Environmentalscan-MinnesotaDepartmentofHealth.docVIP

Environmental Scan Report 1. Background The State Alliance on Healthy Youth Relationships is a coalition of Minnesota organizations and agencies whose purpose is to enable Minnesota to assess the effectiveness of current programs to prevent teen dating violence, or more broadly, to promote healthy relationships among youth. The Alliance seeks to address teen dating violence as a public health issue and to build capacity to prevent it. The project is funded by a cooperative agreement with the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Minnesota is one of six funded states: the others are California, Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. Based on population density required by the funding agency, the target area for the project is the seven-county Twin Cities Metropolitan area. In Minnesota, MDH and the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women (MCBW) coordinate and staff the project, and a multi-organization Prevention Team provides advice and leadership. Participants represent the following organizations: Casa de Esperanza Domestic Abuse Project Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women Minnesota Department of Education Minnesota Department of Health, Injury and Violence Prevention Unit Minnesota Department of Health, Adolescent Health Program Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Office of Justice Programs Minnesota Indian Women’s Sexual Assault Center Minnesota Organization on Adolescent Pregnancy, Parenting and Prevention Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota Sexual Offense Services, Ramsey County Sexual Violence Center, Hennepin County A Youth Advisory Committee representing youth in a variety of settings and situations will provide further input to understanding and using the data collected through the environmental scan. Three scans are required in the project: an environmental scan (this report), a policy scan, and an evaluation scan. The scans will identify current p