Nassau News

Nassau News found out how the program is impacting students and what we can expect for the future. Click on the embedded player below to view this article as a video.

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With teenage pregnancies being a major issue in Nassau County, Hofstra University has paired with Planned Parenthood in an effort to help at risk teens in the Roosevelt School District. Because the Roosevelt School District is labeled as having one of the largest rates of teen pregnancies in the past few years, administrators came up with a plan that would gear young women in a different direction. The Young Women’s Writing Project was created in 2003 as a forum for girls to explore issues through writing. Planned Parenthood provided a grant for the project, which helps girls to express their feelings and build confidence.

“A lot of the students feel like they are coming to Hofstra not just the Reading/Writing Learning Clinic,'' said Dr. Andrea Garcia, the Director of the Reading/Writing Clinic.

This motivates the students to further their education once they graduate from high school. The project was originally intended for seventh graders but expanded when the majority of participants wanted to continue their work the following year.

Eighth graders, Stephani Mejia and Wendy Lopez said, ''We love being mentors. We learned a lot of stuff last year and now we get to pass it on to the seventh graders. We try to be good examples for them.”

The program always starts with the distribution of snacks and catching up with friends who they may not have been friends with inside of school. The students come in all sizes, shaped, and colors and are expected to treat each other well.

“We expect huge amounts of respect . . . we model that as teachers, we show that respect to each other. . . and I’ve seen this particular group respond to that beautifully,” explained Amy Gaddes, program developer and teacher.

Instructors have focused on building confidence and personal strength in helping the girls make good decisions and try not to flood the girls with teen pregnancy talks and pamphlets. Instead, they will hand out bracelets with inspirational phrases and interact with the girls on an individual basis if they sense that they need help.

Eighth grader, Ashley Jackson, was open about telling her story in front of the group about growing up as child of teen mother. Ashley discussed living with a family member for years, as her mother was out on the streets and looking for work.

“It’s in my heart to finish school for her, so I can help her,” Ashley expressed. She now has plans for college as her mother is studying for her G.E.D. and just gave birth to another child.

The future of the Reading/Writing Learning clinic is bright, as they prepare to expand into a Young Male’s Writing Project, which will focus on the men of the Roosevelt School District.

“A lot of students from Roosevelt High School and Senior High School have asked why only girls?, and so we definitely know that’s an issue we have to address,” said Dr. Andrea Garcia.

With an additional New York State grant given this year, the program has broadened to create a chapter for students in Uniondale, another “high risk” area in Nassau County.

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Want to find out more about pregnancy prevention programs in Nassau County? Here are some helpful links:

• Project REACH’s Healthy Respect Program was chosen as a key partner in a groundbreaking program established by Nassau County that provided nearly $1 million in 2006 to reduce teen pregnancies in Long Island communities.
  
• The Community-based Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention programs promote youth development to help adolescents in Roosevelt and Uniondale make healthy and responsible choices about their lives. CBAPP Roosevelt and CBAPP Uniondale are dedicated to reducing the teen pregnancy rates in these two towns which have some of the highest rates in the county.
  
  
• PACT-Parents and Children Together is an organization that provides family life education for at-risk families & pregnant/parenting teens, pregnancy prevention program, aiding young mothers to bond with their babies.
  
  
• L. I. Teen Freedom program is used to enhance teen awareness of how abstinence from sexual activity promotes health. The program services two Long Island middle schools and 2 Long Island high schools.
  
  
• The Male Involvement Program targets high school and college-aged males and educates young men in the community about their role in the prevention of unplanned pregnancies, STIs and HIV/AIDS.

A literacy specialist and a teacher, Melissa Cody sat down with Nassau News to give her take on the Reading/Writing Learning Clinic and how she feels the girls have benefitted from the program. For a full transcript of the video, click here.

Watch the girls in action! An intern works with the girls to teach them the importance of teamwork and how to write a story. The girls each came up with a sentence that had to fit in with other students’ sentences, the video below will illustrate the program’s technique in learning while having fun.

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