Sexuality Education: Program Ideas
The following is a list of ideas to help you cultivate campus and community support for comprehensive sex education. Be creative, have fun, and spread the word!
Host a movie screening and discussion
Host a screening of The Education of Shelby Knox or Abstinence Comes to Albuquerque followed by a discussion about sex education and spirituality. (Contact us for free copies of these films.)
Organize an interfaith panel discussion
Work with religious groups on campus to host a panel of progressive religious scholars highlighting different faiths that support comprehensive sex education.
Write letters to your elected representatives
Write letters to your local, state, and national representatives supporting comprehensive sex education. You could also arrange visits with your representatives and/or their staff to discuss how sex education affects young people of faith.
Arrange a text study
Use text-based sources to discuss teachings about sexuality education. As a study in pluralism, examine the different ways each denomination interprets related texts and how these interpretations affect education, sexuality, and family planning within the faith community today.
Host an advocacy training
Invite students to participate in an advocacy training where they learn the best practices for talking to policy makers. Staff from Advocates for Youth and SYRF can provide training to campus organizations.
Sponsor a coffeehouse
Invite students, community members, and local clergy for choice to come together in an intimate and relaxed atmosphere to discuss the issues surrounding faith and sex education. Consider having an “open mic” so people can share prayers, poems, music, and personal experiences.
Sponsor speakers
Sponsoring speakers of diverse ethnic and faith traditions to speak out about sexuality and sex education helps create an atmosphere of openness and understanding on your campus.
Organize against the Religious Right’s presence on campus
The Religious Right targets college campuses in its attempt to perpetuate misinformation about reproductive health issues. Provide factual information about what many people of faith really believe and the significance of comprehensive sex education. When misleading ads appear in your campus newspaper, write letters to the editor and publish an editorial from your group in response.
Provide free condoms
Put “free condom” baskets in dormitory (and other) bathrooms. Place a poster by your baskets or stickers on the condoms so people will know whom to thank!
Use street theatre to make your point
Create a provocative skit to raise awareness about sex education.
Chalk!
Use ordinary sidewalk chalk or spray chalk to get your message out to students walking to class.
Talk and table
Gather a number of cell phones and write a script about a specific piece of sex education legislation. Encourage passers by to make phone calls to the offices of elected officials about support for sex education.
School projects
Research sex education for a paper or project and present to your class.
Build partnerships
Reach out to organizations with campus programs such as Advocates for Youth, Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice America, Choice USA and RCRC affiliates to plan an event together.
Visibility
Make your pro-sex education, pro-faith views visible on your campus or in your community. SYRF offers funds for programming and visibility. You can also request SYRF mouse pads, pens, stickers, buttons, note pads and t-shirts for all of the members of your group.
Additional support and resources
SYRF can help fund these or other events through a program grant initiative. Apply today by e-mailing info@syrf.org or online. Check out www.advocatesforyouth.org for more information and resources about sex education and how to become a high school or campus organizer.
