Healthy relationships are something young people deserve to learn about, and they're at their best when young people help shape the conversation. That belief is at the heart of a partnership between VOA Oregon Home Free and Raphael House of Portland, which brings teen dating violence prevention and healthy relationship education to Portland Public Schools students.
Meeting students where they are
Our advocates work side by side with students in their own school communities, offering education on what healthy, respectful relationships look like and how to recognize the warning signs of abuse. The work goes beyond classroom presentations. Students also have spaces that are theirs: a support group, a drop-in space, and focus groups, including focus groups with trans and nonbinary students, so that the program reflects the real experiences and needs of the young people it serves. Food at events and fun swag items help make those spaces welcoming, because people show up where they feel comfortable.
Growing across Portland
The program is growing, most recently expanding to Alliance High School, and it continues the presentations that began in the first year. Advocates are also working with students at three other school sites: Cleveland, Benson, McDaniel, and Roosevelt.
However, students at any PPS high school can reach an advocate through our PPS Confidential Advocacy Access Line: (503) 809-4357
Students as experts: the OCADSV Prevention Summit
One of this year's highlights came in June, when advocates from VOA Oregon Home Free and Raphael House of Portland were invited to present at the Oregon Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence (OCADSV) prevention summit. Our topic was adultism and best practices for working with youth.
What made this presentation special is that the students wrote their own lesson plan and presented it themselves to prevention professionals from across the state. Young people weren't just the subject of the conversation. They were the experts in the room, teaching the adults who work on prevention every day what meaningful partnership with youth looks like.
Thank you to the Siletz Tribal Charitable Contribution Fund
None of this would be possible without the generous support of the Siletz Tribal Charitable Contribution Fund. Their grant funded snacks, swag items, and incentives for support groups, the drop-in space, the focus groups, and programming. We are deeply grateful for their investment in the safety and well-being of Portland's young people.
Get involved
Prevention works best when a whole community is behind it. To learn more or to support this work, visit raphaelhouse.com and voaor.org/home-free.