campuses. 

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

Parents and guardians have a primary role in keeping their children safe. But parents must rely on schools to protect their children from harm when they are on campus. 

California students spend 6-8 hours each day, 5 days a week at school. 

Parents need to know that California schools prohibit dating abuse and have policies and procedures in place to respond to incidents. 

Parents need to know how to make a complaint if their child is in danger. 

Between planning prevention,implementing prevention, evaluating prevention, and sustaining prevention, where do you like to focus your efforts most? You may love to plan, or perhaps prefer to implement. But all four activities are vital to effective prevention.

Parents and guardians naturally have a powerful and primary role in supporting healthy adolescent relationships and preventing dating abuse. For example, positive parent-child relationships appear to influence the development of other positive social relationships, such as relationships with friends and romantic partners [1].

Assembly Member Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) presented the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence (the Partnership) with a copy of Assembly Concurrent Resolution 101, declaring February 2012 as Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month at Peace Over Violence’s Violence Free Teens Conference, in Los Angeles on February 17, 2012. Assembly Member Lara spoke to an audience of 150 youth and adults and thanked us for the work we do to stop dating violence, which affects so many teens: