Sometimes it's hard to feel connected to the change you aim to make and the people who your work affects when you're working "inside the beltway" in Washington, DC. But at the beginning of the summer I joined several other Campaigners on a trip up to New Britain, CT, for a conference that we hosted with a local teen pregnancy prevention organization. The agenda of the conference was designed to draw the connection between what we do at a national level, what Connecticut in particular is doing, and the youth that is served by this specific teen pregnancy prevention program in New Britain - Pathways/Senderos.

While all the information presented was informative and interesting - we learned about how programs are evaluated; specifics about the Carrera program model; how the National Campaign was started and its dedication to poverty reduction; and about some other interesting programs in Connecticut - I think that everyone agreed that the best part of the conference was seeing the program staff, their successful kids and the kids' parents talk about what this type of program means for their lives and their prospects for the future. I made the video below to share a part of that experience, so that we can all better understand the kids that this work serves and the successes that they experience as a result.

As you can see in the video, the conference in Connecticut served another important purpose: to unveil a new publication that we created with the Pathways/Senderos teens on teen pregnancy prevention. The pamphlet is designed for Latino teens, with stories written by Latino teens, to help foster an understanding of the experiences in their lives that shape their decisions on sex and their ability to make decisions about the future. It's designed to use with Latino teens to help start discussions, and includes some tips that can help them make safe, smart decisions about sex. You can download a copy from our website and check it out, or you can order it from our store to use with youth in your community.

To supplement the stories that we gathered at Pathways/Senderos, we're also asking for your stories. If you're a Latino teen, or if you work with Latino teens, please visit our MySpace blog and share your thoughts. We're trying to get the conversation started about how Latino teens think and talk about their sexual decisions, and we'd love to hear from you.

This piece is cross-posted on the Latino Initiative's MySpace profile.

When I was in 7th or 8th grade, I was chosen to be one of 6 kids from my class to attend a "leadership workshop". It meant a weekend away from home with other kids of the same age from all over the Pittsburgh area, hanging out at a retreat facility and learning how to be better teenagers, better students, and better people in general. We did all of those activities typical of a weekend like that - ice breakers, team building stuff, reflections on life, our future goals, and everything in between. And even though it was more than 15 years ago, that weekend stands out in my memory as one of the hands-down best I've had...I remember the experience vividly and would do it again in a heartbeat.

So what's my point here? All these memories hit me today because The National Campaign is now accepting applications for our 2009-2010 Youth Leadership Team. The YLT is a similar sort of team building, weekend-adventure kind of thing, but with the added bonus that skills are used year-round. Let me explain... The YLT is a select group of 14- to 17-year-olds from across the nation who work with The National Campaign in a variety of ways: they serve as our eyes and ears when it comes to understanding teen culture, we call upon them to share their opinions and perspectives with the press, we show them off on Capitol Hill and have them talk to their Senators and Representatives about the importance of teen pregnancy prevention. Sometimes we even go bowling. We meet in person twice over their 18-month term, but we work together year-round to help them raise awareness about the issue in their home communities.

Do you know a teen who would be a great fit on our YLT? Take a minute to learn more about the Youth Leadership Team and read our YLT Frequently Asked Questions. If you know a teenager who you'd like to sponsor, download the YLT Application Packet here.

Spread the word!