MOAPPP December 2003 E-Monthly

Table of Contents

• • Meet with your State Legislator this Month
  • Call for Presentations for the 2004 MOAPPP Annual Conference
  • Attention 2003 MOAPPP Conference Attendees
  • Minnesota’s Teen Birth Rate Continues to Decline
  • Measuring MFIP Performance for Racial/Ethnic and Immigrant Groups

Currently, the MN State Legislature is adjourned until Monday, February 2, 2004. Now is the perfect time to meet with State Representatives and Senators and talk with them about preventing adolescent pregnancy and supporting adolescent mothers and fathers. Discuss with your legislators one or two topics on adolescent pregnancy and adolescent parents, such as, comprehensive sexuality education in the classroom, upholding the minors’ consent law, funding youth development programs, access to affordable family planning, and coordinated school services for adolescent mothers and fathers. Also, legislators are more likely to be reading the letters to the editor in the local papers, so write a letter and make your voice heard! To find out your legislators, click on this link: District Finder. For talking points on adolescent pregnancy prevention, adolescent parents, and meeting legislators go to MOAPPP.org or contact Joy R. Miciano at [email protected] or 651.644.1447×14.

MOAPPP seeks proposals for workshop presentations for our annual conference, “Building Hope, Building Lives,” May 6-7, 2004. For more information go to MOAPPP.org. Proposals are due at the MOAPPP office by Friday, December 12, 2003. Questions? Please contact Marilyn Colby Rivkin, [email protected] or 651-644-1447 ext. 15.

MOAPPP is conducting a follow-up survey of participants at last year’s conference to see how you are doing in your work and to learn how the conference had an impact on how you do your job. If you attended the conference and have not yet completed the survey, please take a moment to give us your feedback. You can access the survey by clicking on Survey Monkey. This links you directly to the survey instrument. Questions? Please contact Marilyn Colby Rivkin, [email protected] or 651-644-1447 ext. 15. Thank you very much.

Minnesota’s teen birth rate declined from 37 births per 1,000 15-19 year olds in 1991 to 28 births per 1,000 15-19 year olds in 2001, a 24% decline. The national teen birth rate continued its dramatic decline in 2002, falling 31 percent between 1991 (61.8 births per 1,000 15-19-year-olds) and 2002 (42.9 births per 1,000 15-19-year-olds). These and other statistics on teen childbearing, sexual activity, and contraceptive use appear in the 2003 Facts At A Glance, Child Trends’ annual newsletter on teen childbearing and related issues, available at www.childtrends.org/HomePg.asp#FAAG.

The MN Department of Human Services has just released “Measuring Minnesota Family Investment Program Performance for Racial/Ethnic and Immigrant Groups”. The analyses show disparities in MFIP outcomes by racial/ethnic and immigrant status. African American, American Indian, Somali, and other black immigrant participant outcomes, based on the “Self-support Index”, were lower than expected even after taking into account other factors. As with the other reports in this series, it is produced to inform policymakers, agencies, and organizations so they can better assist participants on MFIP toward self-sufficiency. The revised report can be found on the Minnesota Department of Human Services’ web site. Paper versions of this report are not available. If you experience any problems accessing the report on the web site, you can send an e-mail to .