After an almost 30-year existence, federal and state funds are no longer available for HIV prevention education. Funding from the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was previously provided to help states assist school districts in developing and implementing sustainable program activities. As a result, Maine districts were able to deliver HIV, STD and teen pregnancy prevention curricula and establish safe and supportive environments for students and staff.
Since 1987, the goal of the Maine DOE HIV Prevention Education Program has been to decrease the incidence of risk behaviors associated with HIV, STDs and unplanned pregnancy among school-age youth. The Department helped achieve this objective by providing evidence-based curricular trainings for educators in health, special education and alternative education, as well as through leadership training for student peer leaders.
Over 90 percent of Maine high schools have received training in HIV prevention curricula. In the past 20 years, teen pregnancy rates dropped from 70 out of 1,000 to 21 out of 1,000, and abstinence rates increased from 47 percent to 55 percent for Maine high school students. Condom use rate by high school students achieved one of the Maine 2010 health goals, improving from 50 percent to 60 percent in 14 years.