In February, 2008 a team from Massachusetts participated in the DASH funded National Stakeholders Meeting “Strengthening State Health and State Education Agency Partnerships to Improve HIV, STD, and Unintended Teen Pregnancy Prevention in Schools” Since that meeting the Massachusetts Sexuality Education Stakeholders Group has held regular meetings. Co-chaired by the DPH Director of the Office of HIV/AIDS and the ESE HIV/AIDs Coordinator, the group consists of relevant staff from DPH and ESE including medical directors and other directors of programs involved in prevention of infectious diseases, including STDs and HIV/AIDS ,family planning, sexual assault prevention, substance abuse prevention and adolescent health and coordinated school health. By meeting regularly the group hopes to impact adolescent sexual health through sexuality education. The group created a strategic plan to set appropriate state health and education policies to protect young people from negative consequences of sexual activity and to promote healthy sexual development.
- Over $1,000,000 per year for 5 years of PREP funding was awarded to Massachusetts for an interagency plan to implement science-based teen pregnancy prevention programs in middle schools and community agencies.
- The Massachusetts Board of Education charged the Sexuality Education Stakeholders Group with proposing new HIV policy language
- Massachusetts advocates for school based sexuality education filed legislation that would promote science based sexuality education
- Staff from DPH’s STD, HIV and Family Planning Programs work with the SEA’s HIV Coordinator to provide workshops for teachers
- The SEA HIV Coordinator works closely with family planning and adolescent health staff on projects that impact teen pregnancy prevention
Joy Robinson-Lynch
jrobinson-lynch@doe.mass.edu
www.doe.mass.edu/
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