Penn Wood High students are taking an after-school class on relationships that hopefully will help curb domestic violence and sexual assault, writes Bethany Ao for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

The class by teacher Valencia Peterson is part of Open Door Abuse Awareness and Prevention (ODAAP), a nonprofit that Peterson started in 2014.

The class provides tools to manage emotions, understand healthy relationships and provide someone to talk with about these issues.

In the last five years, an average of 19 people, mostly women, were killed in domestic violence in Philadelphia each year.

Of students in Philadelphia, 17.3 percent have been hurt  by a boyfriend or girlfriend in the last year — almost twice the national average.

Peterson feels particularly gratified when she sees students begin to open up, sharing about how their parents’ struggles affect them or how they feel in their first relationships.

“The biggest thing is that [Peterson] spends time with the kids,” said John Kea, a geometry teacher who has been working with Peterson. “[She] gets in their world and effects change that way. The kids just need someone to listen to them and help guide them through the things they’re facing, and they know she’s there.”

Read more about Peterson’s work here.

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