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Upcoming Workshops
WORKING WITH ELEMENTARY YOUTH
Date: October 8
Trainer: Elizabeth Schroeder, EdD, MSW
Location: SC Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy Office
Intended Audience: Direct youth service providers
Fee: $100
Overview: ABCs, 123s, and the Birds and the Bees...what should elementary youth know? This is a challenge many providers are facing due to the increase of youth who are physically maturing at younger ages. Join us for a workshop that is designed to tackle the difficult issue of working with this vulnerable population.
Registration available online at www.teenpregnancysc.org.
WISE GUYS CURRICULUM TRAINING
Date: October 23-24
Trainers: Family Life Council of Greater Greensboro, Inc.
Location: SC Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy Office
Intended Audience: All youth service providers working with boys
Fee: $245 w/ curriculum; $125 w/out curriculum
Overview: Want to learn more about an award-winning program targeting young men? Wise Guys is an adolescent pregnancy and STI prevention program for young men. It is an evaluated program that has been proven successful in helping young men make better, wiser decisions about sexuality. Attending this training will prepare you to be a successful facilitator of the curriculum.
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MAPPS Elimination will have Lasting Impact on South Carolina |
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The State - A program aimed at preventing teen pregnancy in South Carolina will be eliminated by the end of the year, despite a recent rise in teen pregnancy rates, the state agency that oversees Medicaid said Friday. The program served 6,742 children last school year and targets at-risk girls ages 10 to 19. In the past, the state's roughly $400,000 combined with a 9-to-1 federal match to provide $3.6 million statewide yearly. But the money will stop Dec. 31, largely because budget cuts were ordered by the state budget board. In response, Forrest Alton, Executive Director of the SC Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, commented: "For the first time in 15 years, our state has seen an increase in teen pregnancy rates. This is certainly not a time to be eliminating programs for young people, especially those who are at the highest risk of becoming teen parents. If anything we hope that leadership from the Governor's office to local school boards will make the decision to recommit and reinvest in our state's most valuable resource-not continue to make short sighted budget cuts that have such clear long term implications. We feel confident there are other more viable alternatives present than a total elimination of funding for the MAPPS initiative. Our state is clearly at a crossroads in a difficult budget time. We can decide to invest now in programs and strategies that will protect young people or we can continue to avoid this responsibility and pay for our failed investment long into the future." Click here for more information and to watch Forrest on WLTX -News 19. |
The BUZZ- Sex Education on NPR
National Campaign CEO Sarah Brown, Advocates for Youth Vice President Debra Hauser, and Senior Research Scientist Douglas Kirby all appeared on National Public Radio's the Diane Rehm Show on September 23.
Click here to listen to the program. |
Parental Engagement 
The relationships between youth and parents is a central element in the successful development of healthy teens. In its Parental Engagement guide, Healthy Teen Network recognizes the importance of adults in a young person's life and of the need to provide support and skills to these adults. Furthermore, this guide explores the importance of modeling positive adult behavior for youth.
Click here to view the guide. |
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2009 Summer Institute Planning Committee Seeks New Members
Planning for the 2009 Annual Summer Institute is underway and we are recruiting new members for the planning committee. Meetings are held once a month at the SC Campaign office and promise to be productive, stimulating and fun!
If you are interested in being involved in planning this great event, please contact Jeannette Barton at 803-771-7700 or jbarton@teenpregnancysc.org. |
Let's Talk Month
Let's Talk Month is a national public education campaign celebrated in October and coordinated by Advocates for Youth. Let's Talk Month is an opportunity for community agencies, religious institutions, businesses, schools, media, parent groups and health providers to plan programs and activities which encourage parent/child communication about sexuality.
Here are 10 things you can do to celebrate the month:
1. Include an article about Let's Talk Month in your newsletter or bulletin.
2. Sponsor a parent-child communication training program at your school.
3. Provide parents with resources such as pamphlets, brochures, and articles, etc.
4. Encourage your school board member, administrators, teachers, nurse, and counselors to attend training programs in child/adolescent health and sexuality.
5. Ask parents and other adults to wear an "I'm Askable " button.
6. Suggest that parents leave and "invitation to talk" in their child's lunch, bedroom, on a mirror, or any other place the child will find it.
7. Sponsor a contest (coloring, poster, essay) for your students that encourages parent-child communication.
8. Promote local civic organizations to sponsor an event that will promote child health and /or parent-child communication.
9. Encourage local churches and other faith organizations to participate in promoting Let's Talk Month activities in your area.
10. Start a "make a date" campaign. Ask parents to schedule a time with their family to sit down and talk together. |
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Employment Opportunity in Orangeburg
Clinical Counselor needed to work full-time in Adolescent Substance Abuse Outpatient Facility in a nationally recognized intensive case management program. Must be energetic and have knowledge of adolescent issues. Duties include Assessment, Individual, Group, and Family Counseling; Case and Crisis Management; and Discharge Planning.
Qualifications: Master's Degree in Counseling Related Field and SCAADAC Certification. LPC, LMFT, LMSW, LISW preferred. Salary dependent upon qualifications and experience. Full state benefits. Great work environment. Send resume' and cover letter to: Adolescent Outpatient Director, P.O. Box 1166, Orangeburg, SC 29116 or fax to Adolescent Outpatient Director 803-531-8419.
Click here to view full profile. |
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Amplify Looking for Young Writers Amplify is seeking 10-12 young people to serve as regular front page writers. Each front page writer will have a weekly blog on the front page of www.amplifyyourvoice.org and may be assigned to cover one of their issues. Writers will receive a monthly stipend of $100. Bloggers must have their own regular Internet access. Applications are now being accepted on an ongoing basis.
For more information contact joe@advocatesforyouth.org. |
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National Teen Birth Increase Between 1991 and 2005, the national teen birth rate decreased 34% to a record low. Between 2005 and 2006, the teen birth rate increased 3%-the first increase in 15 years. A new paper written by Kristin Moore, Ph.D. of Child Trends, and published by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, examines available data on teen sexual activity and contraceptive use and offers some thoughts on what may have contributed to the increase in the teen birth rate.
Click here to view the paper. |
Workshop Opportunities
African American Prematurity Community Capacity Building
Sponsored by the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., March of Dimes, and Channing-Bete Company, this workshop will be held on Saturday, October 11 from 8:30am - 4:00pm at the Radisson Hotel Columbia and Conference Center. Workshop topics will include how prematurity affects African Americans as a health disparity, the need to educate various communities, and how STDs can affect the health of individuals.
South Carolina HIV/STD Conference
The South Carolina HIV/STD Conference (October 15-17) is designed for physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, other clinicians, HIV/STD educators, social workers, other health professionals, service providers, teachers, students, people living with HIV and all interested community members. Our mission for this interdisciplinary conference is to provide opportunities for professionals and community members to engage in dialogue and share past successes, common concerns, and hopes for the future. In response to the overlapping epidemics of HIV and STDs, it is essential to build on successful prevention, treatment, and care strategies.
For more information, click here.
North Carolina School Community Health Alliance
Save the Date for North Carolina School Community Health Alliance's Annual Conference - October 16 & 17, 2008 at the Clarion Hotel in Greensboro, NC. This conference is for individuals, organizations, staff and those who want to learn more about School Based/School Linked Health Centers.
For more information, click here.
TECHNO HEALTH: Health Education Conference
Save the Date for SC DHEC's Techno Health Conference to be held on October 23, 2008. Communication is at the core of effective public health. DHEC's mission to promote the public's health depends more and more on the ability to use new technology and to connect with all users. Join them at Brookland Baptist Church Conference Center in West Columbia to learn more.
For additional information, contact Molly Hayes at 803-898-3304.
Girls Circle: How Girls Grow
The Girls Circle is a model of structured support groups for girls from 9-18 years. It is designed to foster self-esteem, help girls maintain authentic connection with peers and adult women in their community, counter trends toward self-doubt, and allow for genuine self-expression through verbal sharing and creative activity. Two-day staff trainings are provided by Girls Center at the Youth Learning Institute in Pickens, SC. Training dates for 2008 include: October 23-24.
For more information or to register, click here.
Healthy Teen Network 2008 National Conference and Scholarship Opportunity
This year's conference will address the increasing diversity of today's youth and ways that professionals can effectively address the challenges this poses. This year's theme is Speaking Many Languages: Respecting Diversity, Believing in Equity. The dates are October 29 - November 1 and the location is Albuquerque, New Mexico.
For more information or to register, click here. SISTA Training
SC DHEC will be offering a training of facilitators for SISTA (Sisters Informing Sisters on Topics about AIDS) November 12-14, 2008. This group-level, gender-and-culturally-relevant intervention, is designed to increase condom use among African American women. Five peer-led group sessions are conducted that focus on ethnic and gender pride, HIV knowledge, and skills training around sexual risk reduction behaviors and decision making. The intervention is based on Social Learning theory as well as the theory of Gender and Power. Those trained in SISTA will also be able to facilitate the science-based program SiHLE, the teen version of SISTA. Early registration is recommended.
For more information contact James Harris, Jr. STD/HIV Division Training Coordinator at 803-898-0480 or harrisj@dhec.sc.gov
The Center for Family Life Education
Save the date now - November 13, 2008 in Somerset, NJ - and plan to join Planned Parenthood of Greater Northern NJ for their annual Sex Ed conference. Just as in past year's, this year's conference promises to be an exciting and useful learning forum!
For more information, click here. |
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In the News
A Shortsighted Cut
The Herald - The decision to end a state program aimed at preventing teen pregnancy is a good example of how trying to cut costs in the short run is likely to cost the state more in the long run.
Click here for full article. Upstate Today - For the first time in 15 years, teenage pregnancies are up in the United States, and South Carolina is not immune. While the reasons are varied, so are the avenues to address the problem.
But experts do agree on at least one thing - teen pregnancies impact society as a whole, not just the individuals or their immediate families.
Click here for full article.
Medicaid Cuts Teen Pregnancy Prevention Funding
Post and Courier - In the face of South Carolina's rising teen pregnancy rate, Medicaid is eliminating funding for pregnancy prevention services. Medicaid Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Services, known as MAPPS, provides $400,000 each year in funding for education and counseling for youths age 10 to 19 who are at risk for engaging in sex at an early age.
Click here for full article.
SC Program Aimed at Preventing Teen Pregnancy Cut
The State - A program aimed at preventing teen pregnancy in South Carolina will be eliminated by the end of the year, despite a recent rise in teen pregnancy rates, the state agency that oversees Medicaid said Friday. The program served 6,742 children last school year and targets at-risk girls ages 10 to 19. The program defines at-risk girls partly by poverty, whether their parents or siblings were teen parents and if they've been abused or previously pregnant.
Click here for full article. |
Grants Available
State Farm Companies for Global Youth Service Day
Youth Service America and the State Farm Companies Foundation offer up to $1,000 for youth-led community improvement projects across the United States and Canada and to help teachers and service-learning coordinators engage students (ages 5-25) in projects for Global Youth Service Day, April 24-25, 2009. Deadline: October 15 Click here for more information. Lowes Toolbox for EducationLowe's Charitable and Educational Foundation (LCEF) knows how hard you work for your kids and your community and we're dedicated to helping your parent-teacher group achieve even more for your school. Apply for our Toolbox for Education Grant now and build on your already impressive parent group success with Lowe's. Deadline: October 17 Click here for more information.
National and International AIDS Awareness Programs FundedThe John M. Lloyd Foundation supports innovative, entrepreneurial projects that have a high likelihood of affecting social change with regard to HIV/AIDS. The Foundation makes grants for U.S.-based projects with a national or global scope, international projects, and locally-focused projects in California. One of the Foundation's objectives is to amplify global awareness of HIV/AIDS and to facilitate broad-based change in attitudes in order to reduce the stigma of AIDS as well as change behavior. The Foundation gives preference to nonprofit organizations that advocate for evidence-based policies, those that mobilize awareness and support for AIDS programs, and those that employ innovation to battle the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Deadline: December 15 Click here for more information.
Southern Reach Initiative
The National AIDS Fund, with support from the Ford Foundation and the Elton John AIDS Foundation, is pleased to announce the second year of the Southern REACH (Regional Expansion of Access and Capacity to Address HIV/AIDS) initiative. Through Southern REACH, the National AIDS Fund will award 20-30 grants, ranging from $20,000 - $75,000, to community based organizations in several states including South Carolina. Southern REACH will provide grant resources and technical support to broaden and strengthen community capacity to address HIV/AIDS for priority at-risk populations. This will be achieved through investments in the operations and programming of strategically positioned CBOs that have the demonstrated ability to reach those priority populations with HIV prevention and care services or to lead supportive policy advocacy efforts.
Click here for more information. |
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Website of the Week:
Tell Them! While most of you have certainly heard of Tell Them! before, now is the time to revisit this grassroots e-advocacy network to improve reproductive health policy in South Carolina. Check out the headlines and take action to make your voices heard on issues that are important to you and your agency.
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Raise Awareness on November 12 - Prematurity Awareness Day In our state, one in six babies are born prematurely. Many of these children face serious health challenges or have difficulty learning because they were born too soon. November is National Prematurity Awareness Month. Use this time to educate your teens, co-workers, friends and family about the health crisis of premature birth.
Ideas to raise awareness:
- Distribute health education materials to your teens, expectant moms and everyone.
- Encourage everyone at work to wear purple for Babies on November 12.
- Invite a March of Dimes family/volunteer or staff person to speak to your teens.
- Create a buzz by lighting for your building or home in purple.
- Host a fundraiser to start the 2009 campaign early.
The March of Dimes South Carolina Chapter is providing health education materials at no cost to assist organizations in raising awareness during Prematurity Awareness Month. For health education materials or more information, contact Tojuana Fulton at 803-252-5200 or tfulton@marchofdimes.com. | |
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