Teen birth rates and teen pregnancy prevention strategies vary widely across individual states in the US, which has the highest overall teen birth rate among developed nations. California and Texas, the two most populous states currently accounting for a quarter of all teen births, have taken very different approaches to addressing adolescent…

As one of only six states receiving a federal Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy grant, Pennsylvania has designed and implemented an innovative program that focuses on improved instruction and interventions to ensure every student is literate and graduates from high school ready for college and a career. This report describes Pennsylvania's…

This Kids Count special report examines the relationship between poverty status and the number of children in Arkansas lacking health insurance. The report also presents information on two programs providing health care to Arkansas children whose parents lack insurance coverage, Medicaid and ARKids First. The report describes how these two…

Information is provided about approximately 120 recently conducted, career education programs for handicapped adolescents. Programs and projects are presented alphabetically by state, and were selected by state personnel as representative of good vocational education for the handicapped with the potential of replication in other states. Usually…

This report, summarizing the proceedings at a February 1988 conference at Brown University on youth service, presents briefly an overview of the emerging network of youth service programs in the following states: (1) Minnesota; (2) Pennsylvania; (3) California; (4) Massachusetts; and (5) Ohio. Rationales for youth service are analyzed. Eight…

This handbook was prepared to assist those coordinating the VITAL program in participating schools and agencies. It is designed primarily for use by counselors or other coordinators as an instrument for presenting VITAL occupational information to students who are interested in gainful employment after leaving school. The information provided in…

This article describes the philosophy, organization, and funding of the New Jersey State Teen Arts Program, a statewide model arts-in-education project which offers all New Jersey teenagers a chance to meet working artists and to actively participate in an interdisciplinary arts experience through annual state and county festivals. (SJL)

This reference book contains resumes of program descriptions geared toward youth and adults who need or want information on drug abuse prevention programs, locally or nationally. Several major entries include: (1) national program models; (2) evaluated alternative programs from all states; and (3) descriptions of prevention programs. All section…

The nation's first coordinated, statewide teenage pregnancy prevention and support program, Parents Too Soon (PTS), is an interagency effort which accomplishes its goals through an integrated, cooperative effort and provides critical medical, social, nutritional, educational, and vocational services to male and female youth between 10 and 20 years…

Describes features of the federal-state Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) Program for teenage parents. JOBS Program strategies focus on teenage parent identification, financial incentives, enriched educational services, strong case management, networks with community agencies, and a commitment to responsibility by teenage parents.…

Focusing on state and local efforts to reduce underage drinking, this report is a product of a joint project of the National Association of Governors' Highway Safety Representatives (NAGHSR) and the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD). Part of the project included a survey of the memberships of both NAGHSR and…

As the need for providing youth with positive, constructive, and supervised after-school opportunities is increasingly recognized, advocates and policymakers face the challenge of funding quality, affordable, accessible youth development programs that meet the needs of working families and enrich learning and social development for youth.…

This report discusses the use of funds provided by the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act in California, Florida, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Texas. Objectives of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act are discussed and requirements for states to receive formula grants are reviewed. Observations from project…

This report presents the analysis and results of a survey of states' progress in meeting the goals and objectives of their state action plans on the health care of incarcerated youth. The survey questioned 48 juvenile justice professionals, health care professionals, and university faculty from across the nation concerning state progress toward…

The New York State Council on Children and Families is charged with acting as a neutral body to coordinate the 13 health, education, and human services agencies within the state to promote children and families' well-being. The Council uses the Touchstone accountability framework to facilitate the development of state and local service systems…