Our Story

It all started when…

NPEIV was founded by Jacquelyn White and Robert Geffner. It grew out of their collaboration with APA president Alan Kazdin’s presidential initiative on violence that resulted in the February 2008 APA Summit on Violence and Abuse in Relationships: Connecting Agendas and Forging New Directions. In September, 2008 the first Think Tank was held to determine the future of the fledgling coalition. It was decided that NPEIV would integrate across all aspects of interpersonal violence in order to link research, practice, and advocacy.

Over the years NPEIV has continued to grow and establish itself as an organization. The name "National Partnership to End Interpersonal Violence Across the Lifespan" and the NPEIV logo were chosen in January 2009 during the APA National Multicultural Summit. In February 2010 the first 11 Action Teams were developed. The process of incorporating and becoming an independent 501 C3 in 2024 led to the name “National Plan to End Interpersonal Violence Across the Lifespan” becoming the official organization name NPEIV or The Plan.

From there, NPEIV increased its efforts toward interpersonal violence prevention across the fields of research, practice, and advocacy. In addition to an annual forum focused on training and education, NPEIV has spear-headed the publication of several special issues in leading violence and trauma journals, been involved with the publishing of several interpersonal violence journals, has participated in federal roundtables and congressional briefings, and has helped established a national curriculum geared toward interpersonal violence prevention. ​

At the start, NPEIV continued its dedication to interpersonal violence prevention primarily through five Action Teams - Public Policy & Engagement, Training & Mentoring, Practice, Research & Dissemination, and Global Perspectives – which met regularly to discuss their projects and goals, and Action Team chairs meet with the Board of Directors monthly to provide updates. A project-focused organizational structure was piloted in 2020-2022, along with the Action Teams. NPEIV is now a fully project-based organization with the leadership and members working together to develop on-going plans. It is through the collective efforts of our members that we continue to strive toward the goal of a violence-free future for all.

** The Family Violence and Sexual Assault Institute d/b/a The Institute on Violence, Abuse and Trauma (IVAT) serves as the fiscal and logistical agent of NPEIV and is a Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Corporation.