Tuesday, January 14, 2025
1/14/2025
PROJECT ABSTRACT SUMMARY Project Title: Promotion of Wellness, Education & Resilience Among Native Youth (Native Youth POWER) University of Montana, Center for Children, Families & Workforce Development http://health.umt.edu/ccfwd/ Kristen Rogers, PhD – PI/PD kristen.rogers@umontana.edu Description of Project: The University of Montana has partnered with Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health to plan and implement evidence-based, youth pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention strategies for the community of American Indian (AI) youth in Montana and Navajo Nation. Our three unique settings chosen for implementation are: 1) health centers, 2) summer camps, and 3) schools. Needs to be Addressed: Despite national declines in teen birth rates, the AI rates have not experienced similar declines and remain the highest of all ethnic groups in the US with 24.2 births per 1,000 adolescent girls – twice the national birth rate of 13.9 per 1,000 girls. Montana and the Navajo Nation rank above the national average on numerous measures of sexual risk, STIs and AI teen birth rates. Of particular concern, syphilis in one Navajo Nation county is approximately 10 times the national rate and Montana is 3 times the national rate. AI youth sexual and STI risk reduction programming continues to be one of the greatest needs in Montana and the Navajo Nation. Target Population: The target population is AI youth ages 10-19 across Montana and Navajo Nation. Youth will be reached through the Rocky Boy Health Center and All Nations Health Center, summer sports camps in Chinle, AZ and Shiprock, NM, and school-based sessions in the Tuba City Unified School District (in collaboration with the Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation). Proposed Services: During the 6-month planning period and using a community-engaged participatory approach to program implementation, the replication of a community-selected evidence-based programs (EBPs) will be chosen for implementation at each of the proposed three unique settings (e.g., summer camps, school-based, and clinic-based sessions). The EBPs will provide trauma-informed and Positive Youth Development approaches to preventing unplanned pregnancies and STIs. We will utilize Community Advisory Boards and Youth Advisory Boards to oversee planning, implementation, and monitoring of all project activities. Our monitoring and improvement plan will ensure high quality and fidelity to the selected EBPs.
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