New Leaf Academy
Young girls' potential is impacted by their early-stage emotional and developmental needs. That is why the New Leaf all girls private school program is tailored to 10-14 year-old girls who need extra guidance, nurturing and personal attention in their academic and personal lives. Parents are a vital part of their child's success, and join the Academy's staff in active participation during every step of the program.
Visit New Leaf Academy to learn more.
COPPER CANYON ACADEMY
Copper Canyon Academy is a boarding school for girls with behavioral problems, emotional problems or learning problems. Nestled in a scenic Central Arizona valley Copper Canyon Academy allows young women the opportunity to progress to their fullest potential.
When your teen, or even tween, begins seeing members of the opposite sex as desirable, that's the time to talk with them about appropriate behavior in a relationship.
In several surveys conducted by Teen Research Unlimited between 2005 and 2007, troubling statistics showed that a significant number of teens are not only victims of dating abuse but consider it normal. 
Worse yet, older teens with more dating experience reported abuse in higher numbers, suggesting a troubling pattern. Abuse in the survey is defined as being anywhere on the spectrum from verbal abuse such as name-calling and intense jealousy, to threats of physical violence, to actual physical abuse.
Take the case of two 16-year-olds in a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA. On Oct. 31, 2007, a few days after Sarah DeIuliis said she broke up with her boyfriend, Robert DeAngelis, she went to meet him in some woods near a trolley station at night to exchange some personal belongings. The boy got upset when DeIuliis refused to get back together, and tried to push her off a cliff near the trolley tracks, police said. Failing that, DeAngelis struck the girl several times in the head and face with a hammer. The attack was stopped when DeAngelis was spooked by an off-duty police officer. Police said they believe DeAngelis may have been planning to kill DeIuliis because he had with him a bag containing duct tape, a knife and a hammer.
Obviously, this is an extreme circumstance but according to the TRU survey, troubling numbers of teens in relationships are exposed to verbal, emotional, and even physical threats. A startling 30% reported worrying about their personal physical safety in a relationship while 20% of those who have been in a serious relationship say they have been hit, slapped, or pushed by a boyfriend or girlfriend.
Abuse at any level is about power and control. According to the survey:
Technology is becoming another tool for controlling or abusive teens. One in three teens say they are text messaged 10, 20, or 30 times an hour by a partner inquiring where they are, what they're doing, or who they're with, while 68% say boyfriends/girlfriends sharing private or embarrassing pictures/videos on cell phones, computers and social networking sites is a serious problem.
Recognizing the problem, Congress has deemed the week of February 4th as National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week.
Here are some tips for parents of teens:
Here are six warning signs that your teen may be in an abusive relationship:
To learn more or to get help: