In what may have been a first for an American educational institution, in 1992 Seattle Pacific University established the Center for Relationship Development (CRD) to help students learn to build healthy, lasting relationships. Initially funded by grants from the Murdock Charitable Trust, the Center is dedicated to fostering positive relationships, whether they are with classmates, roommates, parents, teammates, siblings, bosses, or potential marriage partners.
The Center aims to solve relationship problems before they begin. Its efforts focus on three major areas: education, outreach, and research.