Breaking the Cycle of Teen Pregnancy and Children in Poverty

Introduction to Our Program Insert Teacher Name Insert Program of study you teach Insert Intended class or program that needs funding

Program Objectives Program Overview: Lower teen pregnancy rates Increase parenting skills Increase child care knowledge, from prenatal stage through infancy Decrease high school drop-out rates Expected Outcomes: Reduced teen pregnancy rates Reduced child abuse and neglect incidences Reduced child poverty rates within our community

Program Description Location: Insert school name, city, state Learners: 14- to 17-year-old students Primary Focus: Teen pregnancy prevention, parenting skill enhancement, child care career preparation Purpose of Funding: Purchase infant simulators and curriculum materials Amount Requested: Insert amount desired: $ Number of Students Reached: Insert number (To determine, multiple class size x number of sections x semesters x 4-year expectancy of simulators. For example, 30 students x 2 sections x 2 semesters x 4 years = 480 students)

RealCare Program: Addressing the Need

On average, a U.S. teenager becomes pregnant every minute! Kost, K., Henshaw, S., & Carlin, L. (2010). U.S. Teenage Pregnancies, Births and Abortions: National and State Trends and Trends by Race and Ethnicity. Retrieved January 2010, from

Teen Pregnancy In 2011, girls between the ages of gave birth to 329,797 babies. Only 38 percent of mothers who have children before age 18 obtain a high school diploma. Less then 2 percent of women who have a baby by age 18 will receive a college degree by age 30. Over the past 20 years, the median income for college graduates has increased 19 percent while the median income for high school dropouts has decreased 28 percent. - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, 2013

Child Abuse & Neglect

Children of adolescent mothers are twice as likely to be abused as those born to 20- or 21-year-olds. Hoffman, S.D., By the Numbers: The Public Costs of Adolescent Childbearing. 2006, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy Washington, DC.

Shaken Baby Syndrome Of the estimated 3,000 children diagnosed with Shaken Baby Syndrome in the United States, 25 percent will die. Almost 78 percent of survivors have neurodevelopmental abnormalities or sustain permanent lifelong disabilities. There is a significant cost for the continuing medical and special educational needs of these children Barlow KM, Thomas E, Minns RA. The neurological and neuropsychological outcome of non-accidental head injury. European Journal Of Paediatric Neurology; 3: 6:A139(Abstract). Abusive Head Trauma (Shaken Baby Syndrome) is the leading cause of death in child abuse cases in the United States The Nemours Foundation/KidsHealth. All rights... Copyright © 2014

What does all of this cost?

Total Cost to Society Teen childbearing in the United States cost taxpayers (federal, state and local) at least $9.4 billion in According to a Counting It Up 2013 released by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

The Cost to Society & Taxpayers (You) Welfare and food stamps: 75 percent of teen mothers end up on welfare within five years of the birth of their first child. Teen Pregnancy—So What? P. 5, 2002, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, available at – –The costs of providing public assistance benefits, welfare and food stamps: $2.2 billion annually. Medical care: Cost to provide medical care to teen mothers and their children: $2 billion annually. Hoffman, S.D., By the Numbers: The Public Costs of Adolescent Childbearing. 2006, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy Washington,DC. Foster care: The public costs associated with children of adolescent mothers who end up in foster care were $2.3 billion in Hoffman, S.D., By the Numbers: The Public Costs of Adolescent Childbearing. 2006, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy Washington, DC. Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS): Two thirds of SBS children die or suffer permanent disability. From Child Abuse Medical Diagnosis and Management by Robert Reece, M.D. – –Medical care for a severely injured SBS child ranges from $300,000 to over $1,000,000 for the first five years. For survivors of SBS with severe long-term consequences, the cost can be as much as $3,000,000 the first five years of a child’s life.

The Connection between Teen Pregnancy & Poverty

Teen Pregnancy & Poverty Connection Poverty is almost inevitable for an unmarried teenage mother: more than 75 percent are on welfare within five years of the birth of their first child. Why it Matters? Assessed 1/12/2009, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. The rise in out-of-wedlock childbearing and the increase in single parenthood are major causes of high levels of child poverty. Marriage: America’s Greatest Weapon Against Child Poverty By Robert Rector, September 16, 2010.Robert Rector Children born to teen mothers are more likely to live in poverty. Seventy-eight percent of children born to unmarried teen mothers who did not graduate from high school live in poverty. Annie E. Casey Foundation The daughters of teen mothers are 22 percent more likely to become teen mothers themselves. Hoffman, S.D., By the Numbers: The Public Costs of Adolescent Childbearing. 2006, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy Washington, DC.

1) 1)The mother gave birth as a teen? 2) 2)The parents were unmarried when the child was born? 3) 3)The mother did not receive a high school diploma or GED? Simply put: If these three facts apply, a child’s chances of growing up in poverty are 9 times greater “What are the chances of a child growing up in poverty if… ” 27% if one of these facts apply 42% if two of these facts apply 64% if three of these facts apply

But if none of these things happen, a child’s chance of growing up in poverty is 7 percent. The National Campaign To Prevent Teen Pregnancy

The Solution: An evidence-based learning system reduces both teen pregnancies and severe injuries to infants while improving the lives of children and reducing the associated costs.

An Effective Education Program Includes: The financial, social and lifestyle impact of parenting – –Helps teens begin to realize that pregnancy as a teen will have immediate and long-lasting consequences on all aspects of their lives. – –Teen Pregnancy Prevention curriculum and child care skills practice helps to avoid other societal costs associated with drug and alcohol use and abuse and Shaken Baby Syndrome. A realistic and multi-sensory infant care experience – –This makes instruction long-lasting and highly impactful by: Being intrusive and time-intensive Being physically demanding Being socially stigmatizing Providing immediate and summary feedback

The Total Parenting Experience Your Choices: affecting in utero Baby The Reality of Baby Eliminating SBS and abuse: Coping Skills The Physical Change Eliminating Shaken Baby Syndrome & Child Abuse Teaches coping skills and the impacts of rough handling on infants. 1-hour lesson 131 pages of content 25 PowerPoint slides Impact of Alcohol & Drugs on Baby Teaches the effects drug and alcohol usage while pregnant has on infants in utero. 1-hour lesson 133 pages of content 28 PowerPoint slides Impact on Goals & the Physical Change Discusses how teen pregnancy compromises individual goals and develops understanding of the physical impact on a mother hour lessons 149 pages of content 56 PowerPoint slides Healthy Choices An evidence-based, comprehensive teen pregnancy prevention and parenting skills system that’s reinforced with three days of infant simulation care. (Crying, feeding and sleepless nights included!) 17 1-hour lessons 259 pages of content 125 PowerPoint slides

Current Program Reach Most teen pregnancy prevention programs only reach a small fraction (estimated at <2 percent) of high school females who take Family & Consumer Science programs. Even fewer teens are reached in urban areas. It is imperative to reach a larger number of teens.

What can you do?

By partnering together, we can address the problem We have the program and methodology Community educators and trainers will enlighten students Educators need funding to procure materials Reduced Teen Pregnancy, Reduced Poverty, Reduced Poverty, Reduced Societal Cost Program Investment in our Youth Educators & Community Based Programs

Realityworks Company information

Organizational Facts Realityworks was founded in 1994 as Baby Think It Over, Inc. to better address teen pregnancy prevention, parenting skills, child abuse and neglect through educational products. In 2003, the company became Realityworks, Inc. Product lines have since expanded into other areas of education and into other market segments such as public health, social service agencies and youth organizations. Realityworks is proud to have impacted over 6,000,000 young people in over 16,000 schools and organizations by implementing solutions in 67 percent of U.S. school districts. Programs extend to more than 89 countries worldwide. Realityworks has 47 employees and is headquartered in Eau Claire, WI.

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