School considering offering birth control to middle school girls

I don't think it is responsible, at all, to give prescription medication to a child without a parent's consent.

That said, I am all about educating on sex and preventing unwanted pregnancies and STD's.

I teach high school and went through my pregnancy with two 16year old girls in my class. I even went to birthing class with one of them.

I get so sick of the "point for homeschooling" comments also. They are ignorant and ridiculous. SKL< why don't you just move you and your kids to an island and live by yourself so you can only indoctrinate them to your specific set of ideas. Because THAT makes a much more responsible citizen than a public school does.

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WOW!!! That's really the only comment on your rantings LS......WOW!!!!

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My smart and mature thinking teenagers still do things like lose their wallets or their cell phones. "I didn't think it would fall out of my pocket." They don't realize the importance until afterwards.

1) A good point was made: sex is illegal at that age, pretty much anywhere-- this should be stressed in school (it's not even a "religious value" issue subject to diverse opinions); 2) kids in teen years do not have maturity to make wise decisions-- even very smart, seemingly mature kids-- when confronted with certain things-- why open up the door and have the school says it's okay, go ahead and experiment; 3) even "safe" sex has its psychological and esteem consequences-- even for adults in uncommitted relationships, why encourage kids that this is no big deal; 4) is it the school's prerogative to be dealing in this? If it's not handled well in families, then social services seems to be the logical next step; 5) parents should have the right to know if kids are being given any kind of medication; 6) I'm not a prude-- hooray for sex-- but let's get real: we don't give out driver's licenses until a certain age, you can't vote until a certain age-- there's a good reason for that. Are people afraid that kids will be unhappy if we say no, you really should not do that at that age? Some things should be stressed: it's against the law; you could get pregnant (or get somebody pregnant); you could catch a disease-- possibly life threatening; you could ruin someone's life, possibly your own; you could mess up someone's self-esteem; you could be addicted to yet some other thing besides drugs, alcohol, video games or whatever; oh, and when you turn 25 and decide to relive old times and have sex with someone who's 14 again you'll really be thrown in jail. There are plenty of reasons to emphatically say (and stress) don't do it. The potential consequences are huge for scratching that itch. "Are you ready to get a job, leave home and pay for your own apartment and food?" Even adults make mistakes in sexual situations, and they have the ability to be responsible. We should be emphatically discouraging kids under 18 from getting involved in sex. That's not telling them sex is a horrible, evil thing. It's just saying, you're really not ready yet, there are too many risks.

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Uly, the access to all medicines comes with the parent's consent for the child to use the health center at all. The kid who needs tylenol, allergy meds, antibiotics, etc. must use the health center in order to have these drugs during the day. If Mom oks that use, she's automatically ok-ing the other services.

If they really wanted parents to have a say, they'd require consent for that specific purpose.

I'd have less of a problem if there was a box to check that said something like, "I give consent for the school to prescribe contraceptives to my child." There should be a box for each type of drug...analgesics, allergy, cough and cold, etc. If they did that, I would believe that they were really out to help the kids whose parents don't care. Like I said, they'd love to 'free' my kids from my archaic values, but they'd do it under the umbrella of this policy. I don't count as an uninvolved parent, but my kids would still be 'rescued' by this policy.

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Man, sometimes I hate people are able to reply to my comment before I get around to approving it - it really makes the conversation confusing :) I'm not upset, of course, it's just... confusing.

Looking at the article, I see nothing to indicate that a child can't take an already-prescribed medicine (such as ritalin or antibiotics) or a parentally-provided over the counter medicine (such as tylenol) without using the health center, just that the health center will provide such things and, I guess, checkups...?

But I don't know *all* that much about it, so if somebody could clarify this for me, I'd be thrilled.

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Uly - check the "fine print" in the confirm e-mails that are sent to you. Somewhere in there, a password should appear. If you use that password, your comment will be posted immediately, without the need to confirm through e-mail.

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Yes, it was a bit of a rant, wasn't it? I went a little off topic to illustrate my point, and then I asked a pertinent question that nobody seems ready or willing to answer: Where will it end? We're turning this into a discussion about sex, when it's not only about that. It's about the schools continually trying to overstep their boundaries when it comes to our kids. And those of us who object are shouted down with words like "prude", "intolerant", and "religious zealot", or in the case of the parents involved here, "neglectful". The school is presenting themselves as the ultimate expert on our children, to the point that they know better than us how mature - physically AND mentally - our kids are. Because even though they say that this is "for the poor and neglected", it's not just the poor and neglected who will walk into that Health Center. It's open to every student. And every student whose parent has signed a form giving permission for the Health Center's use will be affected by this policy. Topics discussed in the Health Center are considered confidential and WILL NOT be shared with parents, unless the student chooses to do so.

The majority of parents involved in this particular school district's meetings OBJECTED to this policy. They did NOT want this to happen. And yet, the school board ignored them and voted it in.

The statistic that is being used as "justification" for this sad policy is that out of 134 students who visited the health center at this middle school, only FIVE admitted to sexual intercourse. This is according to Amanda Rowe, Lead Nurse for the Portland Schools Health Centers.

This does not sound like a school taking the best interest of all the students into account. This sounds like activism to me.

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I think that it's crazy and shouldn't even be condidered Parents are the ones who need to take care of this not the school system. I think it is an honorable thing the school is trying to do but come on parents need to let their children know that they need to come to them for matters such as these when are we as parents going to take responibility for our own children and for what they do why do we keep letting others decide for us are we not the parents did we not bring them into this world. you wonder why kids are the way they are today it's because we make it ok for us not to know whats going on in our kids lives and in the end we are the last to know. I tell you this you as parents need to let your kids know that it's ok for them to come to you and talk to you when they need something let them know that it's not alright to go behind your back and that you are there for them no matter what!

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Its scary that kids are even having sex at the age of 11 nevertheless taking birth control pills. When I read on Global Grind that a middle school was going to be offering birth control in school I was shocked. What ever happened to teaching abstinence? But if their going to be sexually active then I guess it makes sense that they are able to prevent having a teenage pregnancy, but the parents should be informed.

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Angie,

I cannot tell you how glad I am my kids are not in middle or high school!

Parents have the responsibility for raising their children, and along with it, the other side of the parenting coin... authority. Authority and responsibility are inexorably linked in parenting, and in fact all areas. Therefore, schools do have some authorities and must suffer the related responsibilities too... no argument there.

A good approach would be for counselor’s to evaluate students along a number of parameters. Is that not their job? Should be someones job! From that evaluation, combined with other information on file regarding each child and family, those most in need of extended attention can be identified. That attention must extend to and include the parents; and there is the side I am on. Nevertheless, keep reading...

I have not "fully" settled on an opinion, but my inclination is to avoid driving nails with a sledgehammer. To me it seems the problem is not so much the school intervening in what most people would view as traditionally within the parental purview, and certainly preferably so located, as it is the Gatling gun solution to the problem. If an injection could inoculate against pregnancy, my reserved judgment would be approval if there were also a shot to inoculate each one against other injurious "stuff" like STDs, psychological effect, peer pressure, boyfriend pressure, religious and personal guilt, manipulation, social stigma, HIV and aids, parental disapproval, parental disappointment, and the big one... regret.

The supporters or the free-pill-a-day policy seem to justify their position by statistics (“There are lies, damn lies, and statistics.” the first line from my graduate level stat class.), and a little dose of fear (there is an epidemic of babies!). I don’t know the specifics, and I don’t need to. The worse the problem is; the more needed the cure, but the cure is not to go behind the parent’s backs, it is to include their voices.

How arrogant to presume a superior position over the raising of another person’s child. Where kids are faced with poor parenting skills, or no parenting skills, or uncaring parents, or parents who’s presence is counter productive or dangerous, the need is not to supply the children with birth control options, it is to supply their parents with options, focus, education, and counseling. The best and strongest support for a child’s development into a self-confident, self-reliant, self-directed, and self-controlled individual is to help their parents develop what is lacking - the skills, habits, and attitudes beneficial to not just the children, but to the entire family.

The policy as proposed is little more than gum in a cracked dam. It, like so many programs, attacks the symptom rather than the problem. In this case, the problem is not with the kids, it is with the lack of effect the parents have on their kids. The best contraceptive is a confident, self-contained, child who uses the support and experience with family to think for themselves, think about their goals and expectations, and think about the ramifications of today’s decisions for tomorrow.

As long as we pat ourselves on the back, as if we are doing something with inane programs like this one, we are failing in our responsibility, by misapplying our authority. Dumb decisions, low expectations, and lack of passing on parenting skills will result in the continuation of dysfunctional inter-generational cycles, fueled by the arrogance of ignorance they seem to cling to, because the hardest thing in the world to do is tell someone something they think they already know... or don’t want to know.

If the policy as approved is not acceptable to those parents with kids affected by it, there is always recourse. Vote the buggers off the school board, and install people gifted with good sense and vision. However, choose carefully, in the words of Helen Keller, “The most pathetic person in the world is someone who has sight, but has no vision.”

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That really works, LS?

I don't know that I'll use it, though. Sometimes I double post by accident, and sometimes I post and then reconsider, and decide I'd really rather not have my words saved for posterity (which is the real reason replies before I bother to approve bother me a teeny bit, of course! I feel I really have to approve then, though that doesn't apply here, since I'm still talking) That's the benefit of teh intarwebz, isn't it? Even if other people here don't have my view :)

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Uly -

Yes, it works like a charm - usually. Unless you have dial-up like I do, and then sometimes your post disappears into the Black Hole of Comments, only to resurface after you've posted something else. Sometimes I think Murphy (of Murphy's Law) is sitting in my computer - I swear I can hear him laughing...

Anyway, if it's a particularly contentious post, like this one, I'll write out the whole thing in my word processor, read over it, edit it, give myself a chance to breathe through the issue and make sure I'm not being mean or snarky, (which I can really be sometimes), then cut/paste it into the Comments section. That way, I know that what I want to say is what gets up there. :)

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I have thought about this all week, trying to see it from different angles, but, when someone said it is activism, I felt that hit the nail on the head. It really is the government taking away parental rights. Take away the sex part, its about giving our minor children drugs w/out our consent. They say the parents will know, they only know they are going to the clinic, they wont have to disclose why or that they are getting the pill. My kids school wont even give tylenol, I have to go there myself and give it. As for meds w/a scrip, there is a long form that has to be filled out by my childs DOCTOR. everybody has different opinions, but, now I for one see this for what it really is.

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I would add that this is likely to make the relationship between parent and child even more difficult. It creates a "legitimate" way for kids to go behind their parents' back, and thus threatens the trust that exists between most middle-school kids and their parents. If my kid was going to that school, I would be wondering if I should be searching her room for birth control pills. This is so unhealthy. The policy ignores that the vast majority of middle school girls are (a) not trying to be sexually active and (b) not fertile in any case. All parent-child relationships must suffer for the problems a few have. (Not that I think this was the right answer even for those few - as I explained in my earlier post.)

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I am 18 years old. I just graduated from high school this past May, so it wasn't that long ago that I was in middle school. I am also aware that there are more kids having sex in middle school now than it was when I was in middle school. But, to be honest, I wasn't thinking about having sex in middle school. I lost my virginity my sophomore year when I was 15. Also, I didn't have my first period until I was 14. I think that allowing middle school girls to have birth control available to them is encourging sex. The biggest fear for young girls is getting pregnant if they choose to have sex. So, birth control is like a way around it. Also, since these girls have birth control, they are not thinking that they need to use a condom which helps prevent STDs, they're just thinking about the fact that they can have sex without getting pregnant.

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Ok i think birth control being given to high schools girls would be good, but girls ages 11-13 that is dumb. Since they shouldn't be sexually active as it is but things happen and that can't be changed. If you were in middle School you might understand more about what middle school is like. In middle School things change you become a lot older and you begin to crave sex. If you were in middle school than you would understand that your friends have sex and you do to. If your teenage daughter is a little whore, she won't use birth control because she doesn't understand after you get pregnant you can't stop. So my opinion on this issue would be that give birth control to high school girls not middle school girls around the ages 11-13!

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