January 7, 2008
Employment Opportunities
Abstinence Content Specialist
Assist in the development and implementation of technical assistance modules, conference calls, Web casts, and conferences for abstinence education grantees. Candidates must possess a bachelor's degree and a minimum of 7 years of general experience and 2 years of professional program-related experience. To apply, please send your resume to Karen Argueta by e-mail, careers@pal-tech.com, or by fax, (703) 522-2471. EOE/AA.
Media Stories
Students Learn Ways To Prevent HIV and AIDS
The Huntsville (AL) Times, January 2, 2008
The Wisdom in Supporting Abstinence
The Washington Post, December 28, 2008
No Matter the Approach, Sex Education Works
ABCNews, December 21, 2007
TV’s Perfect Girl Is Pregnant; Real Families Talk
New York Times, December 21, 2007
How Jamie Lynn Spears' News Can Help Sex-Educate Your Children
U.S. News & World Report, December 20, 2007
Sex Education Found To Increase Abstinence in Early Adolescents
NBC 12 News (Richmond, VA), December 19, 2007
White House Relies on Help of Religious Groups in Fighting AIDS
The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy, December 18, 2007
FDA To Add HIV Warning to Contraceptive Products
Reuters, December 18, 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.
BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina Foundation
The BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina Foundation funds adolescent pregnancy prevention programs in South Carolina. The foundation has two funding cycles a year, one in the spring and one in the fall. Letters of intent for this year’s spring cycle are due by March 3, 2008.
Recent Research
Parental Communication and Youth Sexual Behavior (2007)
In this study published in the Journal of Adolescence [Volume 30 (3): 449-466], researchers examined the role of parents’ communication and instruction on young people’s sexual behavior. The study used a community-based sample of 1,083 adolescents ages 13 to 17. Youth were much less likely to have had sex if their parents set clear rules about sexuality, including telling them how to say no. The authors concluded that parents have a strong influence over children’s sexual decision-making.
Silence Speaks Volumes: Parental Sexual Communication Among Asian American Emerging Adults (2007)
This study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Research [Volume 22(1):3-31], looks at how Asian American parents’ communicate with their children about sex. The authors surveyed 165 Asian American college students regarding their recollections of how and what their parents communicated to them about sex. The researchers found that fathers communicated rarely about sex, that sons were less likely than daughters to recall communication about sex, and that communication about sexual topics was rare in homes with language barriers between parents and children. However, most students, especially daughters and children with less acculturated parents, recalled receiving restrictive sexual messages from their parents. Study participants from more religious backgrounds reported receiving messages about the inappropriateness of premarital sex. The researchers concluded that Asian American parents use implicit and nonverbal ways to communicate their sexual values.
Youth Assets and Sexual Risk Behavior: The Importance of Assets for Youth Residing in One-Parent Households (2005)
In this study published in Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health [Volume 37(1): 25-31], researchers examined youth assets, or strengths, associated with reduced sexual risk behavior. Youth who lived in two-parent households and were involved in the community were significantly more likely than those who were not involved in the community to report never having had sex. Youth in one parent households tended to report risk behaviors in more often than youth in two-parent households. The number of youth who delayed first sexual intercourse until age 17 or older was significantly higher among those in two-parent households than among those in one-parent households.
Other News/Misc.
‘The Alarming Family Hour’
A recent study by the Parents Television Council shows that sexual content during the first hour of broadcast primetime television, often referred to as “the family hour,” has increased 22 percent in the last 6 years. The study looks at sex, profanity, and violence during the first hour of network television’s prime time (8-9 p.m. eastern time Monday through Saturday and 7-9 p.m. eastern time on Sundays).
Upcoming Events
National Abstinence Education Grantees Conference
January 28–30, 2008
Bethesda, MD
Registration is closed
Contact: abstinence@pal-tech.com
Abstinence Education Grantees Regional Training
Community-Based Abstinence Education (CBAE) grantees and State Title V Coordinators in Regions 5 through 7
April 2–3, 2008
Dallas, TX
Registration: TBA
Contact: abstinence@pal-tech.com
Abstinence Education Grantees Regional Training
CBAE grantees and State Title V Coordinators in Regions 8 through 10
May 14–15, 2008
Denver, CO
Registration: TBA
Contact: abstinence@pal-tech.com
Abstinence Education Grantees Regional Training
CBAE grantees and State Title V Coordinators in Regions 1 through 4
June 23–24, 2008
Philadelphia, PA
Registration: TBA
Contact: abstinence@pal-tech.com
Spotlight
The Abstinence Education E-Update Spotlight has highlighted various topics, from new Federal staff to effective State programs. Now, NCFY will highlight two States a month, looking at each State or the District’s legislation, policy, and specific State or the District’s features related to abstinence education. In particular, the Spotlight will underscore key points pertaining to abstinence education in each State’s or in the District’s law.
CONNECTICUT
What’s Happening in the State of Connecticut
An abstinence program in the New Britain community works with 12 to 18 year olds with the aim of reducing the number of adolescents who have premarital sex as well as the incidence of out-of-wedlock pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases among adolescents. The program has teamed up with the local high school’s guidance department to offer tenth and eleventh grade students’ information on anger management, money management, the best way to choose a boyfriend or girlfriend, and the effects of peer pressure. The program also offers after school activities for middle school students. High school and middle school students are often taught by local alumni. For additional information contact Ashley Knight, program coordinator, at aknightoic@hotmail.com.
State Law in Connecticut
In Connecticut, local and regional boards of education are not required to develop or institute a family life education program (Sec. 10-16d), and students are not required to participate in family life educational school programs (Sec. 10-16e).
The State Board of Education develops curriculum guides to aid local and regional boards of education that wish to develop family life education programs (Sec. 10-16c). The curriculum guides include information about how to approach topics such as family planning, human sexuality, parenting, nutrition, and the emotional, physical, psychological, hygienic, economic and social aspects of family life. According to State regulations, the guides should not include information about abortion as an alternative to family planning. The Connecticut State Department of Education’s Content of Standards for Human Growth and Development dictates that students in grades 7 and 8 compare and contrast abstinence with other methods of safer sex. Students in grades 9 through 12 examine the consequences of their sexual actions and behaviors as they relate to topics including abstinence, the postponement of sex, pregnancy and the skills necessary to prevent pregnancy, and sexually transmitted diseases and HIV.
DELAWARE
What’s Happening in the State of Delaware
A program in Wilmington, Delaware, reaches out to youth 12 to 18 years of age, helping them pursue long-term goals, recognize the emotional, social, and health benefits of sexual abstinence, develop the skills to say no, and focus on building strong relationships. The program also helps parents understand how to talk with their adolescents about sex outside of marriage and helps them monitor their child’s sexual behavior. For more information, contact Carol Y. Graham, program coordinator, at (302) 656-7737.
State Law in Delaware
Each school district has a kindergarten through twelfth grade, sequential and skill based comprehensive health education program. The State requires that abstinence and contraception be covered in family life classes. District level staff and coordinators at each school ensure the implementation of the program.
Quote of the Day
"A major misconception is you can't get [AIDS] because you're a teenager. A lot of teenagers don't think it happens here. It's just an epidemic in Africa."
(Brittany Smith, high school student and peer helper, The Huntsville (AL) Times, January 2, 2008) |
