Community based organizations work together to address adolescent sexually transmitted infections in Chicago

Adolescents in Chicago have the highest rates of STIs in the country. Chicago youth rank number one for rates of gonorrhea and rank number two for rates of chlamydia. African American youth in Chicago comprise the majority of all sexually transmitted infections. 

In response to these startling statistics, 12 community based organizations in Chicago joined forces to address these issues by collaboratively developing a grant proposal using the community education saturation model. The program used a four pronged approach; 1) capacity building around adolescent STI/HPV origin and risk reduction techniques for youth serving organizations, 2) educational workshops for adolescent girls, 3) educational community town halls for parents and other adults, and 4) educational youth media campaign.

Demoiselle 2 Femme (D2F), the convening organization, is a nonprofit organization with a rich history of providing community-based programs for girls on the far south side of Chicago. D2F provides holistic services, education, instruction and training to assist adolescent girls in a successful transition to womanhood. D2F has provided prevention and education programs to girls ages 13-19 in the Chicagoland community for 20 years. Through various programs, girls are challenged to utilize critical thinking skills and exercise their power of choice.

This presentation will discuss the collaborative grant writing and curriculum development process between the 12 CBOs, the successes, challenges and lessons learned, as well as share and discuss the evaluation data from the training sessions and town halls.