The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #51810

Caile Spear, PhD, Department of Kinesiology, Boise State University, 1910 University Drive, Boise, ID 83725-1710, 208 426-3656, CSPEAR@boisestate.edu and Eric Landrum, PhD, Department of Psychology, Boise State University, 1910 University Dr., Boise State University, Boise, ID 83725.

Community-based coalitions in seven health districts were the venue for abstinence-only education efforts in Idaho. This presentation will provide an overview of the districts' programs, discuss implementation issues and provide examples of several evaluation efforts. Initially, the districts focused on building and expanding their coalition before working on community needs assessments. The rural nature of the state necessitated each district forming multiple coalitions in order to encompass the widely spread out population. Early evaluation efforts were more process oriented and assessed the functionality of the multiple coalitions. The districts then developed and implemented action plans based on community needs and wants. Education efforts targeted youth and their parents through school and community programs. Several districts utilized a youth development approach, one focused on peer mentoring, one incorporated theater arts and one targeted parent-child communication. Populations receiving programming often varied in the extreme from ten parents to over 300 youth. Evaluation of these projects included pretests and posttest surveys, focus groups, and post-only surveys for several groups. Budgetary cutbacks necessitated the elimination of the statewide evaluation component in the final year. The health districts are currently completing their final funding cycle of this MCH block grant. The next steps for the districts and the state abstinence-only programs will be discussed.

Learning Objectives: