Teen Dating Abuse Program

The Teen Dating Abuse Program addresses the problem of teen dating violence in the schools, a problem that has generally been ignored by the media, schools, and advocacy groups. Twenty percent of teenage girls nationwide are physically or sexually assaulted by a partner, and 80% of these girls continue to date their abuser. This abuse has long-term consequences: Abused teens have significantly higher rates of teenage pregnancy, eating disorders, STDs, and attempted suicide than other teens. Abused teens also have more problems with school attendance and performance than their non-abused peers.

The Teen Dating Abuse program is piloting its work in New York City. Despite the numerous reports and studies demonstrating the impact of dating abuse on New York City students, schools in New York have failed to take steps to address the problem. In New York City, the Department of Education and the individual schools do not have policies on teen dating violence, do not offer classes on dating violence or healthy relationships, do not train teachers or staff to recognize dating violence and offer assistance to students in violent relationships, and do not have any systems in place to help protect students who must face their abusers every day on campus. Moreover, school safety transfers—the only mechanism victims of dating violence might have to remove themselves from unsafe school situations—have such stringent requirements that they are not available to most victims of dating violence.

We use direct representation, litigation advocacy, public education, and policy work to address this issue in the New York City schools. Our goal is to ensure that schools can be a safe haven for students experiencing violence, that they respond to abuse students' needs, and that school personnel can be a resource for abused students who seek assistance or advice.