UPDATE AS OF JUNE 26, 2026
❗️
UPDATE AS OF JUNE 26, 2026 ❗️
On June 26, 2026, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Population Affairs abruptly terminated 53 of the 67 Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program (TPPP) grants that were currently active in the middle of what was meant to be a five-year project period. These cuts impacted organizations across more than two dozen states and eliminated around $67 million in federally funded research and programming, including our FLEx Study, which was solely funded by the TPPP grant program. Since the cuts were "effective immediately," this devastating loss has led to an immediate cessation of all study activities, which has forced us to reduce our staff and no longer be able to provide the program or the incentives that were promised to our youth participants at enrollment. For context, at the time of termination, we had 273 youth enrolled that will no longer be able to receive the information, resources, and incentives that the program was meant to provide.
These cuts, while devastating to IWES, directly harm the youth that our organization is committed to serving, and we are currently exploring other avenues to provide the content featured in FLEx. If you are interested in supporting FLEx, please reach out to our Director of Research & Evaluation, Ayesha Umrigar (aumrigar@iwesnola.org).
To learn more about the TPPP grant termination and the actions that are currently being taken to prevent it, follow this link.
Adolescent Health
IWES supports youth in navigating their adolescence, exploring their mental health, and forming healthy peer relationships. Across programs, IWES creates safe spaces for youth to learn medically-accurate information about their bodies and deepen their understanding of the relationship between their thoughts, feelings, decision-making, and actions. Through the development of social, emotional, and cognitive skills, youth build healthy self-esteem, confidence, coping skills, and resilience.
Get involved with our current Adolescent Health programming:
LOUISIANA PARENT ATTITUDES ON SEX ED
IWES partnered with the Louisiana Public Health Institute (LPHI) and other local organizations to conduct a statewide polling project of parent attitudes and beliefs around school-based comprehensive, age-appropriate sexual health education. We surveyed 600 parents throughout the state of Louisiana and collected surveys with an additional 187 parents and conducted focus groups in the Public Health Regions 1 (Greater New Orleans), 3 (the River Parishes) and 8 (Monroe).
The response was overwhelmingly positive in support of comprehensive sexual health education in Louisiana schools. 84% of parents surveyed believe sex ed is an important part of a school curriculum, and 74% believe schools should be required to offer sex ed. Overall, 80% of parents believe that a sex ed program which emphasizes abstinence but also provides information on birth control should be taught in schools. Louisiana parents also overwhelmingly believe in a trauma-informed approach to sex education, with 87% of parents reporting an interest in including a focus on improving mental health and emotional wellness. We also found a clear gap between what Louisiana parents value and what is happening in schools. 61% of parents surveyed believe their child has received or will receive sex ed in schools; however, state law does not require sex ed instruction or monitor its delivery in schools, so that perception is likely incorrect.
Student & Partner Feedback
Scroll through to see what our partners and students think about our programming!! Participant feedback is collected by IWES staff from post-assessments and site feedback conversations after an implementation cycle is complete.
