In 2020, Duke committed to bringing healthy relationship education to every student, ensuring that it became an integral part of their academic journey. By actively promoting healthy relationships, we aim to foster a positive campus culture that centers on respect. At the heart of our philosophy lies the understanding that meaningful connections are integral to the well-being of all Duke students.
Our mission was clear: to bring healthy relationship education to every student, ensuring that it became an integral part of their academic journey. This challenge led us to a groundbreaking initiative where, for the first time, we fully integrated comprehensive relationship education into the new student orientation program.
We ensured students could identify the 4 types of relationships they are likely to be in on campus and distinguish them from one another. (Academic, Social, Professional, and Familial)
We trained students to name and identify the 10 signs of healthy relationships. We also helped them chart out a course to ensure that the relationships they experience on campus are healthy.
We made sure that students could name and identify each of the 10 signs of unhealthy relationships. We also mapped these concepts onto the Duke experience and helped students make a game plan for when they experience these signs on campus.
Over the course of O-Week, we hosted six conversations focused on topics that were essential to first-year success. The conversation on healthy relationships was consistently rated the highest by both Orientation Leaders and first-years.