More than 90% of Mississippi parents endorsed implementing age-appropriate sex-related education in Mississippi public schools, including the instruction of the transmission and prevention of HIV/STDs and how to get tested for HIV/STDs during sex-related education.1

“It blew my mind that students are engaging in more risky behavior at younger and younger ages, especially in our county and our part of the world. Seeing those numbers just opened my eyes to the fact that I need to—while maintaining boundaries, confidentiality, and being respectful to them—adjust to behaviors that I see in the classroom and how to help them.”
Danny King, Librarian

Sex Ed Trainings

See the list of sex education curricula that meets the HHS’s definition of “evidence-based.” It includes Draw the Line/Respect the Line and Reducing the Risk, the only sex education curricula approved to be taught in Mississippi public schools that we endorse.


For more information about sex ed trainings or to schedule a training, contact Hope L. Crenshaw at hope@teenhealthms.org.

Understanding Evidence-Based Trainings


According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), an evidence-based program is one shown by rigorous research to be effective in causing at least one of the following behaviors that reduce the risk of unintended pregnancy and HIV/STD infection:

  • delaying sexual initiation (remaining abstinent).
  • reducing the frequency of sexual intercourse (having sex less or returning to abstinence).
  • reducing the number of sexual partners (having sex with fewer partners or not having sex with new partners).
  • increasing the use of condoms and other contraceptives.

Additional Professional Development Trainings 

Teen Health Mississippi can develop trainings tailored to your needs. Below are some examples of trainings THMS has developed for partners and organizations across the state.

  • LGBTQ 101, 102, 103 (series)
  • How to Make a Referral to Sexual and Reproductive Health Services
  • 21st Century Classroom Management with Adolescents
  • Handling Difficult Participant Behaviors (a training for facilitators of adult learners)

For more information or to schedule a professional development training for your organization, contact Patrina Williams at patrina@teenhealthms.org.

SOURCES

McKee C, Ragsdale K, Southward LH. (2014). What do parents in Mississippi really think about sex education in school? Results of a state-wide survey.Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice, 7(1), 97-119. [Special Issue: Sexual Health among Heterosexual People of Color Across the Lifespan].
http://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/jhdrp/vol7/iss1/9/