February 28, 2007

Media Stories

Abstinence Programs Provide Accurate Information, Effective in Reducing Teen Pregnancy
The Indianapolis (IN) Star, February 25, 2007

No Sex, Please, We’re Engaged: Couples Who Wait for the Wedding
The New York Times, February 22, 2007

Goodbye to Girlhood
The Washington Post, February 20, 2007

Abstinence, Contraceptives Don't Mix
The Louisiana State University Daily Reveille, February 15, 2007

What's Up With Hookups?
USA Today, February 14, 2007

Virgins Make the Best Valentines
The National Review, February 14, 2007

Let's Talk About (the Cost of) Sex
The Nevada Appeal, February 13, 2007

Maryland 'Gum Game' Used for 9 Years
The Washington Post, February 13, 2007

Why Wait? Why Local Teens Are Choosing Abstinence
The Ada (OK) Evening News, February 13, 2007

Sex of Any Kind Can Harm Teens Emotionally
Reuters, February 5, 2007

Funding Opportunities

The National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth maintains a listing of organizations identified as potential funding sources for abstinence education programs. The listing includes grant descriptions and contact information.

Faiths Partnership Grant Program – Silicon Valley Community Foundation
The foundation offers small ($500 to $5,000) grants to increase the capacity of faith-based organizations and congregations that serve Northern California communities.
Deadline for applications: March 2, 2007

Abstinence-Until-Marriage Grants – Children and Youth Coordinating Council (GA)
Funding is available for State and local governments, school systems, nonprofit agencies, and faith-based organizations that provide abstinence education programs in Georgia.
Deadline for proposals: March 5, 2007

Improving the Well-Being of Children – Native American Healthy Marriage Initiative – Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Grant No. HHS-2007-ACF-ANA-NI-0021)
Grantees will improve child well-being by promoting healthy marriage within Native American communities. Among other things, programs will equip youth and young adults with skills and knowledge to develop healthy relationships, including skills that can help them eventually form and sustain a healthy marriage. Eligible applicants include community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, tribes, and village governments.
Deadline for applications: March 26, 2007

Recent Research

Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls (February 2007)
In this 71-page report, a task force of the American Psychological Association presents findings on the sexualization of girls and young women and describes the harmful consequences sexualization has for girls’ well-being. The report’s authors argue that images and attitudes that sexualize girls negatively impact their cognitive functioning, physical and mental health, sexuality, and attitudes and beliefs.

Adolescents’ Reported Consequences of Having Oral Sex Versus Vaginal Sex (February 2007)
University of California-San Francisco researchers conducted a study of public high school students on their attitudes and emotions associated with sexual activity. The findings, published in Pediatrics [Volume 119(2):229-236], revealed that, among those who had intercourse, 36 percent later experienced feeling bad about themselves, 42 percent experienced guilt, and 38 percent felt used. Additionally, while those engaging in oral sex reported less guilt than those who experienced intercourse, 41 percent still reported feeling bad about themselves, almost 20 percent felt guilty, and 25 percent felt used.

Upcoming Events

Funding Paints the Picture: How To Prepare the Application Budget
Webinar hosted by the New England Network for Child, Youth & Family Services
11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., March 8, 2007
The facilitator of this Web-based conference call will lead participants through the process of preparing a grant application budget. Topics include organizing and formatting a budget, writing a financial narrative, determining what information to include, and distinguishing between different types of costs.

Abstinence Education Evaluation Conference
‘Strengthening Programs Through Scientific Evaluation’
March 19–20, 2007
Baltimore, MD – Renaissance Harborplace Hotel
Deadline for conference registration is March 1, 2007
Deadline for hotel registration is February 16, 2007

Technical Assistance Web Cast
‘Uncovering the Truth About Pornography’
2:00 p.m., March 28, 2007
Deadline for registration is March 26, 2007
Contact: Mr. Frank Bazela, (703) 243-0495, abstinence@pal-tech.com

Abstinence Education Grantees Regional Training
CBAE Grantees and State Title V Coordinators in Regions 1 through 4
April 24–25, 2007
Boston, MA – The Omni Parker House
Deadline for conference registration is April 9, 2007
Deadline for hotel registration is April 4, 2007
Contact: Frank Bazela at abstinence@pal-tech.com
Note: Each grantee is invited to send one person; participation is limited to the first 50 people who register.

Abstinence Education Grantees Regional Training
CBAE Grantees and State Title V Coordinators in Regions 8 through 10
May 24–25, 2007
San Francisco, CA – The Hilton Fisherman’s Wharf
Deadline for conference registration is May 9, 2007
Deadline for hotel registration is April 27, 2007
Contact: Frank Bazela at abstinence@pal-tech.com
Note: Each grantee is invited to send one person; participation is limited to the first 50 people who register.

Abstinence Education Grantees Regional Training
CBAE Grantees and State Title V Coordinators in Regions 5 through 7
June 28–29, 2007
Chicago, IL – Crowne Plaza Chicago Metro
Deadline for conference registration is June 13, 2007
Deadline for hotel registration is May 29, 2007
Contact: Frank Bazela at abstinence@pal-tech.com
Note: Each grantee is invited to send one person; participation is limited to the first 50 people who register.

Other News/Misc.

Community Saturation Model – The January 2007 technical assistance Web cast and associated materials are available for download.

Sex and STD/HIV Education (February 2007) – The Alan Guttmacher Institute
This 3-page policy brief summarizes State policies on sex education. The brief includes a table identifying which States require public schools to teach students about sex and/or sexually transmitted diseases and HIV, what content schools in each State must cover if they teach these topics, and which States have parental consent or opt-out policies.

Focus on Staff

LILLIAN SOWAH is an abstinence education junior program specialist for the Administration for Children and Families/Family and Youth Services Bureau. Before joining the abstinence education staff, Sowah interned with the University of Michigan Population Fellows Programs. During her internship, she worked on the Adventist Development and Relief Agency-Kenya’s Abstinence and Behavior Change for Youth program in Kisumu, Kenya. By developing abstinence education brochures and fact sheets, she helped spread the abstinence education message to hundreds of primary and secondary school children across western Kenya. Her work was supported by a President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief grant from the U.S. Agency for International Development. Sowah is a recent graduate of Howard University with a B.S. degree in health sciences.

Quote for the Day

"What makes marriage a public institution … is that it provides something no healthy society can do without: a stable environment in which men and women can create and bring up the next generation, and in which children can enter the world with mothers and fathers committed to their well-being."

(Jeff Jacoby, The Boston Globe, February 25, 2007)