Happy Birthday, Leonard Rigorous Evaluation Study - Institute of Women and Ethnic Studies (IWES) is a three-time awardee of federal teen pregnancy prevention (TPP) funding from the HHS Office of Population Affairs (OPA) to replicate proven-effective programs and strategies designed to prevent unintended teen pregnancy and HIV/STIs in Louisiana (Believe in Youth - NOLA, FY 2010; Believe in Youth - Louisiana, FY 2015; and Believe in Youth - Louisiana 2.0, FY 2020). Through these awards, IWES has implemented evidence-based, trauma-informed, comprehensive reproductive health and positive youth development programs–reaching over 15,000 youth across Louisiana Public Health Regions 1, 2, and 3 in urban, suburban, and rural settings.
Since its founding in 1993, IWES has integrated film and other media products into each of its community-centered public health initiatives to illuminate the stories, experiences, and perspectives of the communities served. Storytelling and narrative change through media have been the cornerstone of many of IWES’ initiatives, including development of original curricula and intervention with focus on health education and promotion, prevention of adverse health outcomes, and stigma reduction. In Fall 2021, IWES received a subaward from Policy & Research Group (PRG), a recipient of an OPA FY 2020 Tier 2 Innovation and Impact Network grant which funds a Juvenile Justice Innovation & Impact Network (JJIIN). PRG has provided technical assistance and support to IWES and five additional network collaborators of the JJIIN to develop and test TPP interventions for youth involved in the justice system using entertainment education to reduce sexual risk behaviors and improve health. Through this opportunity, IWES created a narrative short film entitled Happy Birthday, Leonard and developed a complementary intervention package with a facilitation guide and a workbook with a resource guide. Piloting of the intervention in Spring 2023 produced compelling preliminary research demonstrating the intervention is well-received by youth of the target population and shows promise for reducing unintended teen pregnancy and STIs. IWES, with PRG serving as its independent evaluator, will rigorously evaluate the Happy Birthday, Leonard intervention within a randomized control trial in the states of Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, and Michigan to affirm its efficacy and disseminate findings and lessons learned from the research to contribute to the growing evidence base of entertainment education innovations.
