Carson City February 06, 2023
The Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS) Victim Services Unit would like to invite all Nevada schools to participate in Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. The Division is asking teens to share what healthy love means to them by writing a message or posting a video on social media with the hashtag #NoTeenDVinNV which stands for “No teen dating violence in Nevada.”
Love is Respect, a project of the National Domestic Violence Hotline states that “dating violence is more common than you may think, especially among teens and young adults: 1 in 3 U.S. teens will experience physical, sexual, or emotional abuse from someone they’re in a relationship with before they become adults. And nearly half (43%) of U.S. college women report experiencing violent or abusive dating behaviors.”
Please join DCFS and share your ideas about healthy love and relationships in Nevada and wear orange on Tuesday, February 7 in honor of this important awareness month.
“It is my hope that by addressing this problem early, teens can be impacted in a way that leads to healthy adult relationships built on trust and respect instead of violence and fear,” said Andrea Valenzuela, DCFS Victim Services Manager.
If you or someone you know is involved in an abusive relationship of any kind, immediate and confidential support is available through the National Domestic Violence Hotline’s project focused on supporting young people by visiting loveisrespect.org, calling 1-866-331-9474 (TTY: 1-800-787-3224), or texting “LOVEIS” to 22522.
The Division of Child and Family Services will provide the flyers to any schools interested in participating. You can contact Social Services Manager, Andrea Valenzuela at andrea.valenzuela@dcfs.nv.gov or 775-687-9032.