obviously i've been gone a long time. and quite a bit has happened. in addition to personal life change (i got married!), i have exciting updates related to my journey. the non-profit has been created!! it is officially a 501(c)3!!! however, it was not due my efforts, but the efforts of david wiley, a texas state university professor. i, by dumb luck, heard about his work and contacted him last fall. he was in the process of recruiting board members for a non-profit devoted to teen pregnancy prevention. i was immediately on board!
david had already completed so much groundwork that i was able to jump into a functional group. he had pulled together the experts in teen pregnancy prevention in the state of texas for a meeting earlier in the year, and then from the meeting, he began to form a board of directors. he also had contacted a couple of national organizations, the national campaign to prevent teen and unplanned pregnancy and advocates for youth, to support his venture. they offered resources and necessary support as he moved forward to make this dream a reality. i joined in the first board meeting in january.
as i looked around the table, i kept wondering how i got there. i didn't belong at this table. we had the best researchers and professionals in teen pregnancy prevention in the state and me. i have the heart and the passion, but not the status, professional respect, or critical knowledge to be much of an asset to the group. however, david didn't kick me out : ). instead, i was able to see how i could support the group in smaller tasks that the other busy board members might not have time for...which helped me feel useful.
we've met once a month since january and worked towards a name, website, mission, strategic plan. it's been such an interesting process listening to the discussions....what is our purpose? who is our target audience? how much do we want to be involved in politics? how can we get staff? who will fund us? we had a strategic planning session led by nonprofit consultant, sharon edwards, who is also a board member. she helped us streamline our main objectives and situations we would like to impact through our work. we have submitted two LOIs for grants, and one foundation accepted our letter and wants us to submit for a full proposal!! once we have funding, we can hire staff and move from a board of director-led organization to a fully-functioning, staffed organization!!!
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here's a snippet of our strategic planning results:
The Texas Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy uses multiple strategies:
Public Awareness to reframe issues and engage key audiences
Research and Publications to inform decisions with best, most accurate information
Public Policy/Advocacy to educate key stakeholders to support realistic and effective policies
Promote Professional Development to enhance the professional capacity and skills of youth serving professionals
Through these efforts, we plan to have the following outputs:
* Effective messages reach more teens and adults through variety of media
* General public has more exposure to accurate information about the costs of teen pregnancy
* Teens get access to comprehensive information about sexual health issues and service through a variety of youth serving partner programs
* Policy makers have access to more accurate information that aids in their understanding
* Providers incorporate accurate and appropriate sexual health information throughout all of their teen programs
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exciting, right? we plan to have a statewide conference next fall to introduce us and help train the many youth-serving professionals in the latest and most effective teen pregnancy prevention strategies. our website (hopefully up soon) will be the resource for proven, effective teen pregnancy prevention curriculum and home to plenty of research and statistics related to texas' teen pregnancy crisis. more updates to come....but i'm impressed i could condense over a year's worth of work into this.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
the texas conference for women.
so as you can tell by my lack of posts lately, i hit a wall. i had a couple of less than encouraging meetings and allowed myself to get discouraged. i'm realizing that no matter how much i want to do something, if i don't have appointed people around me cheering me on and pushing me, i lose motivation.
but the good news is that i attended the texas conference for women and became inspired again. i attended a couple of sessions focused on women who made (and continue to make) a difference in their communities and the world at large-- "start something big", "finding and following your voice", and "women making a difference". one of the things i heard that had the largest impact on me was "where your tears are, there is your passion." the woman who started the strongheart fellowship program (http://www.strongheartfellowship.org/), cori stern, spoke on how she started several non-profits based on her encounters with individuals and communities in need. when i think of young women in texas (and i think of the girls i encounter on the east side of austin), my heart breaks....the need, the lack of opportunity, the lack of hope. my tears are there.
i also benefited from listening to rachel muir, who started the organization girlstart (www.girlstart.org). she is passionate about providing math, science, and technology programs to girls and began the organization when she was 26 (my age!) with $500 and a credit card. she said that she realized that starting this organization was all she thought about, talked about, and dreamt about, and she knew that she would have to do it. she had no choice. i don't know if my situation is the same, but i sometimes think it is. in my heart, i want to work with young women in any capacity to decrease the number of teen pregnancies and increase their opportunities to go to college, escape the poverty cycle, and realize their own self-worth beyond the object of someone else's affection. young women's issues are continually on my heart, and i just need boldness to take the steps to start my own girlstart...i'm thinking the teen hope network is a good name...
again, i was reminded that i need to think more creatively. how do i start out small? can i make a difference with a non-profit that does not work on the public policy level? i hopefully will be meeting with my former supervisor at the massachusetts alliance on teen pregnancy next week when i'm in boston. i hope she will be able to provide some direction and advice as i continue on this path. i've been debating my near future quite a bit lately and where i should be. what i'm realizing is that my heart is in texas...my heart is in teen pregnancy prevention...and as much as i love the prevention field in general, i want to make a difference in texas specifically. we have the highest teen birth rate...why would i go somewhere else when the biggest challenge (and potential for a real impact) is here in texas?
but the good news is that i attended the texas conference for women and became inspired again. i attended a couple of sessions focused on women who made (and continue to make) a difference in their communities and the world at large-- "start something big", "finding and following your voice", and "women making a difference". one of the things i heard that had the largest impact on me was "where your tears are, there is your passion." the woman who started the strongheart fellowship program (http://www.strongheartfellowship.org/), cori stern, spoke on how she started several non-profits based on her encounters with individuals and communities in need. when i think of young women in texas (and i think of the girls i encounter on the east side of austin), my heart breaks....the need, the lack of opportunity, the lack of hope. my tears are there.
i also benefited from listening to rachel muir, who started the organization girlstart (www.girlstart.org). she is passionate about providing math, science, and technology programs to girls and began the organization when she was 26 (my age!) with $500 and a credit card. she said that she realized that starting this organization was all she thought about, talked about, and dreamt about, and she knew that she would have to do it. she had no choice. i don't know if my situation is the same, but i sometimes think it is. in my heart, i want to work with young women in any capacity to decrease the number of teen pregnancies and increase their opportunities to go to college, escape the poverty cycle, and realize their own self-worth beyond the object of someone else's affection. young women's issues are continually on my heart, and i just need boldness to take the steps to start my own girlstart...i'm thinking the teen hope network is a good name...
again, i was reminded that i need to think more creatively. how do i start out small? can i make a difference with a non-profit that does not work on the public policy level? i hopefully will be meeting with my former supervisor at the massachusetts alliance on teen pregnancy next week when i'm in boston. i hope she will be able to provide some direction and advice as i continue on this path. i've been debating my near future quite a bit lately and where i should be. what i'm realizing is that my heart is in texas...my heart is in teen pregnancy prevention...and as much as i love the prevention field in general, i want to make a difference in texas specifically. we have the highest teen birth rate...why would i go somewhere else when the biggest challenge (and potential for a real impact) is here in texas?
Friday, October 5, 2007
is this going to be good news?
abstinence programs being cut, reported by the statesman....
Some providers of sexual abstinence programs in Texas schools are cutting back their operations because $50 million in federal funds for abstinence promotion quietly expired last week. Despite an 11th-hour extension of funding until Dec. 31, the effect is still "devastating," said Mike Goss, president of the faith-based, nonprofit Abstinence America program that operates in Houston schools. "It's going to wipe out programs far and wide."
However, the impact in Central Texas classrooms will likely be minimal. And statewide, abstinence will still be taught, though some private agencies may no longer offer the curriculum in some school districts. Goss said he has scaled his program back from 16 Houston area schools to four schools.
States were informed this week they could receive the stop-gap funding if they apply quickly to the federal government. Officials with the Texas Department of State Health Services said they haven't decided whether to do so.
Texas receives the largest share of federal abstinence grants, about $4.7 million a year, through a program known as Title V. The money goes to more than 50 instructional programs, most of them offered by a mini-industry of private groups that contract with various school districts. The programs match every $4 in federal funds with $3 of their own, according to state officials.
The Texas Education Agency requires public high schools to teach abstinence as the "preferred choice" to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. Each school district decides how and when that instruction will take place, and whether a contractor will provide it.
The Austin school district does not receive Title V funds, district health coordinator Tracy Lunoff said, and should be minimally affected by the funding cut. The school district uses a free manual on human sexuality that came with textbooks approved in 2005, said Lunoff, as well as volunteer abstinence speakers who appear at high schools.
More than 30 other Central Texas school districts, including Round Rock, San Marcos, Manor and Georgetown, use Worth the Wait, an abstinence curriculum for elementary through high school students developed by Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple.
Terry Buckley, program manager for Worth the Wait, said the program will no longer be able to offer meals during presentations to teachers and community members, but its work will continue, she said.
Some programs are moving staff from paying jobs to volunteer jobs, and others are trying to garner local funding, said Karen Flowers, director of the Texas Department of State Health Services abstinence program. The state called a meeting with its contractors last week to discuss their options, she said.
The funding problems occurred after Congress voted in June to eliminate Title V funding, leaving states and abstinence contractors to pick up the tab. Despite the three-month extension, abstinence proponents — frustrated with the new Democratic-led Congress — say they are bracing for the worst.
"We've just kind of been in denial. We don't really want to believe this is happening, but we're trying to come up with a plan B and a plan C," said Tonya Waite, program director of the Longview Wellness Center, an East Texas abstinence program that's in eight counties and 32 school districts. The center planned on serving six additional counties this year, but Waite said it won't be able to because of the lost funds. It will also downsize its aggressive media campaign by producing only two to three pro-abstinence commercials this year. In the past, the center produced 16 commercials a year featuring students from local schools.
Congress enacted the Title V grant program in 1998, but it has recently come under increasing criticism. Eight states, including California, New Jersey and Wisconsin, have rejected the funding, opting instead to put money into comprehensive sex education that allows them to put more emphasis on condoms and other forms of birth control. (i have hope but will texas follow suit???)
If federal abstinence money ends for good in December, supporters may ask the state to step in.
Legislators say it's too soon to tell what will happen. However, it is typically the federal government's job to pay for the programs that it starts, said state Rep. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin, a member of the House Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services.
Both she and another committee member, Rep. John Zerwas, R-Fulshear, say they need more hard numbers on the programs' effectiveness.
Zerwas said he supports abstinence-based education. "But at the end of the day, we hold our agencies accountable and unless we can see some evidence that these types of programs are having this impact for what they're intended to do, it becomes difficult for us as a committee to continue funding them," Zerwas said. "If they're not, I'm willing to accept that as much as anybody else."
i have a lot to say about this....but it will come later. my dreams of decreasing the teen pregnancy rate in texas have returned....mostly thanks to the texas conference for women. i just needed a little inspiration to keep going. more thoughts will come soon :)
Some providers of sexual abstinence programs in Texas schools are cutting back their operations because $50 million in federal funds for abstinence promotion quietly expired last week. Despite an 11th-hour extension of funding until Dec. 31, the effect is still "devastating," said Mike Goss, president of the faith-based, nonprofit Abstinence America program that operates in Houston schools. "It's going to wipe out programs far and wide."
However, the impact in Central Texas classrooms will likely be minimal. And statewide, abstinence will still be taught, though some private agencies may no longer offer the curriculum in some school districts. Goss said he has scaled his program back from 16 Houston area schools to four schools.
States were informed this week they could receive the stop-gap funding if they apply quickly to the federal government. Officials with the Texas Department of State Health Services said they haven't decided whether to do so.
Texas receives the largest share of federal abstinence grants, about $4.7 million a year, through a program known as Title V. The money goes to more than 50 instructional programs, most of them offered by a mini-industry of private groups that contract with various school districts. The programs match every $4 in federal funds with $3 of their own, according to state officials.
The Texas Education Agency requires public high schools to teach abstinence as the "preferred choice" to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. Each school district decides how and when that instruction will take place, and whether a contractor will provide it.
The Austin school district does not receive Title V funds, district health coordinator Tracy Lunoff said, and should be minimally affected by the funding cut. The school district uses a free manual on human sexuality that came with textbooks approved in 2005, said Lunoff, as well as volunteer abstinence speakers who appear at high schools.
More than 30 other Central Texas school districts, including Round Rock, San Marcos, Manor and Georgetown, use Worth the Wait, an abstinence curriculum for elementary through high school students developed by Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple.
Terry Buckley, program manager for Worth the Wait, said the program will no longer be able to offer meals during presentations to teachers and community members, but its work will continue, she said.
Some programs are moving staff from paying jobs to volunteer jobs, and others are trying to garner local funding, said Karen Flowers, director of the Texas Department of State Health Services abstinence program. The state called a meeting with its contractors last week to discuss their options, she said.
The funding problems occurred after Congress voted in June to eliminate Title V funding, leaving states and abstinence contractors to pick up the tab. Despite the three-month extension, abstinence proponents — frustrated with the new Democratic-led Congress — say they are bracing for the worst.
"We've just kind of been in denial. We don't really want to believe this is happening, but we're trying to come up with a plan B and a plan C," said Tonya Waite, program director of the Longview Wellness Center, an East Texas abstinence program that's in eight counties and 32 school districts. The center planned on serving six additional counties this year, but Waite said it won't be able to because of the lost funds. It will also downsize its aggressive media campaign by producing only two to three pro-abstinence commercials this year. In the past, the center produced 16 commercials a year featuring students from local schools.
Congress enacted the Title V grant program in 1998, but it has recently come under increasing criticism. Eight states, including California, New Jersey and Wisconsin, have rejected the funding, opting instead to put money into comprehensive sex education that allows them to put more emphasis on condoms and other forms of birth control. (i have hope but will texas follow suit???)
If federal abstinence money ends for good in December, supporters may ask the state to step in.
Legislators say it's too soon to tell what will happen. However, it is typically the federal government's job to pay for the programs that it starts, said state Rep. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin, a member of the House Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services.
Both she and another committee member, Rep. John Zerwas, R-Fulshear, say they need more hard numbers on the programs' effectiveness.
Zerwas said he supports abstinence-based education. "But at the end of the day, we hold our agencies accountable and unless we can see some evidence that these types of programs are having this impact for what they're intended to do, it becomes difficult for us as a committee to continue funding them," Zerwas said. "If they're not, I'm willing to accept that as much as anybody else."
i have a lot to say about this....but it will come later. my dreams of decreasing the teen pregnancy rate in texas have returned....mostly thanks to the texas conference for women. i just needed a little inspiration to keep going. more thoughts will come soon :)
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
i need help.
okay. i'm officially overwhelmed. i've got the passion and ideas, but this whole goal of organization and developing a proposal is more than i can handle right now. i just can't see where i'm going...i need help. if anyone wants to just walk through my ideas with me, help me brainstorm, and develop a proposal, i would GREATLY appreciate it!! i've never started a non-profit or even developed a proposal for a current non-profit so i am starting to feel quite inadequate.
my meeting today went great....the woman i met with knows EVERYONE in the teen pregnancy prevention and teen parent services field in austin. she gave me additional names of people to meet with, as well as the name and meeting dates of a couple of teen pregnancy prevention coalitions. all very useful information and great networking opportunities. but i'm starting to realize that i don't know what to do with all of this information i gather.....basically where do i go from here? how do i put all of the information i gather about the needs for teen pregnancy prevention and adequate teen parent services into a proposal?? do i start to pitch myself to non-profits who do similar work? do i become a board member for one of them and help them out in a non-paid position? do i research grants and figure out a way to fund myself doing something related to teen pregnancy prevention? how do i start out small and grow larger? aaarrrgghhh....this is so fun but overwhelming. so many options and things to consider. if anyone has any advice, send it my way!!
my meeting today went great....the woman i met with knows EVERYONE in the teen pregnancy prevention and teen parent services field in austin. she gave me additional names of people to meet with, as well as the name and meeting dates of a couple of teen pregnancy prevention coalitions. all very useful information and great networking opportunities. but i'm starting to realize that i don't know what to do with all of this information i gather.....basically where do i go from here? how do i put all of the information i gather about the needs for teen pregnancy prevention and adequate teen parent services into a proposal?? do i start to pitch myself to non-profits who do similar work? do i become a board member for one of them and help them out in a non-paid position? do i research grants and figure out a way to fund myself doing something related to teen pregnancy prevention? how do i start out small and grow larger? aaarrrgghhh....this is so fun but overwhelming. so many options and things to consider. if anyone has any advice, send it my way!!
Monday, August 27, 2007
back on track.
so the last couple of weeks brought me some unexpected events and a trip home to amarillo, and i was unable to devote much time to my non-profit project. but i'm back and ready to keep the ball rolling!!
i've been researching some of the agencies that were recommended to me and have honestly been unable to find an agency that does anything close to what i want to do. the non-profits i've researched have such far-reaching programs that teen pregnancy prevention is one small program of their 10 larger programs.....which means there is a need and an opportunity for what i want to do, but it also means that i will have to do a bit more groundwork. i emailed a couple of women today who work in the teen pregnancy prevention field in austin (one is a filmmaker and one runs prevention programs), and i have already set up a meeting with one of them for later this week....woo hoo!
after talking with a friend yesterday, i realized that i need to become more organized in my vision. she recommended that i write a proposal that outlines exactly what i want to do and how i want to do it. good advice! i have tons of ideas and materials from other statewide TPP (teen pregnancy prevention) non-profits that i can pull together to develop a proposal. i also am trying to think bigger. maybe i don't need to start a non-profit...maybe i work on a documentary about teen pregnancy in texas. or maybe i create an educational workshop series on teen pregnancy prevention. because the non-profit i wanted to create already exists (yet has no paid staff), i think i need to think differently and outside of the box to approach teen pregnancy prevention in a fresh way (or just convince them to hire me after i write a grant to pay for my own salary...hehe).
i'm starting to realize the barriers that i will face. i fear the conservative environment in texas might be an unbreachable barrier. i'm just not sure that policy analysis and advocacy will be effective....abstinence-only education and policy have such a stronghold in texas. i mean, planned parenthood's teen pregnancy prevention funding just got cut again, which means more money for faith-based, abstinence programs. not that i'm not hopeful that i could change the texas mindset and educational system (i'm up for a challenge!), but i also want to be realistic in my planning. a creative approach might be my only option. this is such a learning process....even massachusetts faced difficulties in getting political support for comprehensive sex ed, and that's massachusetts!!! liberal country...what the heck am i supposed to do in texas?? i will need an alliance of organizations all devoted to the cause to mobilize larger numbers of people. i need to start a movement!! okay, i think i'm getting ahead of myself now. back to reality and what i can accomplish this week.
my goals for this week are:
i've been researching some of the agencies that were recommended to me and have honestly been unable to find an agency that does anything close to what i want to do. the non-profits i've researched have such far-reaching programs that teen pregnancy prevention is one small program of their 10 larger programs.....which means there is a need and an opportunity for what i want to do, but it also means that i will have to do a bit more groundwork. i emailed a couple of women today who work in the teen pregnancy prevention field in austin (one is a filmmaker and one runs prevention programs), and i have already set up a meeting with one of them for later this week....woo hoo!
after talking with a friend yesterday, i realized that i need to become more organized in my vision. she recommended that i write a proposal that outlines exactly what i want to do and how i want to do it. good advice! i have tons of ideas and materials from other statewide TPP (teen pregnancy prevention) non-profits that i can pull together to develop a proposal. i also am trying to think bigger. maybe i don't need to start a non-profit...maybe i work on a documentary about teen pregnancy in texas. or maybe i create an educational workshop series on teen pregnancy prevention. because the non-profit i wanted to create already exists (yet has no paid staff), i think i need to think differently and outside of the box to approach teen pregnancy prevention in a fresh way (or just convince them to hire me after i write a grant to pay for my own salary...hehe).
i'm starting to realize the barriers that i will face. i fear the conservative environment in texas might be an unbreachable barrier. i'm just not sure that policy analysis and advocacy will be effective....abstinence-only education and policy have such a stronghold in texas. i mean, planned parenthood's teen pregnancy prevention funding just got cut again, which means more money for faith-based, abstinence programs. not that i'm not hopeful that i could change the texas mindset and educational system (i'm up for a challenge!), but i also want to be realistic in my planning. a creative approach might be my only option. this is such a learning process....even massachusetts faced difficulties in getting political support for comprehensive sex ed, and that's massachusetts!!! liberal country...what the heck am i supposed to do in texas?? i will need an alliance of organizations all devoted to the cause to mobilize larger numbers of people. i need to start a movement!! okay, i think i'm getting ahead of myself now. back to reality and what i can accomplish this week.
my goals for this week are:
- to set up 3 meetings with people in the teen pregnancy prevention field in austin
- to write a proposal that summarizes my interests and vision for my non-profit venture
man, this is exciting!! i can't wait to see where God takes this and am so thankful that He is stirring all of this in me!!
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
motivate me.
somehow in all of the craziness of life (showers, birthdays, going away parties, retreats), i found the time to have another meeting to discuss my future plans with someone who is more of an expert. last thursday i met with a woman who used to work for my current organization and now runs a girl-centered non-profit in austin. she is INCREDIBLE!! she is only a few years older than me and has been highly successful in developing programs and changing girls' lives, which is ultimately what i want to do. she shared with me her career path and the decisions that she made along the way. she also suggested some amazing people to get in contact with and discuss my plans....she seems to know everyone in austin, especially those related to my field of interest.
the big decision i need to make now is how to move forward. she suggested that i put together a pitch for some of the contacts she gave me....basically to pitch myself and my vision to them in hopes of them creating a position for me within their current organization rather than starting a brand new organization. there are several groups already doing some of the work that i want to do....so i just need to find out how they could improve what they are currently doing or how they can add to their programs to accomplish more. she also offered to publicize my future non-profit if that is what i decide to do....and that she would love to collaborate with me in future endeavours. seriously, this woman is AMAZING!
i'm really excited about where this is taking me. this is offering me such a creative outlet for my energy and allowing me to be passionate about life again. i am flexing off a day of work this week (because i have to work all weekend) and hopefully will spend it researching the different organizations in austin who work in the teen pregnancy prevention field. i want to set up several meetings and figure out exactly what the need is in austin....how to create my own niche within the field of teen pregnancy prevention while utilizing the resources and organizations that already exist and do similar work. hopefully i'll have more updates soon!
the big decision i need to make now is how to move forward. she suggested that i put together a pitch for some of the contacts she gave me....basically to pitch myself and my vision to them in hopes of them creating a position for me within their current organization rather than starting a brand new organization. there are several groups already doing some of the work that i want to do....so i just need to find out how they could improve what they are currently doing or how they can add to their programs to accomplish more. she also offered to publicize my future non-profit if that is what i decide to do....and that she would love to collaborate with me in future endeavours. seriously, this woman is AMAZING!
i'm really excited about where this is taking me. this is offering me such a creative outlet for my energy and allowing me to be passionate about life again. i am flexing off a day of work this week (because i have to work all weekend) and hopefully will spend it researching the different organizations in austin who work in the teen pregnancy prevention field. i want to set up several meetings and figure out exactly what the need is in austin....how to create my own niche within the field of teen pregnancy prevention while utilizing the resources and organizations that already exist and do similar work. hopefully i'll have more updates soon!
Friday, August 3, 2007
the year of pursuing passions and living with purpose.
the idea for me to start a non-profit has always been a "one day" plan...probably in five to ten years. but for 2007, i decided to dedicate this year to pursuing my passions and living with purpose. along with a couple other friends, i decided to reconnect with the issues and activities that stir my soul and to pursue those as much as possible. i thought that this meant that i would be taking a lot of dance classes, running in races, and possibly volunteering more...but as the year has gone on, i realized that i wanted to truly live and not just survive. i currently work for a non-profit, which is great and all, but my heart wasn't feeling fulfilled, and i've become quite complacent in my job. i started to brainstorm jobs or even career fields that would better use my skills and interests, but what i realized is that my five to ten year plan is what i really want to do. instead of waiting for five or ten years to get here, i'm going to start working on starting a non-profit now while i'm gaining experience and have a full time job to support me before the non-profit is up and running.
so what do i want to do with the non-profit? well, while in grad school at boston college, i interned with the massachusetts alliance on teen pregnancy as a public policy intern. it was a life changing experience. they use education, policy analysis, advocacy, and research to impact statewide teen pregnancy prevention and teen parent services funding and programs. basically, they advocate and teach others to advocate for funding for EFFECTIVE teen pregnancy prevention programs and QUALITY teen parent services. i fell in love with the work and the issues and realized how much the issue of teen pregnancy identified with me. the research shows that almost one in three american teens gets pregnant, and as i looked back at my friends in high school...the group of three that i hung out with early in high school, one was pregnant by 18. the second group of three i hung out with at the end of high school, one was pregnant at 18. teen pregnancy was all around me. and i look at my extended family, which consists of so many teen parents. i was the first grandkid in my family who WASN'T a teen parent and who went to college. i'm from amarillo, which has an insanely high teen pregnancy rate, and i consider myself lucky (and blessed) to have made it through my teens without getting pregnant and able to go to college.
and now i have a challenge. i want to start a non-profit similar to the massachusetts alliance on teen pregnancy....a statewide non-profit dedicated to advocacy, education, research, and policy analysis related to teen pregnancy prevention and teen parent services. i don't know if there are non-profits that already exist in texas and do what i want to do, but i will be starting this journey and will hopefully find myself on the other end with a meaningful profession using my passions and living with purpose.
so what do i want to do with the non-profit? well, while in grad school at boston college, i interned with the massachusetts alliance on teen pregnancy as a public policy intern. it was a life changing experience. they use education, policy analysis, advocacy, and research to impact statewide teen pregnancy prevention and teen parent services funding and programs. basically, they advocate and teach others to advocate for funding for EFFECTIVE teen pregnancy prevention programs and QUALITY teen parent services. i fell in love with the work and the issues and realized how much the issue of teen pregnancy identified with me. the research shows that almost one in three american teens gets pregnant, and as i looked back at my friends in high school...the group of three that i hung out with early in high school, one was pregnant by 18. the second group of three i hung out with at the end of high school, one was pregnant at 18. teen pregnancy was all around me. and i look at my extended family, which consists of so many teen parents. i was the first grandkid in my family who WASN'T a teen parent and who went to college. i'm from amarillo, which has an insanely high teen pregnancy rate, and i consider myself lucky (and blessed) to have made it through my teens without getting pregnant and able to go to college.
and now i have a challenge. i want to start a non-profit similar to the massachusetts alliance on teen pregnancy....a statewide non-profit dedicated to advocacy, education, research, and policy analysis related to teen pregnancy prevention and teen parent services. i don't know if there are non-profits that already exist in texas and do what i want to do, but i will be starting this journey and will hopefully find myself on the other end with a meaningful profession using my passions and living with purpose.
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