MOAPPP October 2009 E-Monthly

October is Let’s Talk Month

Thank you to the State of Minnesota and City of Saint Paul for supporting parents as the primary sexuality educators of their children by proclaiming October as Let’s Talk Month. See the proclamations from the City of Saint Paul (PDF) and the State of Minnesota (PDF).

It’s Not Too Late…

  • To plan an event or workshop for October’s Let’s Talk Month. Check out the Let’s Talk Month page on MOAPPP’s website to find ideas.
  • To publicize Let’s Talk Month events on our state-wide calendar (PDF).
  • To encourage parents/caregivers to begin the conversation with the young person in their life.

Contact Jocelyn at 651-644-1447 x19 or [email protected] for more information.


MOAPPP Featured in New Publication

MOAPPP’s public policy work is featured in a new publication, Strengthening Democracy, Increasing Opportunities: Impacts of Advocacy, Organizing and Civic Engagement in Minnesota.

The National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy partnered with the Minnesota Council on Foundations and the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits to illustrate what foundations, nonprofits and communities can do together to bring about real meaningful change to the world. The report documents how 15 Minnesota nonprofits and their allies leveraged foundation grants to secure nearly $138 of benefit for every dollar spent for Minnesota’s citizens.


New Staff Member

Please join us in welcoming Sally Mandler to the position of Training Coordinator. She will lead the planning process for MOAPPP’s conference, as well as other training events throughout the year. Sally’s professional background includes information services, training development, reference librarian and public library administration. Most recently, she worked with the Northstar Problem Gambling Alliance, and spent eight years with the Minnesota Institute of Public Health before that. Welcome aboard Sally!


Need to Make a Donation to a Workplace Giving Campaign? Designate MOAPPP to Receive the Gift!

If you participate in a giving campaign at your workplace that operates in partnership with one of the following “charitable federations,” you may designate all or part of your donation to MOAPPP!

  • The Minnesota State Employees’ Combined Charities Campaign
  • Community Health Charities Minnesota
  • Community Shares of Minnesota
  • United Way – Greater Twin Cities; Becker County; Carlton County; Caring Rivers; Crow Wing; Faribault; Hastings; Heart of the Lakes; Hibbing; Morrison County; New Ulm; Northeast Minnesota; Olmsted County; Red Wing; St. Croix

MOAPPP’s Federal Identification Number (EIN) is 41-1722338. Thank you!

QUESTIONS? Contact Julie Schultz Brown at [email protected], 651-644-1447 x16 or contact the charitable federation your workplace uses and ask how you can “designate” the charity of your choice.


Sex Ed – Month of ACTION!

For more than 25 years young people have been bombarded with extremist abstinence-only-until-marriage programs and denied education that teaches them how to make responsible and informed decisions so they can lead healthy lives. Now is the time to invest in the truth. Young people need access to effective and honest sex education.

Urge Congress to support the Responsible Education About Life Act (H.R.1653/S.972) to create the first ever dedicated federal funding stream for responsible sex education. Our national partners are coordinating an online petition with a goal of collecting 10,000 signatures by the end of the month! Help us get to our goal today! Visit www.amplifyyourvoice.org to sign the online petition TODAY! To learn more about the REAL Act, click here (PDF).

Other Announcements

October 15, 2009 is National Latino AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD)

Latino Commission on AIDS is currently taking registrations for this year’s campaign to keep practitioners up-to-date on new themes, posters and other resources for NLAAD 2009 at www.nlaad.org. For questions about the national activities and resources, please contact Liliana Rañón, 212-675-3288 x315, [email protected].


Healthy Generations Features MOAPPP

The latest version of Healthy Generations (PDF), published by the Center for Leadership Education in Maternal and Child Public Health at the University of Minnesota, focuses on reproductive health surveillance, specifically on sexual health. MOAPPP’s Adolescent Sexual Health Report is featured in an article about adolescent pregnancy and childbearing and highlights the work of MOAPPP staff and interns. MOAPPP staff member and MCH alumna Jill Farris is also profiled in the report.


Teen Pregnancy Prevention Research Evidence Review

Call for Studies
Submission Deadline: October 31, 2009

Mathematica Policy Research seeks studies for a comprehensive review of the evidence base for programs to prevent teen pregnancy. The review is being conducted for the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) within U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) by Mathematica Policy Research and will be used to help inform policy and new initiatives and program directions at the federal level. For more information and submission instructions, click here (PDF).

In the News

Senate Finance Approves Funding for Responsible Sex Ed…and Also Approves Funding for Failed Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs

In a controversial move last week, the Senate Finance Committee approved contradictory amendments. One, offered by Senator Baucus, appropriates funding for evidence-based, medically accurate and developmentally appropriate sex education. The other, offered by Senator Hatch, would restore funding for the failed abstinence-only-until-marriage programs. There are still many steps before either amendment would become law. MOAPPP supports the Baucus amendment and will continue to keep you updated as this legislation progresses. To learn more, visit www.siecus.org.

New Resources

Audience Insights: Communicating to Teens

Today’s teens are the most marketing savvy and brand-conscious generation to date. Their health behaviors and outcomes reflect their economic, racial, gender and geographic disparities. View the full issue brief (PDF) released by the National Center for Health Marketing (NCHM) at the Centers for Disease Control.


Meeting the Needs of Pregnant and Parenting Teens: Local Health Department Programs and Services

This new report (PDF), published by the National Association of City and County Health Officials, discusses the importance of addressing the special needs of pregnant and parenting adolescents to improve their own and their children’s health and life outcomes. The report provides background information on the impact of adolescent childbearing and services and programs for pregnant and parenting adolescents. The Teen Parent Program of Saint Paul-Ramsey County Department of Public Health is one of four local health departments highlighted. Challenges faced by programs targeting pregnant and parenting adolescents, recommendations and conclusions are also presented.


Two New Lesson Plans From Sex, Etc.

Sex, Etc. has two new 50-minute lesson plans for professionals working with teens:

  • Choosing Abstinence After You’ve Already Had Sex (PDF) details why teens might decide to abstain after they have had sex and strategies teens can use to initiate a discussion about abstaining with their partners.
  • Telling Your Parents…”I’m Transgender” (PDF) teaches the definitions of biological sex, sexual orientation and gender identity and how gender identity is distinct from sexual orientation.

A Closer Look at Vulnerable Youth

Science Says #42 (PDF), now available from the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, provides an in-depth examination of “vulnerable” youth—defined as those who have ever been arrested before age 18, run away from home, been homeless or lived in a group home, lived in foster care and/or whose families have been investigated by social services.

New Research

A Novel, Intensive Home-Visiting Intervention for Runaway, Sexually Exploited Girls

This study both describes a home-visiting intervention program for young, sexually assaulted runaways (10-14 years old) and provides preliminary outcomes from the first 20 female participants. Following the one-year intervention, teens’ risk behaviors decreased, including truancy, runaway episodes, sexually transmitted infections and substance use.


Sexual Intercourse Among Adolescents Maltreated Before Age 12: A Prospective Investigation

This study found that maltreatment (regardless of type) predicts sexual intercourse by 14 and 16. Emotional distress explains the relationship by 14. By 16, other factors likely contribute to intercourse. Maltreated children are at risk for early initiation of sexual intercourse and sexually active adolescents should be evaluated for possible maltreatment.


Predictors of Early Initiation of Sexual Activity Among Adolescents

Results of this study indicate that for girls, increased television viewing, low self-esteem, poor parental relationships, living in a non-intact household, higher levels of externalizing behavior, low academic achievement and parents with low education levels were associated with earlier sexual debut. For boys, advanced pubertal development, increased television viewing, higher rates of externalizing behaviors and poor parental relationships were associated with earlier sexual debut.


Relationship Dynamics and Condom Use Among Adolescents

This study indicates that the dynamics between teens and their dating partners are strongly related to the consistency of their condom use. The authors found that inconsistent condom use was associated with both negative relationship features, such as jealousy and mistrust, and positive relationship features, such as love and enmeshment. The researchers suggest that sex education programs should intensify their focus on the relationship context of decision making, since both negative and positive relationship features are associated with consistent condom use.


Body Composition Changes in Adolescent Girls Receiving Hormonal Contraception

This study examined body composition changes in adolescent girls initiating Depo-Provera®, oral contraceptives or no hormonal contraceptive method. At six months, Depo-Provera® resulted in significant increases in adiposity with concurrent decreases in lean body mass. The authors conclude that supplemental estrogen may lessen these effects.


Efficacy of Abstinence Promotion Media Messages

Researchers conducted an online randomized experiment to evaluate the efficacy of messages from the Parents Speak Up National Campaign (PSUNC) to promote parent-child communication about sex. Fathers who had exposure to the PSUNC website were more likely to initiate conversations about sex at four weeks, and fathers and mothers were more likely at six months to recommend that their children wait to have sex. The authors conclude that PSUNC messages are efficacious in promoting parent-child communication about sex and abstinence. Read the abstract.


Religiosity and Teen Birth Rate in the United States

Researchers found that increased religiosity strongly predicted a higher teen birth rate. With data aggregated at the state level, conservative religious beliefs strongly predict U.S. teen birth rates, in a relationship that does not appear to be the result of confounding by income or abortion rates. One possible explanation for this relationship is that teens in more religious communities may be less likely to use contraception. Read the abstract here.

MOAPPP Events

October 14, 22, 27, 30 & November 5, 2009
We Can Parent Together
Tools for Engaging Fathers, Mothers and Others

October 14-Duluth
October 22-Owatonna
October 27-Twin Cities Metro Area
October 30-Little Falls
November 5-Redwood Falls

All workshops from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

When parents are consistent and support each other in the task of parenting, children benefit. This workshop presents the basics and benefits of co-parenting, and offers strategies and best practices to utilize in supporting any family working to raise children in a healthy, safe environment. Specific focus will be given to the unique challenges of divorcing and never-married parents, adolescent parents, or those with substance-abuse/dependence-related concerns. This workshop is designed for professionals working with families.

Objectives:

  • Understand the co-parenting relationship and how it differs from the couple relationship
  • Learn how to implement strategies and tools to help parents improve their co-parenting relationship
  • Learn how to talk about the importance of fathers and how to support mothers in engaging fathers
  • Understand the special needs of teen parents
  • Assist in empowering parents with prevention strategies and tools specific to substance abuse and dependence
  • Understand how all the strategies presented can help prevent child abuse and neglect before it happens
  • Participate in the unveiling of our new web-based co-parenting toolkit for professionals and parents

Follow this link to register. View the event brochure.

Presented by Minnesota Fathers & Families Network, Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota, Minnesota Prevention Resource Center, Minnesota Organization on Adolescent Pregnancy, Prevention and Parenting, University of Minnesota Extension and Department of Human Services Children’s Trust Fund.


October 27-28, 2009 (Last training for 2009)
It’s That Easy: The Caring Adult’s Guide to Raising Sexually Healthy Children

8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Minneapolis Urban League
2100 Plymouth Ave North, Minneapolis

If you work with parents/caregivers of children birth to 18, you are in a unique position to support them in their critical role as sexuality educators for their children. However, sexuality is not always easy to discuss. Come learn tools and techniques to engage parents/caregivers in developmentally appropriate approaches to raising sexually healthy children. Participants receive the It’s That Easy manual, a comprehensive guide designed to help you work with parents in your community.

For more information, see the flyer and registration form (PDF). Click here to register online. Questions? Contact Jocelyn Broyles at 651-644-1447 x19, [email protected]. Scholarships are available.

Special acknowledgements to our partners for their dedication to this project: Healthy Youth Development–Prevention Research Center-U of MN, Health Start/West Side Community Health Services, Saint Paul-Ramsey County Department of Public Health, Sexual Violence Prevention Program-MN Department of Health, Teen Age Medical Service, West Suburban Teen Clinic, Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota International Health Volunteers.


October 29, 2009
Beyond Terminology: Gender Inclusive Sex Education

9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Webster Open Elementary School
425 NE 5th Street, Minneapolis

Transgender and gender non-conforming students are in every classroom and every community. Sexual health education is often tied to a binary understanding of gender, rendering transgender people invisible, perpetuating health disparities, and obscuring information that applies to everyone’s sexual health. Using gender inclusive strategies is essential in providing quality sex education. This training will help participants build gender competencies in sexual health education via a deep understanding of gender, curriculum adaptations, and the larger context of access and health disparities for trans youth.

For more information and to register, see the flyer and event registration form (PDF). Click here to register online. Questions? Contact Jill Farris at 651-644-1447 x18 or [email protected].

Sponsored by Annex Teen Clinic, The Birds and Bees Project of Pro-Choice Resources, MOAPPP, Out4Good, Rainbow Health Initiative and Trans Youth Support Network.


November 4, 2009
2 Trainings: Meeting the Unique Needs of Adolescent Mothers & Fathers and Practical Tips for Working with Teen Moms & Dads

Both trainings on Wednesday, November 4 in Redwood Falls.


Meeting the Unique Needs of Adolescent Mothers & Fathers

9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Pizza Ranch
1360 East Bridge Street, Redwood Falls

Includes light continental breakfast and lunch

Three common goals of adolescent parent programs are to facilitate long-term self-sufficiency, build parenting capacity and ensure the healthy growth and development of the children born to young parents. This workshop, for professionals new to adolescent parent work, examines national and state data related to adolescent parents; systems that impact adolescent parents; the strengths and opportunities, as well as the challenges young parents bring to their new role; current research on best practices for working with adolescent parents; and the role every provider can play in enhancing the lives of these young families.

Practical Tips for Working with Teen Moms & Dads
2:15 p.m. – 4:15 p.m.
Pizza Ranch
1360 East Bridge Street, Redwood Falls

Working with adolescent parents can be both rewarding and challenging. Adults may find themselves unclear how to communicate concepts to young parents in a way that is meaningful and produces results. This workshop provides guidelines for how to develop activities and communicate with youth along with several specific take-away ideas and activities.

Cost for both trainings: $50 MOAPPP members/$85 non-members
Cost for Meeting the Unique Needs training: $35 MOAPPP members/$70 non-members
Cost for Practical Tips: $25 MOAPPP members/$60 non-members

For more information and to register for one or both of these trainings, see the flyer and registration form. Registration scholarships are available. Questions? Contact Sue at 651 644-1447 x15 or [email protected].


December 7-9, 2009
Teen Outreach Program (TOP) – Facilitator Training
Take advantage of this extremely reduced price!

GrandStay Faribault
1500 – 20th Street NW, Faribault

$175 MOAPPP Member/$210 Non-Member

The Teen Outreach Program (TOP) is a nationally acclaimed, science-based program that has been shown to prevent adolescent pregnancy and help youth succeed in school. Designed for youth ages 12-19, TOP incorporates a strong service-learning component based on principles of youth development. TOP has been successfully implemented in a variety of settings and with diverse populations. In addition to the 2½ days of highly interactive training, one participant from each agency receives a copy of the TOP curriculum. This is possibly the LAST CHANCE your organization has to participate in this training at this reduced price. For more information and to register, contact Jocelyn Broyles at 651-644-1447 x19, [email protected].

Coalition for Responsible Sex Ed Events

MOAPPP is a founding member of the Coalition for Responsible Sex Ed. The Coalition advocates for policies on sexuality education and access to confidential health care for minors. Here is a list of Coalition events for 2009. For additional information, visit www.coalitionforsexed.org.

No Coalition events in October.

Other Events

October 20 & November 6, 2009
Parenting With No Workshop

October 20-Minneapolis
November 6-St. Cloud

Parenting with No, a new workshop from MediaWise with featured speaker Dr. David Walsh, delivers practical, hands-on training based on key messages and strategies from the bestselling book, “No, Why Kids—of All Ages—Need to Hear It and Ways Parents Can Say It” which sparked a statewide movement, Say Yes to No. The workshop is designed for parents as well as teachers, early childhood professionals, social workers, parent educators and health care providers. Optional leader’s training is included and continuing education credits will be available. For more information or to register, visit www.sayyestono.org.