Health Education and Training

The Guilford County Division of Public Health works to create a healthy community through a variety of health education programs. Please see the links below for health fair topics/display list as well as the health fair request form.

• Program and Health Fair Display Topic List
• Health Fair Request Form

Statistics on Teen Pregnancy

Guilford County has celebrated a gradual decline in the number of teen pregnancies in the last 20 years. In 2022, Guilford County’s teen pregnancy rate for ages 15-19 years of age was 15.2 per 1,000 females, down from 53.8 per 1,000 females in 2002. A total of 360 teens between the ages of 15-19 became pregnant in 2022. For more information on teen pregnancy statistics, go to the North Carolina State Center for Health Statistics. 

State Resources

For more information about adolescent pregnancy prevention in North Carolina, go to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services' Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiatives (TPPI).

Smart Girls Life Skills Training ®

Mission

To provide young girls with the information and skills necessary for them to become empowered young women who are ultimately happy, healthy and successful in life!

Components

• Enhance Self-Esteem
• Sharpen Decision Making Skills
• Set Goals for the Future
• Strengthen Family Connections

Available Programs

Smart Girls Life Skills Training® Part I

Smart Girls Life Skills Training® Part 1 is a program designed to prevent adolescent pregnancy. Its major goal is to help young women between the ages of 11 and 14 develop the skills necessary that will result in positive life options. The program seeks to accomplish this by emphasizing self-responsibility, especially in the area of sexual development. Smart Girls Life Skills Training® Part I curriculum utilizes multi-session components that meet over a period of time. Locally, the curriculum is school or community based.

Smart Girls Life Skills Training® Part II

Smart Girls Life Skills Training® Part II provides follow up to 9th or 10th grade girls. The major goal is to help high school age girls maintain the attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors necessary in making positive life choices by emphasizing self-responsibility, particularly around sexual development. Smart Girls Life Skills Training® Part II increases retention of positive attitudes for postponing sexual behavior, reducing the number of sexual partners, and increasing contraceptive use among sexually active participants. 

Healthy Youth Prevention Education (H.Y.P.Ed.) 

Health educators from Guilford County Division of Public Health are available as guest speakers to address the following topics:  

• Healthy and Unhealthy Relationships
• Sexual Responsibility
• Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)
• Abstinence & Birth Control

For more information on the Smart Girls and Healthy Youth Prevention Education programs, contact Laura Mrosla at 336-641-6113, lmrosla@guilfordcountync.gov.

For Teens

Smart Girls Leadership Academy

According to the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, involving teens in prevention helps create stronger, more effective programs, and offers leadership opportunities for participating teens. The Smart Girls Leadership Academy (SGLA) promotes leadership, peer education, advocacy, and mentorship among both middle and high school participants. The Smart Girls Leadership Academy provides an opportunity to continue building life skills throughout all of high school, especially during the most crucial years for sexual experimentation. Peer education training and opportunities for participants to positively influence their peers is required. Advocacy training is provided for interested participants to encourage participants to be spokespersons for teen pregnancy prevention within the community, to the media, and to local and state policy makers. As participants progress within the SGLA, a mentoring component will be added. Upperclassman will be recruited and trained to mentor Smart Girls Life Skills Training® Part II participants as identified by school counselors. For more information on the Smart Girls Leadership Academy, contact Wanda Mackey at 336-641-4690, wmackey@guilfordcountync.gov or Laura Mrosla at 336-641-6113, lmrosla@guilfordcountync.gov.

For Professionals

Interest in Smart Girls Life Skills Training® is spreading. Curriculum trainings are available for educators and other professionals who would like to start Smart Girls Life Skills Training® in their own communities. Curriculum facilitators will work with you to develop a training to meet the needs of your agency and community. If you would like to discuss scheduling a curriculum training or purchasing a copy of the Smart Girls Life Skills Training® curriculum, contact Laura Mrosla, via email at lmrosla@guilford.countync.gov or call 336-641-6113, or Wanda Mackey via email at wmackey@guilfordcountync.gov or call 336-641-4690.

Training Objectives

All participants will:

• Review Smart Girls Life Skills Training® philosophy and curriculum
• Learn how to initiate and implement the program in their community
• Understand the program’s evaluation model and how to make it work
• Understand how self esteem affects the decision making process of adolescent females
• Gain hands-on experience in designing and delivering program lesson plans

This training is designed for individuals who would like to implement adolescent prevention programs for teen pregnancy, STIs, and healthy relationship programs targeting adolescent females in their communities. The training is also for individuals who instruct or supervise adolescent females, such as coaches, counselors, leadership facilitators, and mentors.

Program Impact

Analysis of data, collected in the 2003 evaluation indicates the following positive outcomes of Smart Girls Life Skills Training® from program entry to six (6)-month follow-up: Smart Girls participants showed:

• Improved knowledge of sexuality and consequences of sexual activity
• Healthier attitudes towards postponing sex and use of contraception
• Increased use of contraception for those participants who reported sexual involvement
• Increased communication with parents about sexuality

Furthermore:

• Participants in Smart Girls Life Skills Training® showed a significant delay in sexual activity as compared to non-program participants.
• The percentage of sexually active Smart Girls Life Skills Training® participants who reported always using contraception also increased significantly.

Training Center (TC) Membership

An instructor MUST be affiliated with an AHA approved Training Center (TC). If membership expires or an instructor wishes to affiliate with a new TC, this transfer must take place within 30 days of renewal date to maintain instructor status.

An application for membership must be completed, an agreement signed, and yearly membership fee paid to join TC.

An initial membership fee is to be paid within two (2) weeks of application and is good for one (1) year. Continuation membership fees are to be paid within two (2) weeks of the renewal date each year.

Membership Application

Yearly Membership Fees

An annual fee of $40 will be charged for maintaining a membership in the TC. This fee includes: an annual update, emailed updates from AHA, and maintenance of data base reflecting instructor status, number of classes taught, number of participants, etc. The annual fee does not include equipment rental or individual insurance coverage for classes taught off premise. It also does not cover cost of any materials, i.e. cards, manuals, or printing. Cards can be purchased for $4 each which covers printing and mailing. Equipment can be rented for an additional charge (see equipment rental).

Equipment Rental

Manikins and demonstrator AEDs may be rented at the following rates:

• $15/Two (2) business days
• $10/day late fee

The rental fee must be paid upon return of the equipment.

Note: Instructors who are employees of the Guilford County Department of Public Health will have their support fee waived for their involvement on the CPR Team (responsible for training of Division of Public Health staff). When teaching courses to non-employees, instructors are allowed to use county equipment off premises if/when available. Completion cards for course participants can be purchased for $4 each which covers printing and mailing.