News
Update and Call Information
Code: 838141#
The next scheduled call will be on Tuesday, August 18th, from 1-2PM
PowerPoint Presentation for Training on Working with Your Community to Promote Teen Pregnancy Prevention
Budget Update
The final budget signed by the Governor includes terrible cuts to health and education. There are some groups that are planning to (or have already begun actions) to sue over the last-minute blue-pencil cuts, because the Governor does not have the authority to make them. TeenNow California will continue to provide resources on this site to help you fight budget cuts and tier three decisions by contacting legislators, the Governor, the media and other groups. If you make your voices heard, you may be able to help roll back these cuts and restore vital services.
Cal-SAFE Cuts
In addition to the ongoing problem of having Cal-SAFE placed into tier three, the three state-operations funded positions that provide support to the program have been reassigned. While we're not sure what this may mean in the future, we need to be sure that these positions continue to support the Cal-SAFE program. Oversight, training, evaluation, and more would become increasingly difficult if not impossible should we lose these critical staff positions.
It is vital that educators and leaders understand what the Cal-SAFE program is, and why it's so important to the success of our schools and most importantly, our students--and that in order to maintain the overwhelming success of the program, staff support is needed. We have created template materials specifically designed for use with school boards, school district personnel, and community members. Please feel free to use the templates provided here and make changes as necessary to serve local purposes.
Cal-LEARN/AFLP Proposed Cuts
The Governor made drastic cuts to the Cal-WORKS program. We don't yet know how this will affect Cal-LEARN, the branch of Cal-WORKS that provides case management and support to teen parents to help them complete their high school education by providing assistance with child care, transportation, books, and other necessities to ensure that they can attend and complete high school.
The Adolescent Family Life Programs (AFLP) was eliminated from the state budget, leaving only Federal dollars to fund this vital program. AFLP is similar to Cal-LEARN in the types of services it provides, but it is for teen parents who are not on cash aid (welfare). We need to continue to advocate for the restoration of these funds because the loss of AFLP would mean that teen parents continue to be marginalized in our society, and that far fewer teen parents would complete their education. This site provides more information on these proposed cuts, and on the two programs.
Teen Pregnancy Prevention Programs
In September of 2008, the Governor eliminated two very
successful teen pregnancy prevention programs, the Male
Involvement Program (MIP) and TeenSmart Outreach (TSO). Both of
these programs were proven to be very effective in reducing teen
pregnancy, and together they served thousands of California
youth. In addition to eliminating these programs, the Governor
slashed the Information and Education Program (I&E) by 40%.
These programs were part of a nationally recognized teen
pregnancy prevention platform that positioned California as a
leader in adolescent health. MIP Was one of the first programs
to reach out to young men to prevent teen pregnancy, by changing
attitudes, knowledge and behavior, and by encouraging
responsibility for preventing pregnancy among males. TSO
connected teens with clinical services, so if they did decide to
have sex they would be able to protect themselves from sexually
transmitted infections and pregnancy. I&E provides comprehensive
sex education to young people through classroom lectures, after
school programs, and special events.
The loss of MIP and TSO are devastating to teen pregnancy
prevention efforts, and the cuts to I&E programs further hurt
California's youth. We provide
STI and HIV Prevention Programs
In another blow to reproductive health, the Governor's budget slashes funding for the Office of AIDS, which effectively decimates most AIDS programs and services in the state. In addition, this cut could mean that California would lose federal funding for the Ryan White programs, further dismantling services and programs to educate the public about AIDS, prevent the spread of the virus, and provide support for those who have contracted it. You can find more information here. Watch this site for further resources.
To track budget discussions and progress, visit the California Budget Project site.
We strongly recommend that you use as a resource the No Time for Complacency Report to highlight taxpayer costs associated with teen births. We suggest that in addition to your state representatives, you also contact your federal legislators to alert them to the disastrous impact that these cuts will have on California's youth.