HYSN RECEIVES FUNDING FOR TEEN PREGNANCY PREVENTION

Hawaii Youth Services Network will empower Hawaii youth aged 11-19 to report positive knowledge, attitudes, and skills related to reducing the risk of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections and decrease the risk of unplanned pregnancy.  In the long term, the program is expected to increase the number of adolescents in Hawaii that abstain from sex, delay initiation of sex, use effective contraception and disease prevention if sexually active, and have fewer sexual partners; and reduce the teen birth rate.

HYSN and 10 Partner Organizations will target youth aged 11-19 and will work in 9 out of 11 of the communities in Hawaii with the highest teen birth rates (urban, suburban, & rural).  Nearly 2,000 youth per year will participate in education using the Making Proud Choices and Be Proud Be Responsible curricula.  Evaluation will include pre- and post-tests and follow-up surveys to measure changes in knowledge, attitudes and behavior.

HYSN and Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition worked together to garner a Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation AIM FOR EXCELLENCE AWARD. The Weinberg Foundation contacted past award winners and asked them to share what had happened with the programs of projects since their award. Rose Schilt, former Executive Director of Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition HMHB won an award in 2000 for work on teen pregnancy. She determined that HMHB was no longer working in teen pregnancy prevention and that HYSN had taken coalition-building anc capacity-building in teen pregnancy prevention to the nect level. HYSN was the happy recipient of a $5,000 award.

Recently, HYSN created a “YOUTH WORKER OF THE MONTH” feature in out electronic newsletter and invited all of our members to send in their nominations so far, 3 youth workers have been recognized by their colleagues, including:

• Tyler Kurashige, from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Honolulu
• Hilary Faris, a Youth Advocate at Hale Kipa;
• Kathleen Stofecik, Health Educator at Planned Parenthood of Hawaii;
  

A number of HYSN members have been recognized for their outstanding work by other organizations in the past year and we would like to acknowledge them here:

• Hawaii’s Outstanding Advocates for Children and Youth Award winners included Michael B. Wood who donated $1 million to Family Programs Hawaii for a shelter for abused children and Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Honolulu received an award for its long term youth development mentoring programs.
• Midweek’s Local Heroes Awards to Cheryl Johnson, PACT; Hiro Ito, Kids Hurt Too; and John Sotelo, Hina Mauka.
• National Association of Social Workers, Hawaii Chapter honored Linda Rich, Salvation Army Family Treatment Services with the Lifetime Achievement Award and Betty Lou Larsen, Catholic Charities Hawaii as Social Workers of the Year in Social Justice and Advocacy.
• Life Foundation was named on of Hawaii’s Best Places to Work by Hawaii Business Magazine.
• Reading is Fundamental named Family Support Services of West Hawaii as the Program of the Month for June.
• The Pacific Business News Forty Under 40 awards program on Thursday, June 17 at the Hawaii Convention Center honored 40 of Hawaii’s best and brightest young businessmen and businesswomen, including Sheri Daniels, Maui administration, Child and Family Service.