About Coaches as Partners:
The Sexual Violence Prevention Collaborative of Fairfield County’s** (SVPC) inaugural project, Coaches as Partners, works to engage coaches, athletic directors, and influencers within the sports community in the prevention of sexual violence. Our goal is to bring awareness and education about the critical role athletic leaders play in promoting an inclusive and respectful sports culture.
Our game plan is to build partnerships with coaches, who spend more time with students than many teachers or family members. Our premise is that coaches wield a significant amount of influence on their athletes and can shift the paradigm by modeling pro-social behaviors and demonstrating what it means to be an ally in ending sexual violence through knowledge of the issues and expansive intervention tools.
The Sexual Violence Prevention Collaborative is made possible by Fairfield County’s Community Foundation’s Fund for Women and Girls.
For scheduling live, virtual (until further notice) training:
Select one, two, or all three of our Coaches as Partners modules listed below, and email us at svprevention@fccfoundation.org.
Understanding Sexual Violence Prevention Within Sports Culture: This training covers the powerful role a coach plays in modeling ways of addressing and preventing violence for young athletes, the dynamics of sexual violence, and the many attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors that contribute to a culture that perpetuates and sustains sexual violence. Resources for supporting victims will be discussed.
Bystander Intervention: Creating Social Change: This training provides different bystander intervention techniques that coaches can utilize to challenge problematic beliefs and interrupt all forms of sexual violence. Participants are given the opportunity to brainstorm how they would intervene in realistic scenarios and how they can create a school culture of respect and inclusion.
LGBTQ Athletes: This virtual huddle explores the landscape of life as an LGBTQ athlete and ways we can ensure all athletes are treated with respect. LGBTQ youth experience increased rates of physical violence, harassment, and sexual violence, and we hope to partner with coaches to think about ways that the sports community can act as a positive agent of change in our communities.
More Ways to Partner with Us:
- Participate in our interactive on-demand webinars.
- Participate in our 10-15 minute Athletes as Partners awareness campaign.
- Request copies of The Playbook for yourself, a team, or an athletic department.
- Email us at svprevention@fccfoundation.org
- Contact us to collaborate with your school, organization, team, or athletic department on prevention and awareness efforts you are working on in your youth sports community.
- Email us at svprevention@fccfoundation.org
**About the Sexual Violence Prevention Collaborative of Fairfield County:
The Sexual Violence Prevention Collaborative of Fairfield County (SVPC) consists of five local nonprofits working together to eliminate sexual violence across Fairfield County. The SVPC’s inaugural project, Coaches as Partners, works to engage coaches and athletic directors in the prevention of sexual violence. The goal of Coaches as Partners is to bring awareness and education about the critical role athletic leaders play in promoting an inclusive and respectful sports culture.
The SVPC is funded by Fairfield County’s Community Foundation’s Fund for Women and Girls. Participating organizations include The Center for Family Justice, The Rowan Center, Triangle Community Center, and YWCA Domestic Abuse Services of Greenwich.
In the News:
“The Fairfield County’s Community Foundation Fund for Women & Girls recently launched an initiative to elevate the #MeToo movement with a program that will train high school coaches on best practices for guiding students to have healthy relationships.”
Fairfield County Nonprofits Join Forces to Fight Sexual Violence – WSHU
Sports Coaches Might Take on Role Preventing Sexual Violence – The Hour
John Breunig: A Game Plan to Stem Sexual Violence – Stamford Advocate
Fairfield County Nonprofits Collaborate to Address Sexual Violence – New Canaan’s Hamlet Hub
Editorial: A Potential game-changer in #MeToo Movement – The Middletown Press
