Teen Wellness Initiative

Teen Wellness Initiative

The Cuyahoga County Board of Health has been the administering agency of the Teen Wellness Initiative since 1997.  In partnership with target school districts and community based agencies, this multi-tiered initiative focuses on providing comprehensive evidence based sexual education to youth throughout Cuyahoga County. 

The primary objectives of the Teen Wellness Initiative are:
• Provide youth with the necessary information, motivation, and behavioral skills to make informed choices about their sexual and reproductive health 
• Provide parents/guardians with a variety of tools that promote increased communication with their teens
• Increase access to adolescent health services
• Develop policies that incorporate and support public health principles

During the 2009-2010 program year, The Teen Wellness Initiative will be focusing programmatic efforts on the following two components:

School-Based Component

Schools are an important setting in which to contribute to the development of healthy sexuality and reduce risk-taking behavior.  Comprehensive sexuality education provides young people with information and skills which will enable them to make sound decisions now and in the future. With the ultimate goal of reducing one or more sexual behaviors that lead to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, the Teen Wellness Initiative at CCBH has been providing evidence-based human sexuality programming in a classroom setting throughout the county for over ten years. 

In the 2009-2010 program year, the Teen Wellness Initiative will coordinate programming in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District and seven target first ring school districts throughout the county.   Evidence-based comprehensive sexual health programming is offered to students in grades 5-8 in partnering first ring school districts and to students in Kindergarten through 12th grade through the Responsible Sexual Behavior Program in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District. 

To view the 2008-2009 K-12 RSB Evaluation Briefs please Click Here.

To view the comprehensive 2008-2009 K-12 RSB program evaluation please Click Here.

Community-Based Component

Concern for America’s at-risk sexually active youth prompted the Annie E. Casey Foundation to develop Plain Talk.  Plain Talk (PT) is a nationally recognized initiative that takes a unique approach to the prevention of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.  This is a community-based initiative that helps adults develop skills to communicate effectively w/teens about reducing sexual risk-taking.  The program accomplishes this task by increasing adult-teen communication about responsible sexual behaviors, and increasing teen’s access to reproductive health services. The program’s goal is to decrease unwanted teen pregnancies, STDs, and HIV/AIDS.

Cuyahoga County has been approved and identified as a Plain Talk (PT) site by the national office.  CCBH has designated the Mt. Pleasant Community Zone as the county’s pilot PT site.  The Zone is in its third successful year of providing PT programming to the residents in the Mt. Pleasant neighborhood. 

For more information on the Plain Talk Initiative please visit:  www.plaintalk.org   ________________________________________________________________________

The Cuyahoga County Board of Health’s Teen Wellness Initiative is made possible through grant funding provided by the Cuyahoga County Office of Health and Human Services and the Family and Children First Council on behalf of the Cuyahoga County Board of County Commissioners.

For more information please contact: