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          Healthy Relationships Education Project             

The vision of the project is to ensure that all 9,100 students in the ten mid-Willamette Valley high schools have an opportunity to learn healthy relationship skills. With more than 15,000 divorces affecting over 7,000 children under 18 each year in Oregon, today’s students often do not have the chance to learn at home about how to succeed in relationships. Many area schools offer such training in various forms. We want to augment their efforts, to assist them and to fill in gaps where needed.

 The project utilizes three primary strategies:

 1. To meet with faculty and administrators and hear what the school currently offers, and to discern if there is any need for our support and assistance. If there is need, to learn how we can help best. We want to be listeners and servers.

2. To acquaint faculty with healthy relationship curricula that are research-based and developed by professional teachers.  We have created a lending library of these materials. They are produced by the non-profit Dibble Fund. www.dibbleinstitute.org

3. To make healthy relationship presentations based on these curricula in classrooms, under the direction and guidance of faculty.

            This project builds on Friends of the Family’s successful history of making healthy relationship presentations in a number of area schools. For several years, we have presented at Corvallis High School, Scio High School, Santiam Christian High School and Philomath High School. This spring we added presentations to the 8th graders at Linus Pauling Middle School.  We've also spoken at Crescent Valley High School, East Linn Christian High School, Oregon State University, and Western Oregon University.

How effective is this project?  Listen to what students are telling us:

I was surprised to learn that over 15,000 marriages end in divorce in Oregon every year.  I will set my standards high and date for a long time to get to know my future spouse.                                                                                                                   -- Philomath High School Student

I now know how important it is to be a whole person on my own before looking for someone else.  I won't rely on them to complete me.                                                  -- Santiam Christian High School Student

             Questions regarding the project may be sent to Cindy Crook at friends@fofm.org.