Rural Indiana high schools will be the focus of a new Kinsey Institute program about healthy relationships.
Twenty-seven percent of Hoosiers under 18 have experienced at least two adverse childhood experiences (ACE) compared to 22.6 percent of the U.S. child population.
ACE includes emotional, physical, or sexual abuse, domestic violence, living with a household member who has substance use disorder, mental illness, or who has been incarcerated. More than 47 percent of Hoosier youth have experienced at least one ACE in their lives.
Yet, most healthy relationship programs, classes, or initiative begin at a high school or college level.
“Patterns are already well established by the time people get to college, but it's also problematic because a large portion of the population doesn't go to college and doesn't then get access to those messages,” said Zoë Peterson, director of the Sexual Assault Research Initiative at the Kinsey Institute. “Thinking about how we can intervene much earlier and with a much broader population is really important.”
The Healthy Relationships Initiative works with school leaders and community organizations in rural Indiana to train adults and educate elementary and middle school children. The initiative focuses on digital safety, interpersonal boundaries, and healthy relationships.
“The more that we are able to have the tools and the skills to be able to relate with one another in a manner that's positive [and] mutually supportive, I think those are natural preventative measures against sexual violence,” said the research coordinator for the Initiative, John Leman.
The fact that the children were excited by and engaged in the program proves it is necessary to have these discussions at this age, said Megan LaRue, social worker at Orleans Elementary School.
“Even teachers have told me that some of their kiddos struggle with technology and struggle with these healthy relationships,” LaRue said. “As soon as they would bring something up that was really relevant to them, they would look right at the teacher and be like, ‘oh my gosh, that's me.’ And so… I think [the program] just brought up some good conversations.”
IU studies have found children in rural communities are more likely to experience abuse, neglect, and other forms of maltreatment. Indiana ranks 38th in terms of parental knowledge of adverse childhood experiences and their consequences.
“Kids are, they're resilient. They definitely bounce back, but they are little sponges,” LaRue continued. “They pick up on all of the things they see. Just having those conversations and bringing it into their awareness earlier, rather than later, is going to have long-term lasting effects.”
The initiative, which began in the fall of 2019, hopes to continue to deliver more trainings for school personnel and workshops for parents and community members implementing these programs.
The Healthy Relationships Initiative is run in partnership with the Kinsey Institute, the Indiana University School of Public Health, and the Indiana University School of Education. This initiative is supported by the Indiana Department of Health with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Dr. Zoë Peterson and Dr. Catherine Sherwood-Laughlin serve as the Principal Investigators on the project.
