Blog

Depression in Teens: Ways to Support Youth Toward Wellness

Depression in teens can be easily disguised or ignored by symptoms that are commonly associated with the teenage experience, like low self-esteem and increased irritability. But keeping your eyes open to the internal and external struggles of the young people in your life can help you provide necessary help and support to teens experiencing mental health challenges or crises.

Teen Health Mississippi Receives Grant From The Upswing Fund

Teen Health Mississippi (THMS) is one of 88 organizations in the U.S. that has received a grant from The Upswing Fund to increase our capacity to serve more youth, especially those in historically underserved and under-resourced populations.

The Fund, which began in October 2020, aims to expand mental health services for adolescents of color and LGBTQ+ youth. Upswing awarded $10.8 million in grants to organizations in 33 states.

Mississippi Youth Deserve More Than HB 999

UPDATE April 2021: HB 633 has passed the Mississippi House and Senate and signed into law by Gov. Tate Reeves.

During this session, the Mississippi Legislature has decided to renew the state’s sex education legislation (HB 999), a law that has been in effect for the last 10 years. HB 999 (also called HB 494) requires public school districts to adopt and implement a sex education policy (either “abstinence-only” or “abstinence-plus”).

Extensive research confirms that abstinence-only methods have no impact on the sexual behavior of youth. Teen Health Mississippi believes Mississippi youth deserve more than HB 999. As such, we do not support the law’s renewal under HB 633.

HIV in Mississippi: How We’re “Getting to Zero”

With some of the highest diagnosis rates in the country, there’s a lot of work to be done on HIV in Mississippi. From spreading information and training to providing better healthcare in our communities, we’re seeing growing momentum that can get us to zero new cases and put an end to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

What is Abstinence-Plus Sex Education vs. Abstinence-Only Education?

Mississippi law requires public schools to use approved sex-ed curriculum for either abstinence-only or abstinence-plus education. But what’s the difference between these two options, and are they effective for Mississippi students? If you’re looking to learn more about these approaches, we’ve broken them down into the basics.

Release: Teen Health Mississippi Receives Grant for COVID-19 ERF

Momentum Fund, a project of the United Philanthropy Forum, has awarded Teen Health Mississippi (THMS) a $65,000 grant for our COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund (ERF).

The Momentum Fund is providing $9.1 million in grants to 139 organizations across the U.S. that have been managing COVID-19 relief funds for communities of color and others that have been negatively impacted by the pandemic.

Looking Back on 2020 — 6 Wins to Celebrate

As 2020 comes to a close and we take stock of the year, we’re choosing to celebrate the wins and the resiliency of our community. It’s pretty incredible what we’ve been able to accomplish together—in spite of all that this year threw at us.

Release: Teen Health Mississippi Working With Mississippi Organizations With #startsmall Funding

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey created the #StartSmall initiative as a way to help fund global relief during the coronavirus pandemic. As part of that initiative, Teen Health Mississippi was awarded a $75,000 grant for our Emergency Relief Fund.

To maximize the impact and to reach youth across more areas of the state, Teen Health Mississippi has decided to award the funds from the grant to youth-serving organizations in Mississippi.