Rex launches teacher education project aimed at reducing levels of family, dating violence
January 13, 2010
COLUMBIA, SC – January 13, 2010 – State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex today announced a new teacher education initiative aimed at reducing family and dating violence in South Carolina.
Teachers in five pilot school districts – Greenville, Charleston, Aiken, Barnwell and Allendale – will participate in a special professional development curriculum on the effects of domestic violence and teen dating violence on children, how to identify and support a child witness and how to respond to a child’s disclosure and make the appropriate referrals for help.
Funded with private-sector support from Verizon Wireless, the new project is a partnership among the South Carolina Department of Education, the South Carolina Department of Social Services and the South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault.
“Teachers and guidance counselors are often the most consistent and influential individuals in a child’s life other than their families,” Rex said. “The goal here is to make them more aware of these serious problems affecting kids, and to show them how they can respond effectively on behalf of those kids.”
Experts say that children who witness domestic violence or experience dating violence can be severely traumatized, and that trauma can contribute to bullying others, running away from home and early drug or alcohol use. Tragically, these children are more likely to repeat as adults the aggressive behaviors they witnessed as children.
The initiative announced today is part of the Education Department’s broader Student Protection Project, which includes preventing adult sexual misconduct in schools, child and teen suicides, bullying, and drug and alcohol abuse, as well as educating students about how to use the Internet safely.
For more information on the Teacher Education Initiative on Family and Dating Violence, contact Rebecca Williams-Agee at the South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault by phone (803-256-2900) or by e-mail at [email protected]).
