The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Rape Prevention and Education (RPE) Program provides funding to fifty states, the District of Columbia, and four territory health departments. These grantees collaborate with state and territory sexual violence coalitions, local rape crisis centers, and various state and community organizations to implement statewide sexual violence prevention plans. These collaborations help to leverage resources, strengthening and enhancing prevention programming.
The RPE program was established by the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and focuses on the primary prevention of sexual violence (stopping violence before it even has the chance to happen). Some of the key guiding principles include preventing perpetration, reducing risk factors and enhancing protective factors, and using the best available evidence to plan, implement, and evaluate prevention programming.
An assessment conducted in 2010 by NSVRC found that RPE funds equip prevention education program staff with greater capacities and skills to develop, deliver, and evaluate prevention programs. The assessment also found that RPE funds reduce fragmented programming and bring stability to prevention efforts across the country.
NSVRC is one of two resource centers funded by the CDC through the RPE program. Our role as a resource center is to provide training, resources, and information to RPE recipients and their partners on the development, implementation, and evaluation of sexual violence prevention strategies. We do this by collaborating with the CDC and other national organizations to identify prevention needs and plan ways to meet those needs.