Greetings from the HYD-PRC!
Greetings from the HYD-PRC!
This newsletter explores recent work of our HYD-PRC faculty, staff, and community partners. We explore using restorative practices in schools to increase belonging, engagement, and connection, while reducing rates of discipline and dismissal. We look at the benefits of a mentorship program focused on integrating social emotional learning into physical activity and nutrition and how that can address multiple aspects of well-being among middle- and high-school students. We highlight Minnesota parental support for comprehensive sexuality education in schools. We examine various sources of information parents use to inform their communication about sexual and reproductive health with their teens.
We wish each of you the very best in your daily work and advocacy on behalf of young people!
Restorative Practices: Improving Equity and Positive School Culture
St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) teamed up with HYD-PRC senior evaluator, Kara Beckman, to implement restorative practices in their schools to increase belonging, engagement, and connection to school while reducing rates of exclusionary school discipline and dismissal, disproportionately experienced by Black students.
Setting the Stage for a Healthy Life: Unique Mentoring Program Addresses Multiple Aspects of Well-being
Middle- and high-school student social, emotional, and physical health is a top priority for HYD-PRC researcher, Barb McMorris and UMN School of Public Health researchers Katie Arlinghaus and Nancy Sherwood. That’s why they have teamed up with Minnesota’s Columbia Heights Public School District to implement a program that uses a tiered mentorship approach to integrate social emotional learning into physical activity and nutrition.
Minnesota Parents Continue to Show Support for Comprehensive Sexuality Education
Building on a survey conducted in 2006, Marla Eisenberg (Department of Pediatrics, UMN Medical School) collaborated with members of the HYD-PRC to survey today's parents of school-aged children regarding their views on school-based sex education. Using a variety of methods, they surveyed over 700 parents from diverse communities and found that 90% of Minnesota parents wanted public school teachers to teach abstinence AND science-based, comprehensive sexuality education.
Communication is Key! Helping Parents Access Resources to Talk about Sexual Health with Teens
It’s a subject that leaves many parents wondering what to say: talking to their adolescents about sexual and reproductive health. Parents know these conversations are a critical resource for their adolescents, but many approach these chats feeling under-equipped. Many struggle to find resources to help prepare them for these discussions. PRC researchers recently published a study aimed at identifying the sources of information parents use to inform their communication about sexual and reproductive health.
PRC Highlights, Events & Resources
• Jordan Awarded Funding to "Empower Youth to Become Energy Leaders"
• CDC features Shlafer and Team's Building COVID-19 Confidence in Minnesota Prisons & Jails
• 2023 Adolescent Health Summer Institute - In Person!
• Parent Support for Comprehensive Sex Education Handouts
• PRC Training & Professional Development Opportunities