- Phone:
- (812) 855-8795
- Email:
- greeneiu@iu.edu
- Campus:
- IU Bloomington
Health: Project UNITE (Uncovering New Initiatives for Teen Empowerment)
Project abstract
Indiana rates of teen pregnancy and teen birth are higher than the national average. Rural communities, like Lawrence County, Indiana, are disproportionately impacted with higher teen pregnancy and birth rates as compared to non-rural areas. Communities may draw on the growing number of teen pregnancy prevention evidence-based programs (EBPs) to impact high rates. However, doing so without first assessing the fit of the EBPs to the particular setting and population, potentially limits the opportunity for successful implementation, positive outcomes, and sustainability over time. Using a systematic, collaborative intervention design process is essential to effectively match EBPs to a community setting, and it enables communities to implement a feasible, acceptable, and sustainable intervention.
Project UNITE proposes such a process, beginning in Lawrence County, Indiana. In Year 1, our goal is to engage Lawrence County in a collaborative process to gather community input, use evidence, identify, adapt, and plan a multi-level teen pregnancy intervention targeting youth, parents & caregivers, and the community. In Year 2, our goal is to implement, support, and evaluate a customized and sustainable multi-level teen pregnancy intervention, while preparing for replication in additional Indiana counties.
Campus partners
Catherine Sherwood-Laughlin, PhD
Susan Middlestadt, PhD
Community partners
Lawrence County Teen Pregnancy Coalition (50+ community members)
Counties involved
Lawrence