241639 Statistics and stories: Using different forms of evidence to mobilize school districts for sex education in Harris County, Texas

Monday, October 31, 2011: 2:30 PM

Eric Ratliff, PhD , Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston, Houston, TX
Susan Tortolero, PhD , Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston, Houston, TX
Melissa Peskin, PhD , Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston, Houston, TX
Christine Markham, PhD , Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston, Houston, TX
Belinda Hernandez, MPH , Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston, Houston, TX
Kimberly Johnson, MPH , Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston, Houston, TX
Ross Shegog, PhD , Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research, University of Texas Health Science Center-Houston, Houston, TX
BACKGROUND: The teen birth rate in Texas is among the highest in the nation, yet sex education in public schools remains a contentious political issue for most school districts. The University of Texas Prevention Research Center (UTPRC) has embarked on a concerted effort to promote adolescent sexual health in public schools in Harris County following the principles of community-based participatory research. The We Can Do More (WCDM) campaign has used statistics and imagery to define the issue and to mobilize teachers, parents, and administrators to adopt evidence-based programs for sex education in local schools. METHOD: We employed a longitudinal case study research design to examine the dialogic processes through which school districts reached a decision about the development of a sex education policy and the adoption of specific curricula. Our methods included participant observation of school health advisory council and school board meetings in 2009 and 2010 (n = 42); we also conducted semi-structured interviews with administrators and parents from five districts (n = 10). Fieldnotes and interview transcripts were analyzed using narrative methods. RESULTS: WCDM has been very successful in forming community-academic partnerships and mobilizing school districts around adolescent sexual health. What has emerged from these partnerships is a common narrative that incorporates public health statistics with personal stories from community members who have observed the effects of teen pregnancy. Combining these forms of evidence through continuing dialogue has strengthened our partnerships, and created a powerful message to assuage community concerns.

Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health education
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Communication and informatics
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
1. Describe how people use personal stories and public health statistics to compose effective narratives about teen pregnancy; 2. Demonstrate how community-academic partnerships can overcome political opposition to address contentious public health issues.

Keywords: Teen Pregnancy Prevention, Community-Based Partnership

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am qualified to be an abstract author because I have a PhD and have been conducting community-based research on sexuality for 17 years.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.