About Rape Prevention and Education

Sexual violence (SV) perpetration and victimization is a significant public health problem that requires a public health approach to decrease risk factors and increase protective factors related to SV. This includes a range of activities to address the way individual, relationship, community, and societal factors impact SV. This approach is more likely to prevent SV across a lifetime than any single intervention and is also more likely to benefit the largest number of people and reduce SV. 

 The Rape Prevention and Education (RPE) program is a federally funded program that focuses on preventing sexual violence (SV) perpetration and victimization. The RPE program utilizes a public health approach to decrease risk factors and increase protective factors related to SV. Through the implementation and evaluation of selected prevention strategies, Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) is expanding strategies and evaluation at the community-level as well as a comprehensive approach across the SEM. Education, training and evaluation are a cornerstone of TDH’s efforts to prevent SV before it occurs.    

Sexual assault data in Tennessee reflect the need for continued efforts for the primary prevention of SV statewide.  Prevention is a key factor in reducing rates of SV victimization and perpetration and impacting the risk and protective factors related to SV.