- Email:
- mimaward@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 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.
Our goal is to engage Lawrence County, Indiana, in developing and pilot-testing a multi-level teen pregnancy intervention targeting youth, parents/caregivers, and the community. Project UNITE’s approach will:
1. Build capacity in the community for the delivery and sustainment of a tailored, multilevel EBP intervention to reduce teen pregnancy and support teen parents, and
2. Assess the effectiveness of using Intervention Mapping as there is potential for replication and scalability to other rural communities.
Campus partners
Catherine Sherwood-Laughlin, PhD
Alison Greene, PhD
Community partners
Lawrence County Teen Pregnancy Coalition (50+ community members)
Orange County Thrive
Counties involved
Lawrence, Orange, Monroe