SEPTEMBER NEWSLETTER

Strategic Collaboration

The Texas Foster Youth Health Initiative

The Texas Foster Youth Health Initiative (TFYHI), in partnership with the
Texas Institute for Child & Family Wellbeing and the Texas Alliance of
Child and Family Services, will establish, fund, coordinate, and support a
multidisciplinary network of community partners to develop and test cutting
edge sexual health interventions for youth and their caregivers. The
community partners include Healthy Futures of Texas and the North Texas
Alliance to Reduce Unintended Pregnancy in Teens (Ntarupt). Click here to
learn more about this project. [1]

Advocacy & Public Policy

The State Board of Education

Thanks to all of the advocates who testified, reached out, and spread the
word about the revisions to the sex education minimum curriculum standards.
In September, the State Board of Education approved a first draft of
standards that would offer basic information to all Texas students on
topics like birth control, STI prevention, screening and treatment,
puberty, healthy relationships, and more. Though the board regrettably
voted against standards that would teach the concept of consent by name,
they will finally move beyond just refusal and include teaching respect for
the boundaries of other people and prevention of sexual abuse, assault, and
harassment. The board majority also refused to support language teaching
about sexual orientation, gender identity, or prevention of bullying of
LGBTQ youth. Visit www.texasisready.org [2]to learn more about how you can
advocate for sex education in Texas, or read the full meeting report on our
blog [3].

We're Hiring a Policy Intern!

The Texas Campaign is hiring a part-time Policy Intern. Applicants should
be a current graduate student, or someone who already holds a master's
degree in a relevant field. If interested, review the job posting [4]and
apply by sending your resume and cover letter to [email protected].

Research & Data

September Chart of the Month

At the Texas Campaign, we spend a lot of time thinking about the data
around teen mothers, but what about the fathers? Most of our data on teen
births, and births in general, comes from birth certificates. Information
about the father appears on the birth certificate if parents are married or
if the father signs an attestation of paternity. For this reason, many
birth certificates do not include paternity data.

In Texas, the legal age of consent is 17, though "Romeo and Juliet"
provisions protect young couples within three years of age of each other,
as long as both are at least 14 years old. Even when not illegal, large age
gaps between a teen and older adult may reflect coercive or unhealthy
relationships.

The chart shows data for all teen births in the US in 2017. Among 14 year
old mothers, 25% of fathers listed on the birth certificate were within
three years of age, 6% were more than three years older, and 69% of birth
certificates did not have a father listed. Among 19 year old mothers, 49%
of fathers were within three years of age, 23% were more than three years
older, and 28% of birth certificates did not have a father listed.

Data Sources: Texas Campaign Analysis of CDC Natality data

Training

For the foreseeable future, all Texas Campaign trainings will be virtual.
We have a number of opportunities available through next April and hope you
can join us!

Webinar Series

WEBINAR SERIES: The last quarter of the year will focus on the following
themes in our webinar series: Collaboration; Contraception; and Programs &
Practice. Continuing Education will be provided in multiple disciplines.
Visit?WWW.TXSYMPOSIUM.ORG [5]?to explore topics and to register.

** SCHOLARSHIPS ARE AVAILABLE. CLICK HERE [6] TO APPLY.

Regional Summits: South Texas and Amarillo

SOUTH TEXAS ADOLESCENT HEALTH SUMMIT: This regional summit is scheduled for
Oct. 26, 27, & 28, 2020. Registration is $50, or $60 if requesting CEs.
Download the schedule here [7]. Learn more and register at
www.txcampaign.org/stxsummit [8]. A special thank you to the Valley Baptist
Legacy Foundation & UT RGV Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology for
supporting this event.

AMARILLO?ADOLESCENT HEALTH SUMMIT: This first-ever regional summit is
scheduled for Nov. 9-10, 2020. Registration is $50, or $60 if requesting
CEs. Download the schedule here [9]. Learn more and register at
www.txcampaign.org/amarillo-summit [10]. A special thank you to AmeriGroup
for supporting this event.

** SCHOLARSHIPS ARE AVAILABLE. CLICK HERE [11] TO APPLY FOR THE SOUTH TEXAS
SUMMIT OR HERE [12] TO APPLY FOR THE AMARILLO SUMMIT.

10th Annual Symposium

The Texas Campaign's 2021 Symposium will be a virtual event, and we are
working hard behind the scenes to bring you the most exciting event yet.
Our call for papers will open soon and registration details will follow. We
can't wait to celebrate with hundreds of youth serving professionals
throughout Texas. Stay tuned for more details!

Community Engagement

Cheers!

ARE YOU READY FOR THE SHOW? Grab your popcorn and a front row seat (from
the comfort of your own home) on October 29, 2020 at 7:30pm as we celebrate
our successes and prepare for the year ahead - and recap what we learned
from 2020 to strengthen our impact. Register below to support our work!
Sponsorships are also available. Thank you to our community for making this
work possible.

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REGISTER [13]

SPONSOR [14]

Get a Party Pack with any advance donation! Included is our signature
Cheers! Cosmo ingredients so you can follow along as our guest bartender
shows you how to mix a professional cocktail, delicious buttered popcorn -
just like at the movies- and Texas Campaign branded swag so you can show
your support.

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Youth Voice Spotlight

Throughout 2020, the Texas Campaign has interviewed young adults who have
lived experience with regards to teen pregnancy or sex education. The
impact of these stories helps inform our work across the state.

This month, we interviewed Avery Echols, who directed a video in her high
school film club to show the confusion that teens have around sex due to a
lack of comprehensive sex education. Avery wishes her school taught more
about gender and sexuality.

If you are interested in sharing your story, email Alex at
[email protected].

Click Here to Read Avery's Story [15]

Manage my preferences [16]

Texas Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy P.O Box 10357
Austin, Texas 78766

[email protected] / 512-686-8305

Opt-out of all email communications [17]

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