Table of Contents
- 2004 Legislative Session Summary
- Too Young or Just Right?
- CDC Survey on Teens and Sex
- Book Discussion: Reforming Welfare by Rewarding Work
- Preventing Additional Births to Teen Mothers
- 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey
- America After 3 P.M.
- New York Times Examines Debate Over Effectiveness of Abstinence-Only Sex Education
- New York Times Magazine Examines Teenage Sexual Relationships, ‘Hooking Up’
2004 Legislative Session Summary
Comprehensive Sexuality Education
- Before the end of the 2004 Legislative session on May 17, the Education Omnibus Conference Committee passed a “barebones” omnibus bill, which unfortunately did not include the comprehensive sexuality education provisions. However, no provisions were introduced to weaken the current statute on sexual health education in the state.
Minors’ Consent
- Before the end of the session, a bill to repeal the minors’ consent law was heard on the House floor and passed. A provision in the bill did exclude clinics that receive federal family planning funding (Title X) from requiring parental consent. Fortunately in April, the Senate Health and Family Security committee rejected the companion bill. And an amendment on the Senate floor to alter the minors’ consent law was also defeated and this law that guarantees minors confidential health care remains unchanged.
Bill to Reinstate Physical Education and Health Education
- This legislation was eventually included in the Senate Education Omnibus Policy bill and in the House Omniibus K-12 Education and Higher Education Finance bill. During conference committee, it appears that health and physical education were added to the required content areas; however, they were not included in the graduation requirements. This means that health and physical education are required content areas, but time is left up to the school district and the decision to require it for graduation is also left up to the districts.
Childcare Assistance Legislation
- Neither the House nor the Senate passed legislation to restore childcare cuts in the Basic Sliding Fee (BSF) program. Therefore, low-income working families continue to face unaffordable childcare co-payments.
Too Young or Just Right?
Article examines variables associated with adolescent girls’ perceptions of the timing of their first consensual intercourse. “Making sexual decisions that are congruent with the adolescent’s beliefs and leave the adolescent feeling positively about her choice is important.” The authors explain that while much research has been focused on the demographic, familial, and social factors associated with sexual initiation and reasons adolescents begin having consensual intercourse, less is known about the factors associated with beliefs about the appropriate timing of sexual initiation the findings of this study may be helpful in the development of programs focusing on the promotion of sexual health for adolescents. Future research can determine the necessary ‘ingredients’ for adolescents to consider the timing of initial sexual experience as suitable.
Cotton S, Mills L, Succop PA, et al. 2004. Adolescent girls’ perceptions of the timing of their sexual initiation: “Too young” or “just right”? Journal of Adolescent Health 34(5):453-458.
CDC Survey on Teens and Sex
Percentage of teens who report having had sex remains stable at about 50%. Read about the CDC Survey here.
Book Discussion: Reforming Welfare by Rewarding Work
Book Discussion with Dave Hage, author of “Reforming Welfare by Rewarding Work”. The Affirmative Options Coalition and the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits are pleased to co-sponsor a book discussion with Dave Hage, editorial writer for the Star Tribune, about his recently published book on the MFIP program called “Reforming Welfare by Rewarding Work: One State’s Successful Experiment.”
Tuesday, June 22, 2004, 8:30 – 10:00 am
Model Cities, BROWNStone Building
849 University Avenue West (corner of University & Victoria)
St. Paul
There is limited parking in side lot, but you can also park on street.
Please RSVP for this event by emailing [email protected].
Preventing Additional Births to Teen Mothers
“Another Chance: Preventing Additional Births to Teen Mothers”, by Lorraine Klerman, Dr.P.H., summarizes what is known about additional births to teen mothers, the dimensions of the problem, the factors that seem to increase the chances of such births occurring to teen mothers, their consequences, and the potential for prevention.
The primary focus of the 49-page report (a summary pamphlet is also available) is a critical review and assessment of programs. The report closely examines what types of programs are most effective in preventing additional pregnancies and births to teen mothers.
To order a print copy of the report, click here.
To download a discounted electronic copy of the report, click here.
2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey
Sexual activity increases for high school girls, decreases for high school students overall. More high school 12th grade girls (62%) than boys (61%) now report having had sexual intercourse, according to the new 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) released on May 21, 2004, by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). YRBS surveys are conducted every two years.
For a National Campaign fact sheet about the new data, click here.
To read the entire report, click here.
America After 3 P.M.
The Afterschool Alliance recently released a new study on how kids spend time in the after school hours entitled “America After 3 P.M.” For more information, click here.
New York Times Examines Debate Over Effectiveness of Abstinence-Only Sex Education
Read full article.
New York Times Magazine Examines Teenage Sexual Relationships, ‘Hooking Up’
Read full article.