School Health Program News - Education Development Center

School Health Program Newsthree nonprofit organizations. Inaddition to providing abstinenceeducation within comprehensiveschool health education, the initiativealso involves a statewide mediacampaign.The distinguishing feature of theVirginia program, according to GaleGrant, director of the AbstinenceEducation Initiative at the Departmentof Health, is the longitudinalresearch base of the program. Designedby researchers from Virginiacolleges and universities, the studytests the effectiveness of abstinenceeducation programming. The firstcohort of seventh grade students waspre-tested with a survey and posttestedafter the initiative was administered.This group has now reachedeleventh grade, and current test resultsare in the process of beingevaluated.Virginia will conduct local, regional,and statewide training workshops inJuly 2003. Since November 2002, 16one-day workshops have been offered.Family life education workshopsthat bring together community-basedorganizations and schooldistricts allow the two groups tolearn from each other and more accuratelyrecognize the opportunitieseach has for interaction with youth.According to Fran Anthony Meyer,a specialist in comprehensive schoolhealth at the Virginia Departmentof Education, the success of the VirginiaAbstinence Education Initiativeresults from efforts todepoliticize it and to offer high-qualityeducation with a low-key approach.For questions about the VirginiaAbstinence Education Initiative,contact:Lissa Power-deFurDepartment of EducationPhone: (804) 225-2818E-Mail: lpowerd@nail.vak12ed.eduorGale E. GrantDepartment of HealthPhone: (804) 225-3697E-Mail:ggrant@vdh.state.va.usTo read more about the VirginiaAbstinence Education Initiative, goto www.canwait.com.Oklahoma Launches KEEPOklahoma’s Abstinence Educationinitiative is entitled KEEP, or KidsEagerly Endorsing Purity. Launchedby the Oklahoma Family PolicyCouncil in 1999, KEEP is now reachingmore than one-third ofOklahoma’s 77 counties. KEEP targetsyouth ages 12 to 18. Adult volunteerspresent the multi-weekKEEP program in public and privateschools, youth organizations, andchurches. These volunteers musthave completed an intensive teachertraining in abstinence educationsponsored by the Oklahoma FamilyPolicy Council. Practicing physiciansassociated with the Oklahoma PhysiciansResource Council supplementthe KEEP curriculum withclasses on sexually transmitted diseases.The evaluation component of KEEPuses a pre- and post-test prepared bythe University of Oklahoma’s Instituteof Public Affairs. The analyzedstudent surveys contribute to anevaluation of the overall effectivenessof abstinence-until-marriageeducation in Oklahoma comparedwith comprehensive sex educationapproaches of the past four decades.For more information about KEEP,contact:Oklahoma FamilyPolicy CouncilPhone: (405) 787-7744Web site:www.okfamilypc.org/abstinence_educationInstitute for YouthDevelopment SponsorsForumsDuring 2003, the Institute for YouthDevelopment is convening abstinenceeducation forums in 20 U.S.cities. The daylong workshops includepresentations by CDC/DASHand state and local abstinence educationstaff.To check the location of upcomingforums or to register, go towww.youthdevelopment.org, or contact:Institute for YouthDevelopmentPhone: (703) 471-8750E-Mail:info@youthdevelopment.orgCongress MandatesEvaluation of AbstinenceEducation InitiativesSince the passage of the PersonalResponsibility and Work OpportunityReconciliation Act, statisticsshow that the percentage of teenshaving sex has decreased and teenagepregnancy rates are down. Butto what extent are these downwardtrends associated with abstinenceeducation?To answer this question, Congresshas authorized a large evaluationstudy being conducted byMathematica Policy Research. Thestudy will also analyze the implementationand operational experiencesof local community-basedgroups and schools in launching ab-20