Looking backward, moving forward: The future of sex education

The end of federal support for abstinence education creates new opportunities and new challenges for comprehensive sexuality education and evidence-based public health policy. This paper will examine lessons learned from the fight against abstinence-only policies, including the role of research, national advocacy groups, the state pubic health establishment and advocacy in support of scientific accuracy. How can we marshall these insights in support of comprehensive sexuality policies that are evidence based? Should the public health community focus on comprehensive sexuality education as a goal or focus on public health outcomes such as prevention of teen pregnancy, STIs, and HIV infection? What is the role of human right principles in relationship to evidence-based practice? In addressing these questions, looking backward may help us to move forward.