Overview of the campaign

• The Parents Speak Up National Campaign is a multi-year education campaign, sponsored by the U.S.Department of Health and Human Services, designed to encourage parents to talk to their children, early and often about the importance of waiting to have sex.
  
• Parental involvement has a tremendous impact on reducing risky behavior in teens. Parents—not the media, not friends—are the strongest influences by far on children of this age!
  
• Many parents fail to have this conversation or to do so in an effective way. The topic of sex can be a very difficult one to discuss for some parents regardless of race, religion, or economic status.
  
• The goals of this campaign are to help parents overcome the barriers that prevent them from talking to their kids, to help them understand the influence that they have on their pre-teens and young teens, and then successfully communicate their values and beliefs to their children.
• For additional resources parents can go to www.4parents.gov.

About the Native American Outreach Center

• The Native American Outreach Center (NAOC) is operated by Kauffman and Associates, Inc. (KAI), an Indian owned, woman owned consulting firm based in Spokane, WA.
  
• KAI is one of three organizations conducting outreach to target populations as a part of Parents Speak Up National Campaign. The three specific populations in addition to the general population include the Native American, Hispanic, and African American communities.
• The Native American population was chosen in part due to the vast health disparities we face.
• The NAOC will be conducting outreach to Native American parents, grandparents, and other caregivers at 6 national and regional events throughout the U.S. in 2008 through exhibit booths, workshops, and Training of Trainers. For more information go to www.4parents.gov/shareyourvision.
• Every tribe has its own rites of passage that transition pre-teens and young teens from childhood to adulthood. These coming-of-age ceremonies are a traditional time for family members to give instruction and to prepare their young people for the responsibilities they will assume as adults. With these traditions in mind, NAOC hopes to encourage parents and other family members to take this opportunity to share their vision for their child’s future, to talk about waiting to have sex, and about the direction they want for their child’s life.

Media

• To support NAOC's grassroots efforts, a national public education campaign was unveiled in June 2007. Public service announcements about the campaign are currently being aired nationally. In addition, billboards, magazine and newspaper ads, and web banners are being used to bring attention to the campaign.

March 4-7, 2008

Phoenix, AZ

500

March 16-20, 2008

San Diego, CA

1,000+

April 20-23, 2008

Minneapolis, MN

600

June 5-7, 2008

Juneau, AK

5,000 to 6,000

July 10-12, 2008

Anaheim, CA

500+

October 23-26, 2008

Seattle, WA

2,000