MOAPPP June 2010 E-Monthly

There’s still time to register to join us for a fun night on behalf of Minnesota teens!

Thursday, June 10
6:30 – 9:00 p.m.
Click here for details and buy your tickets now!
Tickets are $50 (both online and at the door).

Amazon.com and Your Summer Gift Giving

June is a busy month for special occasions·graduations, weddings, Fathersâ Day. Conveniently take care of all your gift obligations and support MOAPPP at the same time by shopping online at Amazon.com. MOAPPP is partnering with Amazon.com in a special program that gives MOAPPP a percentage of the sales from Amazon purchases that originate on our website. Link to Amazon by clicking on the link above and all the purchases you make during that online session will benefit MOAPPP. This is a year-round promotion so always start at MOAPPPâs website when shopping at Amazon.com!

Thank You for Another Energizing Conference!

We brought together 360 professionals from all over Minnesota and beyond, and now the results are in. Responses to the conference were overwhelmingly positive, and many of you offered constructive feedback and informative ideas for future trainings. PowerPoint presentations of some of the sessions are now available on our website.

MOAPPP PSA Contest

In its first-ever PSA contest, MOAPPP received 11 entries from Minnsota youth groups in response to the questions: “What does it mean to be a healthy young person today?” Entries were reviewed by panels of young people, and awards were given to three groups the following categories: 1) Bilingual Outreach: Broadway High School; 2) Most Informative: Annex Teen Clinc; 3) Youth Choice: TV by Girls.

You can view the videos on MOAPPP’s YouTube Channel.

Thanks to Best Buy Children’s Foundation for its generous support of this contest!

MOAPPP’s 2010 Annual Awards

Please join us in congratulating this yearâs annual awards recipients! These individuals and organizations were honored during the Annual Awards Ceremony at the MOAPPP Conference.

Community Partner

Judy Ojeda
Neighborhood House
St. Paul, MN

This year’s Community Partner award was dedicated to the memory of Judy Ojeda, former MOAPPP Latino Outreach Coordinator who died unexpectedly last fall. Judy lived a life dedicated to making positive social change. She was a strong advocate for her community, had a remarkable ability to bring people from all walks of life together to work toward a common goal and was fiercely dedicated to her family. With her family’s support, MOAPPP will re-name this award the Judy Ojeda Community Partner Award.

Individual of the Year

Christine Austin-Roehler
Wright County Public Health
Buffalo, MN

Program of the Year

El Colegio Charter School
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Advocate of the Year

North High Peer Educators
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Teen

Phoebe Chastain
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Congratulations to all of our award recipients, and many thanks for your inspired work!

2010 Legislative Session Comes to a Close

The 2010 Legislative Session ended on Monday, May 17th. A brief one day special session was required to finish the budget balancing agreement with the Governor. MOAPPP’s legislative agenda fared well in a year of many losses. However, the anticipated $6 billion deficit for the 2012-2013 biennium and the impact of this year’s cuts to local government aid and shifts in payments to schools will impact adolescents living in Minnesota. To view MOAPPP’s Legislative Session Summary, see the 2010 Legislative Session Summary (pdf). For more information on how the session ended, visit the Minnesota Budget Project Blog website.

NEW It’s That Easy! Initiative Website and Social Media Sites

We are excited to announce that the Itâs That Easy! Initiative has a new website. Check it out at www.itsthateasy.org. We hope you enjoy it and continue to check back for new developments. The Initiative has a Facebook page and you can now follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itsthateasy2004.

Other Announcements

National HIV Testing Day is June 27, 2010

National HIV Testing Day is an annual campaign coordinated by the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA) to encourage people of all ages to “Take the Test, Take Control.” Campaign resources are available at these links:

MDH: www.health.state.mn.us
NAPWA: www.napwa.org
AIDS.gov: www.aids.gov
CDC: www.hivtest.org
Act Against AIDS Campaign: www.nineandahalfminutes.org
GYT Campaign: www.itsyoursexlife.com

Call for Nominations for Healthy Teen Network Awards

Healthy Teen Network invites nominations for their Annual Awards Program, which recognizes programs, groups and individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to promote the health and well-being of youth through their personal or professional efforts. Nominations are being accepted in three categories:

The Carol Mendez Cassell Award for Excellence in Sexuality Education
Outstanding Teen Parent
Outstanding Emerging Innovation

Awards will be presented during the HTN Annual Conference, A Time of Opportunity: Engaging Communities in Supporting Healthy Youth and Young Families. Nominations are due June 30, 2010. For more information, visit HTN’s website.

Teen Dating Violence Prevention

Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) coordinates a CDC-funded project to prevent teen dating or relationship violence in Minnesota. With the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women as the primary partner with MDH, a multi-agency team is currently conducting an environmental scan to learn about programs in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. It will be followed by policy and evaluation scans. In 2011, a plan will be developed to identify strengths and gaps and to make policy and other recommendations. For further information, contact [email protected]

In the News

Sex Ed Funding in Health Reform Law

The New York Times recently evaluated funding for sex education in the health reform law. Included in the law are $375 million in grants over five years for comprehensive sex education. At the same time, failed abstinence-only-until-marriage programs will continue to receive some funding under the law, in the form of $50 million a year. To read more, visit www.nationalpartnership.org.

University of Minnesota Professor’s Research Distorted for Ideological Campaign

A group called the American College of Pediatricians is distorting research by the University’s Dr. Gary Remafedi to undermine school support of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth. An article by City Pages provides details of the nationwide campaign targeting school superintendents with purposeful misinterpretations of decades of work about teenage sexuality. This campaign is part of a troubling cultural movement that uses the language of science to promote ideological causes.

New Research

Demographic and Policy Factors Contribute to Changes in U.S. Teen Birth Rates

A recent study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health examines reasons behind teen birth rate trends in various states. According to the authors, the (figures indicate that demographics, policy and cultural issues could jointly influence teen birth rates and that no single reason explains the outcomes.)

State Policy Effects on Teen Fertility and Evidence-Based Policies.

Drs. John Santelli and Douglas Kirby comment on the previous article in their editorial, State Policy Effects on Teen Fertility and Evidence-Based Policies in the same journal. The authors note that state policy can have a profound impact on teen pregnancy and childbearing; specifically State Medicaid family planning waivers were associated with lower teen birth rates for every group, while state policies favoring abstinence-only programs were associated with higher teen birth rates for white and black teens and younger teens. Read the editorial (PDF).

To read more about another example of how sound public policy and investment in prevention can reduce teen pregnancy rates, read the article, “Winning Campaign: Californiaâs Concerted Effort to Reduce Its Teen Pregnancy Rate” (PDF). This article details how Californiaâs teen pregnancy rate declined by 52 percent between 1992 and 2005, the steepest drop registered by any state over that period÷and far above the national decline of 37 percent. Public health experts credit this record decline to Californiaâs aggressive and evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention efforts dating back to the 1990s.

Childhood Emotional Abuse and Later Intimate Partner Relationships

Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma has put out a special double issue focusing on the effects that childhood emotional maltreatment has on intimate relationships. It explores the relational difficulties often encountered by emotional abuse survivors. The empirically based articles in these issues look at the association between childhood emotional maltreatment and the relational difficulties of self-sacrifice, codependency, intimate partner violence, and sexual aggression.

Young Adults at High Risk for STDs, But Don’t Think They Are

Fifteen percent of young adults in the U.S. between the ages of 18 and 26 have had a sexually transmitted disease (STD) within the past year, but nearly three-quarters did not believe that they were at risk, according to a new Child Trends brief. The brief (PDF) analyzes recently released data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to provide estimates on the prevalence of and attitudes toward STDs among young adults, as well as on the behaviors that may put them at risk of contracting an STD.

Everything’s Better in Moderation: Young Women’s Gender Role Attitudes and Risky Sexual Behavior

This study examines the association between gender role attitudes and risky sexual behavior among young women. Previous studies have posed seemingly contradictory arguments: that either traditional attitudes or egalitarian attitudes are associated with riskier behavior. Researchers found that women with egalitarian role attitudes and those with traditional role attitudes have about a 10 percent higher prevalence of risky behavior compared to women with more moderate gender role attitudes. By shifting focus from risk to protection, the results suggest that moderate gender role attitudes are protective against risky sexual behavior.

The Structure of Male Adolescent Peer Networks and Risk for Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration: Findings from a National Sample.

This study is a descriptive analysis of how peer network “types” may be related to subsequent risk for intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration among adolescents. Men in the group type characterized by small, dense, mostly male peer networks with higher levels of delinquent behavior reported higher rates of subsequent IPV perpetration than men whose adolescent network type was characterized by large, loosely connected groups of less delinquent male and female friends. Implications for prevention programming and future research are addressed.

Fatherhood Can Help Young Men Re-Assess their Lives and Status in Society

This study reports on the experience of a cohort of low socio-economic status New Zealand males who grew up during the economic reforms of the mid-1980s and 1990s. Seeing little future for themselves, they made minimal preparation for the demands of adult life, remaining instead on the margins of society. Fatherhood prompted them to re-script their self-assessment and their extra-marginal position. Government policies aimed at job training for this population would ensure they remain active members of the workforce. Such policies would also promote the stability of their family by reducing economic stress.

Physical Dating Violence Norms and Behavior Among Sixth-Grade Students

In this study, a sample of 5,404 sixth-grade students was recruited from four diverse U.S. cities. Over half of the respondents reported that girls hitting their boyfriends was acceptable under certain circumstances (e.g., if made mad or jealous) and more than one in four reported acceptance of boys hitting their girlfriends. These data support the need to address the problem of violence within studentsâ perceived dating relationships in sixth grade or earlier and suggest that preventive interventions should focus on changing norms that support violence between males and females.

New Report on Teens and Cell Phones: Things Adults and Service Providers Should Know

Cell phones help bridge the digital divide by providing internet access to less privileged teens (although, for some teens, using the internet from their mobile phone is too expensive). Teens from low-income households, particularly African-Americans, are much more likely than other teens to go online using a cell phone. This and other findings from this report from Pew may help service providers communicate better with youth.

Foster Care Youth Often Struggle with Unplanned Pregnancies and Parenthood

A report by Chapin Hall indicates that many foster care youth become parents too early and without planning and by age 24 many are poorly educated and unemployed. They suggest that states make a serious effort to design programs to address this issue. Read the most recent full report of the longitudinal Midwest Foster Care Youth Study.

Understanding Adolescent Parenthood from a Multisystemic Perspective

This study examined the associations between social, behavioral and environmental factors and adolescent parenthood. Researchers found that several variables were associated with adolescent parenthood, including initiation of daily cigarette smoking, age of first antisocial/conduct disorder symptom and race/ethnicity leading them to suggest that prevention efforts should focus on adolescents who are at highest risk based on these criteria.

Adolescents’ Reports of Communication with Their Parents about STIs and Birth Control: 1988, 1995, and 2002

This study examined trends in adolescents’ reports of discussion with parents about sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and birth control methods. Researchers found that between 1995 and 2002, fewer female adolescents reported discussion with a parent about STI or birth control. Patterns across time in for males appear stable during the same time period. Study authors concluded that “the decline in female adolescent reports of parent-communication suggest that public health officials, educators, and clinicians should invigorate their efforts to encourage parents to talk with their children about STDs and birth control.

New Data on Contraceptive Use from NSFG

The National Center for Health Statistics recently released new data on contraceptive use in the United States. Among the findings:

99 percent of sexually experienced women ages 15-44 have used some form of contraception
The pill remains the most widely used form of contraception
The use of intrauterine devices (IUDs) has more than doubled since 2002
Nearly one in five adolescents say that they are not currently using any method of contraception despite the fact that theyâre sexually active and not seeking a pregnancy

Read the report (PDF).

Patterns of Nonverbal Behavior in Sexually Abused Girls

This study examined early nonverbal behaviors to determine whether sexually abused girls exhibit different patterns of behavior than comparison girls in an interaction with a male interviewer. Nonverbal behaviors were analyzed and revealed three factors: wary (e.g., pouting), affiliative (e.g., chin resting on hand), and coy (e.g., tongue show). Abused girls scored higher on the coy factor that was related to earlier age at first voluntary intercourse later in development (approximately seven years later). High scores on the affiliative factor were related to higher sexual permissiveness and less negative attitudes toward sex. Results indicate that sexually abused girls showed early maladaptive patterns in interpersonal interactions, which were subsequently related to risky sexual attitudes and behaviors.

MOAPPP Events

June 22-23, 2010 – Duluth
July 13-14, 2010 – Winona
It’s That Easy! Parent Educator Training

Duluth
June 22-23, 2010
8:45 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Building for Women
32 East 1st Street, Duluth

Winona
July 13-14, 2010
8:45 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., July 13
10:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., July 14
Winona County Community Health Services
60 West Third Street, Winona

If you work with parents/caregivers of children aged 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! resource manual, a comprehensive guide designed to help you work with parents in your community.

For more information and to register, see the flyer and registration form (PDF).

Click here to register online for Duluth.

Click here to register for Winona.

Questions? Contact Jocelyn at 651.644.1447 x 19, [email protected].

July 20-22, 2010
Safer Choices: Training of Educators
NOTE: CHANGE OF DATE

8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., July 20 and 21
8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., July 22
Minnesota Department of Education
1500 Highway 36 West, Roseville

Safer Choices is an evidence-based curriculum taught over two consecutive years, 10 lessons in ninth grade (Level One) and 10 lessons in 10th grade (Level Two). Safer Choices involves teachers, parents, and community members to have a positive influence on adolescents’ decisions regarding sex and help them feel supported in making healthy choices. In addition to the highly interactive training, each participant receives a copy of the Safer Choices curriculum, student workbooks and activity kit.

For more information and to register, see the flyer and registration form (PDF). Click here to register online. Registration scholarships are available. Questions? Contact Jill at 651.644.1447 x 18, [email protected].

August 3-5, 2010
Making Proud Choices!: Training of Educators

8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m., August 3 and 4
8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., August 5
Minnesota Department of Education
1500 Highway 36 West, Roseville

Making Proud Choices! is an 8-module curriculum for use by school districts, faith communities and community organizations that provides adolescents with the knowledge, confidence and skills to reduce their risk of STI/HIV and pregnancy. This curriculum, designed for youth ages 11-13, emphasizes waiting to have sex or using condoms if young people choose to have sex. In addition to the 2 ½ days of highly interactive training, each participant receives a copy of the Making Proud Choices! curriculum, an activity set and video clips.

For more information and to register, see the flyer and registration form (PDF). Click here to register online. Questions? Contact Jill at 651.644.1447 x 18, [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 2010. For additional information, visit www.coalitionforsexed.org.

No Coalition events in June.

Other Events

July 26-28, 2010
July 29 (graduate students only)
2010 Summer Institute in Adolescent Health: Positive Pathways to Prevent Youth Violence

St. Paul

At the 2010 Summer Institute in Adolescent Health, we will look at pathways to prevent violence using a public health lens. Grounded in the evidence, four priorities frame the institute agenda:

Connecting young people with adult supports and opportunities.
Shifting away from a culture of violence.
Intervening at the first sign of risk.
Redirecting those on a violent path.

For more information and to register, visit www.nursing.umn.edu.

August 3, 2010 – SAVE the Date!
Minnesota Chlamydia Partnership (MCP) Summit

This Summit, convened by Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), will provide an opportunity to:

Call attention to the epidemic of chlamydia in Minnesota among young people
Discuss and develop strategies to reduce these rates and their impact on the youth of our communities

Registration opens June 1st. For more information, visit www.health.state.mn.us.