Sexual Violence Prevention Resource

Statewide Survivor Services

While you visit this webpage, you are encouraged to care for your mental health, safety, and well-being. Please use the following hotlines and textlines to report sexual abuse or connect with survivor services.

Hawaiʻi’s Sexual Assault Centers

Contact the following centers for services related to confidential counseling, sexual violence prevention education, assistance with police reporting, and medical care/evidence collection.

Why Sexual Violence Prevention Matters

Sexual violence is a preventable issue affecting all levels of our community. Sexual violence is an umbrella term for abuse that takes many forms ranging from sexual assault and rape, intimate partner violence, dating violence, sexual exploitation, and sex trafficking. These different forms of sexual violence are often addressed independently, even though they share common risk factors and prevention strategies.

The following definition of child sexual abuse was developed by the Sex Abuse Treatment Center of Hawaiʻi (SATC):

Child sexual abuse is defined as sexual activity between an adult and a child or sexual activity between two minors if there is a significant age, size, or power difference. It can include a range of activities such as sexual touching, sexualized talk, exposure to genitals, rape, involvement in pornography, or prostitution. Child sexual abuse is nearly always perpetrated by individuals acquainted with the child, may occur over short or long periods of time, and may be accompanied by varying levels of coercion or physical violence. (SATC)

For more information, refer to the following Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes (HRS): §350-1 Definitions, §707-733.6 Continuous sexual assault of a minor under the age of fourteen years, §707-750 Promoting child abuse in the first degree, §707-756 Electronic enticement of a child in the first degree, and §846F-2 Definitions. 

Overview of the HIDOE Sexual Violence Prevention Program

The Hawaiʻi State Department of Education’s (Department) prevention-oriented Sexual Violence Prevention Program was established in the school year (SY) 2023-2024 in alignment with Erin’s Law. “Erin’s Law” is named after childhood sexual assault survivor, author, speaker, and activist Erin Merryn. After Erin introduced the legislation in her home state of Illinois, the bill was named “Erin’s Law” after her by legislators, and it has passed in most states.

While Erin’s Law is not a statutory requirement in the State of Hawaiʻi, the Department began a multi-year rollout of the Department-wide mandatory Sexual Violence Prevention Program in SY 2023-2024. This prevention-oriented program focuses on providing (1) information to parents and guardians, (2) training to school personnel, and (3) instruction to students in grades K-12 in Department schools.

Goals of the HIDOE Sexual Violence Prevention Resource

The Department recognizes the important role of public education in addressing sexual violence prevention and is committed to supporting students' academic, social, physical and emotional health and providing a safe and protective learning environment. 

The Department's school design strategy prioritizes a flexible and adaptive approach, empowering each school to make decisions about specific contexts and partnerships for developing high quality and relevant learning experiences based on the needs of their students’ and the local community. The Departmentʻs Sexual Violence Prevention Resource was developed to connect families and schools with local and national resources and supports around preventing sexual violence to ensure the well-being of Hawai'i’s children and youth.

Collaborative Partners

Mahalo to the following state agencies and community organizations for collaborating with the Department on the initial development of this resource: