III 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 75 

Designating the month of February 2015, as ‘‘National Teen Dating Violence 

Awareness and Prevention Month’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 12, 2015 

Mr. DURBIN (for Mr. REID (for himself, and Mr. WHITEHOUSE)) submitted 

the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Designating the month of February 2015, as ‘‘National Teen 

Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month’’. 

Whereas although dating violence, domestic violence, sexual 

violence, and stalking affect women regardless of age, 

teenage girls and young women are especially vulnerable; 

Whereas a 2013 survey by the Center for Disease Control 

found that nearly 10 percent of high school students reported physical victimization and 10 percent reported 

sexual victimization from a dating partner in the 12 

months before they were surveyed; 

Whereas according to the Center for Disease Control, nearly 

1,500,000 high school students experience physical abuse 

from a dating partner each year; 


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Whereas a 1997 Commonwealth Fund survey found that 

more than 1⁄4 of high school girls had been either sexually 

abused, physically abused, or abused by a date or boyfriend; 

Whereas the Bureau of Justice Statistics found that females 

between the ages of 16 and 24 experience intimate partner violence at a rate that is almost triple the national 

average; 

Whereas in 2008, the National Council on Crime and Delinquency reported that approximately 1 in 3 adolescent 

girls in the United States is a victim of physical, emotional, or verbal abuse from a dating partner, a rate that 

far exceeds victimization rates for other types of violence 

affecting young people; 

Whereas a 2012 study, as part of an independent evaluation 

of Start Strong: Building Healthy Teen Relationships, an 

initiative aimed at building healthy relationships among 

middle school youth, found that teen dating violence behaviors were common even among seventh grade students, with nearly 1 in 6 students reporting physical dating violence; 

Whereas according to data from the Youth Risk Behavior 

Surveillance System, almost 20 percent of teenage girls 

who were exposed to physical dating violence did not attend school on 1 or more occasions during the 30 days 

preceding the survey because the girls felt unsafe at 

school or on the way to or from school; 

Whereas schools are unequipped to handle the issue of teen 

dating violence, as a recent study by Ball State University found that— 


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(1) 81 percent of school counselors reported that 

they did not have a school protocol on how to respond to 

an incident of teen dating violence; but 

(2) 61 percent of school counselors reported that 

they had assisted victims of dating-related violence in the 

past 2 years, despite a lack of formal training for some 

of the counselors; 

Whereas a study published in Pediatrics suggests that teen 

dating violence ‘‘is a substantial public health problem’’ 

because victims of teen dating violence are— 

(1) at increased risk of mood and behavior problems 

as young adults; and 

(2) at increased risk for future violent relationships; 

Whereas girls victimized by a teen boyfriend reported more 

heavy drinking, smoking, depression, and thoughts of suicide, and teens of both sexes who were in aggressive relationships were 2 to 3 times more likely to be in violent 

relationships as young adults; 

Whereas being physically or sexually abused makes teenage 

girls up to 6 times more likely to become pregnant and 

more than twice as likely to contract a sexually transmitted disease; 

Whereas according to the 2009 Parent/Teen Dating Violence 

Poll by Liz Claiborne Inc., although 82 percent of parents are confident that they could recognize the signs if 

their child was experiencing dating abuse, 58 percent of 

parents could not correctly identify all of the warning 

signs of abuse; 

Whereas 74 percent of teenage boys and 66 percent of teenage girls report that they have not had a conversation 

with a parent about dating abuse in the past year; 


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Whereas 1 in 4 teens in a relationship report having been 

called names, harassed, or put down by a partner 

through the use of a telephone, including through texting; 

Whereas according to the 2010 College Dating Violence and 

Abuse Poll by Liz Claiborne Inc., 43 percent of college 

women who date report experiencing abusive dating behaviors; 

Whereas 70 percent of college students who experienced relationship abuse failed to realize that they were in an abusive relationship at the time, and 60 percent of college 

students who were in an abusive relationship said that no 

one stepped in to help them; 

Whereas the severity of violence among intimate partners has 

been shown to be greater in cases where a pattern of violence was established during adolescence; 

Whereas primary prevention programs are a key part of addressing teen dating violence, and successful examples of 

these programs include education, community outreach, 

and social marketing campaigns that are culturally appropriate; 

Whereas educating middle school students and the parents of 

middle school students about the importance of building 

healthy relationships and preventing teen dating violence 

is key to deterring dating abuse before it begins; 

Whereas skilled assessment and intervention programs are 

necessary for young victims and abusers; and 

Whereas the establishment of the month of February 2015, 

as National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month will benefit schools, communities, and families 

regardless of socioeconomic status, race, or sex: Now, 

therefore, be it 


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1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) designates the month of February 2015, as 

3 ‘‘National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Pre4 vention Month’’; 

5 (2) supports communities that are empowering 

6 teenagers to develop healthier relationships through7 out their lives; and 

8 (3) calls upon the people of the United States, 

9 including young people, parents, schools, law en10 forcement officials, State and local officials, and in11 terested groups to observe National Teen Dating Vi12 olence Awareness and Prevention Month with appro13 priate programs and activities that promote aware14 ness and prevention of teen dating violence in their 

15 communities. 

Æ 


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