ALABAMA

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Alabama received $3,493,285 in federal funding for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs in Fiscal Year 2003.¹

Alabama Sexuality Education Law

Alabama Code sets minimum requirements for what must be taught in sexuality education classes. Among other things, classes must teach that:

• Abstinence from sexual intercourse is the only completely effective protection against unwanted pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) when transmitted sexually.
• Abstinence from sexual intercourse outside of lawful marriage is the expected social standard for unmarried school-age persons.

Further provisions state that:

• Course materials and instruction that relate to sexual education or sexually transmitted diseases should be age-appropriate.
• Statistics used must be based on the latest medical information that indicate the degree of reliability and unreliability of various forms of contraception, while also emphasizing the increase in protection against pregnancy and protection against sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV and AIDS infection, which is afforded by the use of various contraceptive measures; and
• Classes must emphasize, in a factual manner and from a public health perspective, that homosexuality is not a lifestyle acceptable to the general public and that homosexual conduct is a criminal offense under the laws of the state.²

Parents may exempt their children from sexuality education and/or STD/HIV education classes. This is referred to as an "opt-out" policy.

See Alabama State Code Section 16-40A-2 and the Resolution to Provide Information to Students to Prevent the Spread of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Disease in the Public Schools of Alabama.

Recent Legislation

SIECUS is not aware of any recent legislation in Alabama regarding sexuality education.

Events of Note

SIECUS is not aware of any recent events of note regarding sexuality education in Alabama.

Alabama's Youth: Statistical Information of Note³

• In 2003, 58% of female high school students and 56% of male high school students in Alabama reported ever having had sexual intercourse compared to 45% of female high school students and 48% of male high school students nationwide.
• In 2003, 4% of female high school students and 14% of male high school students in Alabama reported having had sexual intercourse before age 13 compared to 4% of female high school students and 10% of male high school students nationwide.
• In 2003, 19% of female high school students and 23% of male high school students in Alabama reported having had four or more lifetime sexual partners compared to 11% of female high school students and 18% of male high school students nationwide.
• In 2003, 46% of female high school students and 38% of male high school students in Alabama reported being currently sexually active (defined as having had sexual intercourse in the three months prior to the survey) compared to 35% of females and 34% of males nationwide.
• In 2003, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 16% of females and 24% of males in Alabama reported having used alcohol or drugs the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 21% of females and 30% of males nationwide.
• In 2003, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 63% of females and 61% of males in Alabama reported having used condoms the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 57% of females and 69% of males nationwide.
• In 2003, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 20% of females and 13% of males in Alabama reported having used birth control pills the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 21% of females and 13% of males nationwide.
• In 2003, 6% of female high school students and 3% of male high school students in Alabama reported ever having been pregnant or gotten someone pregnant compared to 5% of female high school students and 4% of male high school students nationwide.
• In 2003, 86% of high school students in Alabama reported having been taught about AIDS/HIV in school compared to 88% of high school students nationwide.
• In 2000, Alabama's abortion rate was 16 per 1,000 women ages 15-19 compared to an abortion rate of 24 per 1,000 nationwide.⁴
• In 2001, Alabama's birth rate was 57 per 1,000 women ages 15-19 compared to a teen birth rate of 45 per 1,000 nationwide.⁵

Title V Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Funding

Alabama received $1,078,612 in federal Title V funding in Fiscal Year 2003. The Title V abstinence-only-until-marriage grant requires states to provide three state-raised dollars or the equivalent in services for every four federal dollars received. The state match can be provided in part or in full by local groups. The state match in Alabama is a combination of state allocation ($300,000) and local grantees' contributions ($607,794). The abstinence program is called the Alabama Abstinence-Only Education Program (AAEP). The Alabama Department of Public Health, Bureau of Family Health Services oversees this program and partners with the governor's office to distribute the funding.

The enumerated goals of AAEP are to:

1. reduce the live birth rate among teens 15 to 17 years of age,
2. reduce the pregnancy rate among teens 15 to 17 years of age,
3. reduce the occurrence of STDs among teens 15 to 19 years of age,
4. reduce the abortion rate among teens 15 to 17 years of age,
5. reduce the live birth rate among unmarried teens 15 to 17 years of age, and
6. reduce the occurrence of sexual activity among teens 15 to 17 years of age.

Alabama distributes $910,000 in federal Title V abstinence-only-until-marriage grants to ten local sub-grantees, including boards of education, youth development centers, and family resource centers. Through these programs, AAEP claims to have reached approximately 34,000 youth ages 17 and younger in 26 of Alabama's 67 counties.

Ten percent of funding has been set aside for two separate evaluations to be conducted by Auburn University. One of these will focus on community-based projects and one will focus on the program's media campaign. The evaluation of the community based organizations occurs yearly and focuses on both process and outcome evaluation. On an outcome level, it measures participants' exposure to abstinence messages, attitudes about abstinence, rates of sexual intercourse, rates of teen pregnancy, STD rates, and rates of teen births. The evaluation of the media campaign is designed to determine if the campaign is reaching the target audience and to what extent the audience has heard the message.

The planning and implementation of the original Title V grant in Alabama grant was overseen by the State Advisory Committee (SAC). SAC was comprised of ten groups, five of which had conservative and/or anti-choice views. These groups included the Alabama Eagle Forum, the Alabama Family Alliance, Alabama Sav-A-Life, and the Alabama Baptist Convention.

Special Projects of Regional and National Significance-Community Based Abstinence Education (SPRANS-CBAE) and Adolescent Family Life Act (AFLA) Grantees

There are four SPRANS-CBAE grantees in Alabama: the Alabama Department of Public Health, Madison County Schools, Abstinence in Motion Project (Edge Regional Medical Center), and University of South Alabama. There are no AFLA grantees in Alabama.

The Alabama Department of Public Health distributes its SPRANS-CBAE to six sub-grantees. The Abstinence in Motion (AIM) Project targets seventh and ninth graders, reaching about 450 students per year. According to an article in the Troy Messenger, "AIM, however, doesn't stop with adults bringing the anti-premarital sex message to children. The program lets kids tell other kids about the consequences of premarital sex-teen pregnancy, low self-esteem and sexually transmitted diseases."

AIM uses the Reasonable Reasons to Wait curriculum. According to SIECUS' review of this curriculum, Reasonable Reasons to Wait includes gender biases, fear- and shame-based messages, and medical inaccuracies. A few examples are listed below:

• "AIDS can be transmitted by skin-to-skin contact." Reasonable Reasons to Wait (Unit 5, pg. 19 - Teacher's guide).
• "Teenagers who engage in irresponsible sexual activity may have to endure serious short- and long-term consequences. Premaritally sexually active teens may suffer from infection, physical and emotional pain, infertility, and miscarriages." Reasonable Reasons to Wait (Unit 5, pg. 11 - Teacher's guide).
• Answer: "Emotional effects of premarital sex that condoms can NEVER protect." Question: "What is guilt; rejection; or a broken heart?" Reasonable Reasons to Wait (Unit 5, pg. 32 - Teacher's guide).

Federal and State Funding for Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs in FY 2003

Past Federal Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Funding

Title V Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Coordinator

Susan R. Stewart, RN, MSN
Alabama Department of Public Health
The RSA Tower
201 Monroe St., Suite 1350
Montgomery, AL 36104
Phone: (334) 206-2901

Alabama Organizations that Support Comprehensive Sexuality Education

AIDS Action Coalition of Huntsville, Alabama
P.O. Box 871
Huntsville, AL 35804
Phone: (256) 536-4700

Alabama Civil Liberties Union
207 Montgomery Street, Suite 825
Montgomery, AL 36101
Phone: (334) 262-0304

Planned Parenthood of Alabama
1211 27th Place South
Birmingham, AL 35205-1800
Phone: (205) 322-0111
http://www.ppalabama.org

Alabama Organizations that Oppose Comprehensive Sexuality Education

Alabama Citizens for Life
P.O. Box 184
Montgomery, AL 36101
Phone: (334) 666-6805

Alabama Policy Institute
402 Office Park Drive, Suite 300
Birmingham, AL 35223
http://www.alabamapolicyinstitute.org

The Alabama Pro-Life Coalition Education Fund, Inc.
P.O. Box 590008
Birmingham, Alabama 35259
Phone: (205) 795-1231
http://www.aplcef.org

National Physicians Center for Family Resources
P.O. Box 59692
Birmingham, AL 35259
http://www.physicianscenter.org

Newspapers in Alabama

The Birmingham News
Jon Anderson
Community News Reporter
2200 4th Ave., N
Birmingham, AL 35203-3840
Phone: (205) 325-3258

Birmingham Post-Herald
William Singleton III
Medical/Health Reporter
2200 4th Ave., N
Birmingham, AL 35203-3802
Phone: (205) 325-3123

The Decatur Daily
Ken Retherford
Medical/Health Editor
201 1st Ave., SE
Decatur, AL 35601-2333
Phone: (256) 340-244

The Dothan Eagle
Linnea McClellan
Medical/Health Editor
227 N Oates St.
Dothan, AL 36303-4538
Phone: (334) 712-7902

The Gadsden Times
Cyndi Nelson
Medical/Health Editor
401 Locust St.
Gadsden, AL 35901-3737
Phone: (256) 549-2062

The Huntsville Times
Valerie Green
Community News Editor
2317 Memorial Pkwy., SW
Huntsville, AL 35801-5623
Phone: (256) 532-4442

Mobile Register
Rhoda Pickett
Community News Reporter
401 N Water St.
Mobile, AL 36602-4015
Phone: (251) 219-5692

Montgomery Advertiser
Teri Greene
Medical/Health Reporter
425 Molton St.
Montgomery, AL 36104
Phone: (334) 241-0183

Times Daily
Vicki Pounders
Medical/Health Editor
219 W Tennessee St.
Florence, AL 35630-5455
Phone: (256) 740-5743

The Tuscaloosa News
Jane Self
Medical/Health Editor
315 28th Ave.
Tuscaloosa, AL 35401-1022
Phone: (205) 722-0230

References

1. This refers to the fiscal year for the Federal Government which begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2003 begins on October 1, 2002 and ends on September 30, 2003.
2. In 2003, the United States Supreme Court handed down a decision in Lawrence v. Texas which declared all state laws criminalizing homosexual behavior to be unconstitutional.
3. Unless otherwise cited, all statistical information comes from: J. Grunbaum, et. al., "Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance - United States, 2003," Surveillance Summaries, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, vol. 53, no.SS-2, May 21, 2004, pp. 1-95. Available online at: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dash/yrbs/
4. U.S. Teenage Pregnancy Statistics: Overall Trends, Trends by Race and Ethnicity and State-by-State Information, (New York: Alan Guttmacher Institute, February, 2004). Available online at http://www.guttmacher.org.
5. A. Papillo, et.al., Facts at a Glance, (Washington, DC: Child Trends, February, 2004).