Project I.M.P.A.C.t (implementing meaningful programs across communities together) - in 2020, south carolina had a teen birth rate of 19.3 per 1,000 females 15-19) exceeding the united states rate…

Project I.M.P.A.C.t (implementing meaningful programs across communities together) - in 2020, south carolina had a teen birth rate of 19.3 per 1,000 females 15-19) exceeding the united states rate of 15.4. In addition to high teen birth rates; south carolina has high rates of poverty, and health and economic disparities, including a prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (stis). To address these disparities, IT is important to acknowledge that adolescence is a time of profound physical, emotional, and social changes. Reproductive health is an essential aspect of adolescent health, and IT must be prioritized in our efforts to promote the overall health and well-being of young people. Fact forward is a 501(c)(3) whose mission is to promote the optimal health and well-being of individuals, families, and communities in south carolina and beyond by advancing sexual and reproductive health for all youth and young adults and has worked for 29 years across south carolina and successfully executed eight federal teen pregnancy prevention initiatives. Fact forward requests approximately $10M across five years from the office of population affairs for AH-TP1-23-001 advancing equity in adolescent health through evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs and services to implement project I.M.P.A.C.t (implementing meaningful communities across communities together). This project is designed to implement medically accurate, evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs and provide a network of support services to advance equity for adolescents, their families, and communities through addressing sexual reproductive health outcomes in richland and darlington counties in south carolina. Black and hispanic youth and young adults residing in darlington and richland counties have been selected as the population of focus in this proposal due to the evident disparities in teen births and stis. Throughout this five-year project, project I.M.P.A.C.T. Will collaborate with school districts, community-based organizations, houses of worship, colleges, and the south carolina department of juvenile justice to serve a minimum of 48,000 youth and young adults.