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NEWS RELEASE February 28, 2011

Five-Year Plan Recommends Strategies to Prevent Dating Violence Among Rhode Island Teens

State Steering Committee to work with local communities to build Rhode Island’s teen dating violence prevention system

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, February 28, 2011
CONTACT: Sara Molinaro at RICADV, Phone: (401) 467-9940

RICADV_PreventionPlan_Thumb[Warwick, RI] As part of National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month, the Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence released a new plan today called Addressing the Violence Before It Starts , which recommends cutting-edge goals and strategies targeting men and youth for the prevention of intimate partner violence. The plan outlines 3 key strategies for domestic violence prevention: working with men, working with youth aged 12 and older, increasing the capacity of Rhode Island’s system of local prevention programs.

“Many RI state and community agencies came together to develop this plan and we are very excited to be able to share it with the public now,” said Lucy Rios, director of prevention at the RICADV, “Our hope is that by implementing the goals outlined in the plan, we will prevent domestic violence and create safer communities.”

Rhode Island is one of 14 states funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through its DELTA Project (Domestic Violence Prevention Enhancement Leadership Through Alliances) to create a statewide plan for the prevention of domestic violence.

The DELTA State Steering Committee (SSC), composed of local domestic violence service providers, survivors, professional allies, researchers and policy-makers from across the state, has worked to identify evidence-based prevention strategies targeting men and teens.

The SSC recognizes that engaging men in prevention efforts will help to shift unhealthy cultural attitudes and norms around violence and gender. While the overwhelming majority of domestic violence offenders arrested in Rhode Island are men, most Rhode Island men are not perpetrators.

“Many men who are not violent are not sure how to help, and remain silent in the face of other men’s violence,” continued Rios. “We want to engage more men in our work by giving them the tools they need to stop violence against women.”

There is evidence that dating violence among teens has increased over the past decade. The SSC points out that prevention programs, by becoming involved with teens as they are forming their ideas about dating relationships, are critical to shaping healthy norms and attitudes.

Over the next five years, the SSC will work to promote local use of the strategies outlined in this statewide prevention plan. The SSC, in partnership with the RICADV, will offer training and assistance to local communities who use and adapt these strategies to their programs.

The plan can be found here.

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