School program aims to help pregnant teens

By Staff Writer

During the 2009-2010 academic year, there were 37 teen girls enrolled in the Graduation, Reality and Dual-Role Skills (GRADS) program in Fairborne, Ohio. The purpose of GRADS is to empower teen parents to set realistic goals and to remain in school until graduation, according to the FHS NewsHawk.

This year, 24 of the students who are still in the program are either planning on graduating, attending post-secondary classes, are already employed or have been accepted in a two-year college. Based on an anonymous survey a professor who is teaching the program gave students, all agreed the class had affected them in a positive way.

"GRADS helped me out when I did not know what to do," said a former student on one of the surveys.

The teacher told the news source that this class helps girls through their pregnancy, and after they have their child. She added that it helps them learn all different skills they would need to know to become teen parents.

The program benefits parents as well as expecting mothers.

The Guttmacher Institute reports that the U.S. has the highest levels of teen pregnancy among developed nations.