Adolescent Pregnancy Project

Resources

Resources on this list are not endorsed or recommended, and the quality of information, service or referral that the resource provides is in no way guaranteed. The resources named here are examples. The omission of others does not mean that they are unavailable or unsatisfactory. Please note that providing legal information, which some resources listed here will do, is not the same as giving legal advice.

social work ethics and standards

National Association of Social Workers' (NASW) Code of Ethics, approved 1996, revised 1999

NASW standards for the practice of social work with adolescents, approved 1993 (being revised)

Both are available to members at www.socialworkers.org. The Code of Ethics is available to all site visitors. The standards may be ordered from NASW, 750 First Street, NE, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20002, 1-800-638-8799.

services

COURT PROCEDURES

North Carolina's courts control a number of matters affecting pregnant and parenting minors. For example, district courts rule on emancipation, decide whether a 14- or 15-year old may marry, issue civil protection orders for victims of domestic violence, terminate parental rights, approve adoptions, and can permit minors to decide on abortion without parental consent.  For information on filing petitions on these subjects, a minor or her attorney may visit or call the office of the clerk of superior court. Some forms are also available at www.nccourts.org, but the forms for judicial waiver of parental consent to minor's abortion are not posted at this time.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

            A national hotline (1 800 799-SAFE [7233]) refers callers to a local program or shelter. During normal business hours the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence (919) 956-9124, also refers callers to local programs. Most domestic violence programs in North Carolina offer 24-hour hotlines, court advocacy, support groups and shelter.

EDUCATION ALTERNATIVE

The Web Academy, an innovation of the Cumberland County Schools, allows high school students to earn credit through Internet courses. Three-fourths of the students are from Cumberland, but the Academy has enrolled one or more students from 60 North Carolina school districts. The cost for non-residents of Cumberland County, during the 2001-2002 school year, was $400 per course. (The cost is sometimes paid by students' home district.) To register, a student must be eligible to graduate from high school; the diploma will be awarded by a high school in his or her district. Pregnant students who are homebound, as well as young parents, have been enrolled. Questions may be addressed to Al Taylor, the school counselor, at ATaylor@ccswebacademy.net or Janet Kehoe, the Director, at JKehoe@ccswebacademy.net.

PREGNANCY PREVENTION, PREGNANCY AND PARENTING

The Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Coalition of North Carolina (APPC-NC) works to prevent adolescent pregnancy and help adolescent parents and their children through statewide publicity campaigns, a resource center and lending library, regional meetings and state conferences, and teen parent and male partner networks. Anyone living in North Carolina may borrow material from the library and staff is often able to find statistics on teen pregnancy in North Carolina. APPC-NC is a private nonprofit agency located at 10001 Main St., Suite D, Chapel Hill, NC 27516, (919) 932-9885, nc4facts@appcnc.org, and www.appcnc.org/

Adolescent Parenting Programs accept minors 17 or younger who are pregnant or are the parent of one child.  They encourage teens to delay a second pregnancy, finish secondary education, and strengthen parenting skills. Program staff monitor prenatal care and the minor's child's physical and emotional health, help a teen find other services, and connect her or him to peers and to the community.  Programs are located in these counties: Alamance, Anson, Caldwell, Chatham, Craven, Cumberland, Duplin, Durham, Edgecombe, Forsyth, Gaston, Greene, Guilford, Henderson, Hertford (open to Gates residents also), Johnston, Lenoir McDowell, Mecklenburg, New Hanover, Onslow, Orange, Pender, Richmond, Robeson, Stanly, Swain (open to Graham residents), Union, Vance, and Wake. The state director, Sydney Atkinson, can be reached at (919) 715-8432.

CARE-LINE, 1-800, 662-7030, tells callers about human services offered by government, nonprofit and support groups. Health referrals include referral to nonprofit agencies including those that provide abortion. CARE-LINE's ombudsman oversees the handling of callers' problems, complaints or inquiries about services offered by the NC Dep't. of Health and Human Services. The Office of Citizen Services, NC Dep't, operates CARE-LINE. of Health and Human Services. Spanish translation is available for callers and there is a separate line (1-877 452-2514) for hearing-impaired callers.

Family Health Resource Line, 1-800 367-2229, offers information about "health and related topics throughout a child's first 21 years of life" (but not abortion information), and refers the caller to community resources. Five agencies sponsor the line, including the NC Division of Medical Assistance and the Women's and Children's Health Section of the NC Division of Public Health.

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

            County and district health departments offer pregnancy diagnosis, prenatal care and referral for delivery. Some departments inform patients about all pregnancy options including abortion and will refer a patient for abortion.

            Planned Parenthood-These private nonprofit agencies operate clinics in Asheville, Chapel Hill, Charlotte, Greensboro, Durham, Raleigh, Wilmington and Winston-Salem. The clinics provide comprehensive reproductive health care including counseling on all pregnancy options and referral. A few clinics provide abortions. Planned Parenthood of America's website, www.plannedparenthood.org, lists affiliates in each state with contact information.

            Raleigh Women's Health Organization, (919) 783-0444 or 1-800 532-5383 (national number), offers gynecological services including contraception, sterilization, and abortion. The clinic is a private for-profit agency and one of a number nationwide operated by the National Women's Health Organization, www.nwho.com. 

publications (see also books for teens)

Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Coalition of North Carolina, Hispanic Outreach Prevention Portfolio. (120 page desk reference for health providers, $30-available from APPC-NC, contact information under PREGNANCY PREVENTION, PREGNANCY AND PARENTING)

Center for Adolescent Health & the Law-publications on health insurance and services for children, health care consent and confidentiality, and participation by adolescents in research are available from the Center, (919) 968-8850 or its web site, www.adolescenthealthlaw.org.

Dellinger, Anne, and Davis, Arlene M., Health Care for Pregnant Adolescents: A Legal Guide. Institute of Government: Chapel Hill, NC 2001. (available on this web site).

Dellinger, Anne, Social Services for Pregnant and Parenting Adolescents: A Legal Guide. School of Government: Chapel Hill, NC 2002. (available on this web site).

Manson, Andrea Bazan and Verbiest, Sarah Zuber, Hispanics and the North Carolina Health Care System. National Association of Social Workers-North Carolina: Raleigh 1994. This publication describes the state's Latino population including its major health issues, contains Spanish translations of provider/patient interviews and lists resources. Available for $7 to NASW-NC members and $10 to nonmembers by phone 1 (800) 280-6207 or email NASW-NC@aol.com.

Manson, Andrea Bazan, et al., Latina Reproductive Health in North Carolina: Demographics, Health Status, and Programs. NC Office of Minority Health, OMH No. 20, 1999. Single copies are available from the Office, (919) 715-0992.

Janet Mason, Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect in North Carolina. Institute of Government: Chapel Hill NC, 1996. $8.00. Available from the Institute, (919) 966-4119

Pam Silberman, North Carolina Programs Serving Young Children and Their Families. NC Institute of Medicine: Chapel Hill, NC 1999. Available at www.nciom.org\book

Project Esperanza: A Guide to Working with Battered Latinas. Available in Fall 2002 from Jan Capps, Latino Outreach Coordinator, NC Coalition Against Domestic Violence, (919) 956-9124.

books for teens

ACLU-NC, Know Your Rights: A Guide for Public School Students in North Carolina. Available at www.acluofnorthcarolina.org/

ACLU-NC, Reproductive Rights: A Guide for Women in North Carolina. Available at www.acluofnorthcarolina.org/

Arnoldi, Katherine, The Amazing "True" Story of A Teenage Single Mom.  Hyperion: New York, NY, 1998.  This is an autobiography in cartoons, slightly altered for privacy reasons, according to the author.  Its description of a teen mother's (eventually successful) struggles against poverty, abuse, her family's hostility, and rape are very moving. 

Arthur, Shirley, Surviving Teen Pregnancy: Your Choices, Dreams & Decisions. Morning Glory Press: Buena Park, CA 1996.  The author tells teens who are or may be pregnant the importance of learning their status, deciding carefully between childbirth and abortion, and, especially if they choose "active parenting," setting goals and controlling their future. The author gave birth at age 16 and raised the child. She and her child are both college graduates.

web sites