Just a couple of blocks from the campus for teen moms where I used to teach in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, was an older elementary school that had been renovated to host a Head Start and Early Head Start childhood education program. One of the benefits of having a high school campus designed for teen momsContinue reading “A Head Start…or a Step Back?”
Tag Archives: education
Power Behind the Young Parent Collective: Kate Westaby
Kate Westaby was 17 and a senior in high school when she discovered she was going to be a mom. Although it was discouraging, Kate was determined to graduate and provide a secure family for her son, which was difficult enough by itself. Despite the challenges, she successfully navigated the educational system to graduate andContinue reading “Power Behind the Young Parent Collective: Kate Westaby”
Young Parent Collective
This week, I’m featuring the Young Parent Collective in Madison, Wisconsin. Its guiding principle is that “All young parents can achieve educational dreams, career goals, and health and well-being for themselves and their children.” Everything the program does supports this belief. In 2022, Kate Westaby, who was working on her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership, obtainedContinue reading “Young Parent Collective”
Teen Girls and Contraception
According to the American Society for Positive Care of Children, the chances of a teen girl becoming pregnant is 90 percent within a year of being sexually active, if she’s not using birth control. The Guttmacher Institute in 2021 estimated that figure at 85 percent for all US couples who don’t use birth control. TheContinue reading “Teen Girls and Contraception”
Poverty and Pregnant Teens
I’ll be honest. The last week has been hard. I had some projects scheduled for this week, but I haven’t been able to focus. I’m so saddened by the election results I could cry … and I have. One of the reasons I dread the upcoming administration is because I fear for those who areContinue reading “Poverty and Pregnant Teens”
We All Do Better…When Women Do Better
Unfortunately, this truth is often rejected in cultures dominated by men, cultures which make up most of the world. The evidence is there, however. Denying it won’t make it untrue. The only logical conclusion is that for those men to whom power and control are the higher values, it doesn’t really matter if we allContinue reading “We All Do Better…When Women Do Better”
Dropping Out Pregnant
In my recent memoir manuscript, I claim that teen pregnancy is a primary reason girls drop out of high school. It’s something I just “know” but I can’t recall where I heard it. In the process of revising the book for an academic audience, I spent hours online this week to find a source. AsContinue reading “Dropping Out Pregnant”
Dig Deep
Even memoirists need to do thorough research In my previous post, Respect the Truth, I shared one of the tips I presented last month to a group of nonfiction writers. I suggested the foremost consideration before beginning a writing project is understanding why you want to write it. It’s important to know who you wantContinue reading “Dig Deep”
An Act of Love
I celebrated growth in reading ability with a group of twenty-seven first through fifth graders last week, along with a dozen other Literacy Partners. May marks the end of my fourth year of reading with youngsters who have struggled to read at grade level, and my third year of helping to coordinate the program atContinue reading “An Act of Love”
Success
What is success? Maybe it’s like pornography: you know it when you see it. Unfortunately, the signs aren’t always visible, and we can’t know if a person who seems successful to us feels as though they are. For too many of us, complete satisfaction is just beyond ever-moving goalposts. We’d be a lot more contentContinue reading “Success”
Janice Airhart 