There is an unmet need for youth-oriented dating abuse programs and services in the rural and frontier United States. Though rural youth experience physical dating abuse at above average rates, rural domestic and sexual violence agencies are less likely to serve young clients than their non-rural counterparts. Effective partnerships and creative use of resources can go a long way toward meeting these unmet needs. 

Resources

Building Sustainable Relationships With Schools to Improve Intervention and Response to Dating Abuse is a collection of resources and strategies to assist agencies located in rural communities develop sustainable relationships with schools. The toolkit examines the context of rural dating abuse and the value of working with rural schools for intervention and response. This resource was originally developed for OVW Rural Program grantees.

Youth Access to Rural Dating Abuse Services is a report comparing the current state of dating abuse services for youth in the rural United States with services in urban communities in order to identify areas of need for technical assistance and development of new programs.

Working with LGBTQ* Youth in a Rural Setting is a tipsheet on how to create a safer, more welcoming environment for youth by practicing LGBTQ* inclusivity.

Activity Guides include short activities with discussion questions and facilitator tips, to help advocates start conversations about healthy relationships and dating abuse with students. Whether you have a full class period, a recess or lunch period or only enough time to introduce yourself and your organization, these activities are meant to be flexible and adaptable for the size of the audience and time available.

Attachment Size
 Youth Access to Rural Dating Abuse Services.pdf 5.53 MB
 Break the Cycle Rural Toolkit.pdf 1.01 MB
 Break the Cycle Activity Guides.pdf 1.32 MB
 TipSheet_RuralPrograms_2016FINAL.pdf 172.04 KB