Courage makes us safer
IMPACT believes everyone has the right to be safe. Our self-defense and abuse prevention programs equip individuals and communities with practical, inclusive safety skills.
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What We Offer
IMPACT offers hands-on self-defense, bystander, effective communication, and de-escalation trainings, healthy relationships and sex education courses, and other trainings designed to meet the needs of individuals, schools, and organizations.
1. Hands-On: Self-Defense, Bystander, Effective Communication, and De-Escalation
We focus on empowering participants with practical skills, confidence, and awareness to protect themselves and communicate effectively in real-world situations. Our instructors bring extensive experience in empowerment self-defense, traditional martial arts, and trauma-informed care, ensuring high-quality guidance in every session. Programs are suitable for all ages and skill levels. IMPACT collaborates with schools, community organizations, human service agencies, and other workplaces to create customized workshops that address specific safety concerns. Our goal is to foster safer environments and equip individuals with the tools to respond effectively under pressure.
2. Classroom-Based: Healthy Relationships, Sex Education, and other Abuse Prevention Programs
At IMPACT, we see individual safety skills as part of a broad ecosystem of violence prevention. Another vital component of that ecosystem is education that works toward positive cultural change. Our healthy relationships, sex education, and other abuse prevention programs empower students with the knowledge and skills they need to make choices that are safe for themselves and others, raising the bar for what is acceptable and what is not. We collaborate with schools and youth organizations to create customized programs that meet your educational goals.
Highlights
Safety in Sport: Adaptive Sports Abuse Prevention (ASAP)
Char Memorial Scholarship
People with disabilities are more likely to experience sexual violence, yet athletes with disabilities are too often left out of the conversation about sport and prevention.
FOR MORE INFO: Contact Shay Orent, Training Manager IMPACT Boston, sorent@impactboston.org
What People are Saying
Hear from 20 people who've worked with us.
“We need more spaces like this in our communities.”
“It's the antidote to every way we were taught (or punished, let's be real) to stay quiet, small, and not be a bother even when we don't feel comfortable or safe.”
“IMPACT has changed my life. It has been over a month since the program ended, but I’ve noticed that I now stand a little taller — less afraid.”
“I have taken several self-defense courses in the past, but none of them was as effective as IMPACT… Rarely can one program address so many needs and allow so much growth as this one.”
“I have encouraged both of my young adult daughters to take the class at Impact Boston and they both have come back out of it with a similar feeling of being more confident in setting boundaries for themselves with respect to situations where they may be uncomfortable. As a mom, I feel so much better knowing that my girls have gone through the weekend program and have developed a skill set which will serve them.”