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PREP Snapshot: Inputs and Outcomes: PREP Program Serving Highly Vulnerable Youth
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PREP Snapshot: Inputs and Outcomes: PREP Program Serving Highly Vulnerable Youth

Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) Evaluation, OPRE Report #2018-45
Published: Apr 30, 2018
Publisher: Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Human Services Family Support Youth Development

Associated Project

Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP)

Time frame: 2011–2020

Prepared for:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families

Clients

OPRE Logo

Authors

Lauren Murphy

Susan Zief

Lara Hulsey

Key Findings

Key Findings:

  • One hundred forty-one programs across 33 states and territories reported primarily serving at least one highly vulnerable population.
  • These programs served about 15,500 youth each year, and most operated in out-of-school settings.
  • Most programs primarily serving highly vulnerable populations reported serving primarily youth in foster care or in adjudication systems.
  • Most youth in these programs were ages 15 to 18 and were sexually active before entering the program.
  • After PREP, about half the youth in these programs reported they were less likely to have sex in the next six months, and a large majority reported they were more likely to use condoms and birth control if they have sex.

This brief summarizes key characteristics of programs funded through the Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) that primarily served highly vulnerable populations. Programs that “primarily served” a highly vulnerable population are defined as those that reported at least half of the youth they served were from one or more of the following populations: youth in foster care; youth in adjudication systems; homeless or runaway youth; pregnant or parenting youth; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth; youth in residential treatment for mental health issues; and youth who have trouble speaking or understanding English.

PREP, which aims to reduce teen pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections, and associated risk behaviors, is administered by the Family and Youth Services Bureau within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Funding is awarded to states and territories through formula grants (State PREP), and through a competitive process to tribes and tribal entities (Tribal PREP) and to direct service providers in states and territories that did not take State PREP funding (Competitive PREP).

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