Holiday Fund 2003: Students call for expanded sexuality education program in Sequoia high schools Holiday Fund 2003: Students call for expanded sexuality education program in Sequoia high schools (December 17, 2003)

** They want Sequoia District to provide program to all freshmen.

By Marjorie Mader
Almanac Staff Writer

A group of 20 high school students, working with health educators from the Teen Pregnancy Coalition of San Mateo County, is urging Sequoia Union High School District trustees to adopt a comprehensive sexuality education program for all ninth-graders.

These students from the five Sequoia high schools have worked for almost two years to research and develop a recommendation that will be considered by the district trustees at the December 17 board meeting.

Teens need complete, scientifically backed information to make decisions about sexuality, the students say.

Last month, the students presented their report proposing that the Sequoia board support "comprehensive, age-appropriate" sexuality education in the high schools. They recommend the program be offered to all ninth-graders in science classes and be taught by teachers receiving annual instruction by trained professionals.

"In this day and age, it's important that high school students receive sex education before they're 16," said Trustee Gordon Lewin, who called the student presentation "impressive and professional."

Students want to have a voice in the debate over teenage sexuality and a say in their own education, said Cherie Livingston, executive director of the nonprofit Teen Pregnancy Coalition, which sponsored the project known as Advocating Sexuality Education Together. A grant from the California Wellness Foundation helped fund the project.

The students researched sexuality education programs, determined the "best practices" and evaluated the Sequoia district's current family life/sex education program. They found Sequoia's programs were offered through classes in health, safety or science at various grade levels and schools, and didn't cover a full range of topics.

They learned that South San Mateo County, primarily the East Palo Alto and Fair Oaks areas, is considered a "hot spot" in the state where teen births are prevalent, according to the California Department of Health Services, Maternal and Child Health Branch. Teens from these areas attend high schools in the Sequoia district.

Statistics show there were 599 teen births in the county in the year 2000. The annual cost to taxpayers is estimated at $17 million, and the societal costs run higher, an estimated $37 million annually, based on a Public Health Institute report. While therešs been a significant drop in the teen birth rate in recent years, the teen population is growing in the county and is expected to increase by 40 percent from 1995 to 2005, as compared to a 13 percent increase nationally, said Ms. Livingston.

Following "The Roadmap: A Teen Guide for Changing Your School's Sex Ed," a model developed by the Network for Family Life Education Center at Rutgers University, the students surveyed district students, parents and teachers.

They found 91 percent of the parents who responded think their children need comprehensive sexuality education. Such a program would cover a range of topics, including abstinence, peer pressure, communication, rape/incest/harassment, dating violence, pregnancy options, contraceptives, sexually transmitted diseases, sexual orientation, values and decision-making.

Based on the response to the survey, 83 percent of students said they want sexuality education at their school, and the same percent of teachers think sexuality education should be required in the schools.

Besides launching this project, the Teen Pregnancy Coalition offers: Teen Talk, a comprehensive sexuality program for schools; Plain Talk to help parents communicate with their children about sexuality; and a panel of teen parents who tell other teens about the difficulties of raising a child before adulthood.

Funding continues to be a challenge for the coalition, one of the nonprofits that benefit from the Holiday Fund.

"We had to make some targeted reductions this year," said Ms. Livingston. But, she added: "We're happy we're able to keep the doors open and serve youth."

INFORMATION

For more information about the Teen Pregnancy Coalition of San Mateo County, call Cherie Livingston, executive director, at 367-1937 or check www.teenpregnancycoalition.org.

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