Michigan State Profile Fiscal Year 2009

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Michigan

Sexuality Education Law and Policy | Recent Legislation | Youth Statistical Information of Note | Sexual Health Statistics | Comprehensive Approaches to Sex Education| Federal Funding of Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs | Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Curricula Used by Grantees | Federal Funding for Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs in FY 09 | Adolescent Health Contact | Organizations that Support Comprehensive Sexuality Education | Organizations that Oppose Comprehensive Sexuality Education | Local Newspapers | Political Blogs | References

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Michigan Sexuality Education Law and Policy

Michigan state law does not require schools to teach sexuality education; however, HIV/AIDS education is required. Schools may also offer sexuality education instruction, which may include information on family planning, family life education, and STD-prevention. HIV and sexuality education must present abstinence as “a responsible method of preventing unwanted or out-of-wedlock pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease” and as “a positive lifestyle for unmarried young people.”[1] Sexuality education classes must be offered as an elective and may not be required for graduation.

HIV/AIDS classes may be taught by health care professionals or teachers specifically trained in HIV/AIDS education, and sexuality education instruction must be provided by teachers qualified to teach health education. All instruction in reproductive health must be taught by qualified instructors and “supervised by a registered physician, a registered nurse, or other person certified by the state board as qualified.”[2] Abortion “shall not be considered a method of family planning, nor shall abortion be taught as a method of reproductive health.”[3] Further, no school official or school board member may dispense any family planning drug or device in school, nor may they make abortion referrals. Districts found in violation of this may face corrective actions, such as being forced to forfeit aid.

School boards must establish an advisory board to review all sexuality education materials and curricula. This advisory board must include parents, students, educators, clergy, and health professionals. Each school district must also appoint a sexuality education program supervisor; this person must be approved by the state. All curricula must be approved by the local school board, and, if any changes are made, the local school board must hold at least two public hearings on the revisions.

Most Michigan public schools also follow guidelines from the Michigan Model for Health, formerly the Michigan Model for Comprehensive School Health Education, which promotes nationally recognized and research-based curricula, including curricula on HIV/AIDS prevention. In addition, the Michigan Board of Education has adopted the Policy to Promote Health and Prevent Disease and Pregnancy which states that sexuality education programs must be age-appropriate, developmentally and culturally appropriate, medically accurate, and based on effective programming.

Parents must receive notification of any sexuality education class and be allowed to review its content; and may remove their children from any part of the sexuality education instruction. This is referred to as an “opt-out” policy.

See Michigan Compiled Laws §§ 380.1169–.1170, 380.1506–.1507, and 388.1766–.1766a; Michigan Model for Health, and Policy to Promote Health and Prevent Disease and Pregnancy.

Recent Legislation

Legislation to Require Sexuality Education

House Bill 5163 and Senate Bill 663, introduced in June 2009, would have required schools to offer age-appropriate, medically accurate, and objective sexuality education instruction, and made such instruction necessary for a student to graduate high school. While abstinence would have been presented as a positive lifestyle choice, the bills specified that sexuality education must also address the need of sexually active students to have information to make healthy decisions. HB 5163 passed the house on March 24, 2010. No action has been taken on SB 663 as of this writing.

Michigan’s Youth: Statistical Information of Note^{^[4]}

In 2009, 44% of female high school students and 47% of male high school students in Michigan reported ever having had sexual intercourse compared to 46% of female high school students and 46% of male high school students nationwide.

In 2009, 3% of female high school students and 7% of male high school students in Michigan reported having had sexual intercourse before age 13 compared to 3% of female high school students and 8% of male high school students nationwide.

In 2009, 12% of female high school students and 16% of male high school students in Michigan reported having had four or more lifetime sexual partners compared to 11% of female high school students and 16% of male high school students nationwide.

In 2009, 36% of female high school students and 33% of male high school students in Michigan reported being currently sexually active (defined as having had sexual intercourse in the three months prior to the survey) compared to 36% of female high school students and 33% of male high school students nationwide.

In 2009, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 55% of females and 68% of males in Michigan reported having used condoms the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 54% of females and 69% of males nationwide.

In 2009, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 21% of females and 23% males in Michigan reported having used birth control pills the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 23% of females and 16% of males nationwide.

In 2009, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 21% of females and 29% of males in Michigan reported having used alcohol or drugs the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 17% of females and 26% of males nationwide.

In 2009, 89% of high school students in Michigan reported having been taught about AIDS/HIV in school compared to 87% of high school students nationwide.

Detroit, Michigan

In 2009, 52% of female high school students and 72% of male high school students in Detroit, Michigan reported ever having had sexual intercourse compared to 46% of female high school students and 46% of male high school students nationwide.

In 2009, 4% of female high school students and 26% of male high school students in Detroit, Michigan reported having had sexual intercourse before age 13 compared to 3% of female high school students and 8% of male high school students nationwide.

In 2009, 14% of female high school students and 35% of male high school students in Detroit, Michigan reported having had four or more lifetime sexual partners compared to 11% of female high school students and 16% of male high school students nationwide.

In 2009, 40% of female high school students and 54% of male high school students in Detroit, Michigan reported being currently sexually active (defined as having had sexual intercourse in the three months prior to the survey) compared to 36% of female high school students and 33% of male high school students nationwide.

In 2009, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 57% of females and 78% of males in Detroit, Michigan reported having used condoms the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 54% of females and 69% of males nationwide.

In 2009, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 10% of females and 5% of males in Detroit, Michigan reported having used birth control pills the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 23% of females and 16% of males nationwide.

In 2009, among those high school students who reported being currently sexually active, 10% of females and 17% of males in Detroit, Michigan reported having used alcohol or drugs the last time they had sexual intercourse compared to 17% of females and 26% of males nationwide.

In 2009, 81% of high school students in Detroit, Michigan reported having been taught about AIDS/HIV in school compared to 87% of high school students nationwide.

Michigan Youth Sexual Health Statistics

Teen Pregnancy, Birth, and Abortion

Michigan’s teen pregnancy rate ranks 33^rdin the U.S., with a rate of 60 pregnancies per 1,000 young women ages 15–19 compared to the national rate of 70 pregnancies per 1,000.[5] There were a total of 21,940 pregnancies among young women ages 15–19 reported in 2005, the most recent year for which data are available, in Michigan.[6]

Michigan’s teen birth rate ranked 37^th in the U.S. in 2005, with a rate of 32.5 births per 1,000 young women ages 15–19 compared to the national rate of 40.5 births per 1,000.[7] In 2006, there were a total of 11,809 live births reported to young women ages 15–19 in Michigan.[8]

In 2006, the U.S. teen birth rate increased for the first time in 15 years by 3% from 40.5 to 41.9 births per 1,000 young women ages 15–19, after having steadily declined between 1991 and 2005.[9] In contrast, Michigan’s teen birth rate increased 4% between 2005 and 2006, from 32.5 to 33.8 births per 1,000 young women ages 15–19.[10]

Michigan’s teen abortion rate ranks 26^th in the U.S., with a rate of 12 abortions per 1,000 young women ages 15–19 compared to the national rate of 19 abortions per 1,000. In 2005, there were a total of 4,547 abortions reported among young women ages 15–19 in Michigan.[11]

HIV and AIDS

Michigan ranks 14^th in cases of HIV infection diagnosed in the U.S. among all age groups. In 2007, there were a total of 498 new cases of HIV infection diagnosed in Michigan. [12]

Michigan ranks 6^th in cases of HIV/AIDS diagnosed among young people ages 13–19 out of the 34 states with confidential, name-based HIV infection reporting. In 2007, there were a total of 80 young people ages 13–19 diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in Michigan.[13]

Michigan’s AIDS rate ranks 30^th in the U.S., with a rate of 6.2 cases per 100,000 population compared to the national rate of 12.5 cases per 100,000.[14]

Michigan ranks 17^th in number of reported AIDS cases in the U.S. among all age groups. In 2007, there were a total of 628 new AIDS cases reported in Michigan.[15]

Michigan ranks 9^th in number of reported AIDS cases in the U.S. among young people ages 13–19. In 2007, there were a total of 16 AIDS cases reported among young people ages 13–19 in Michigan.[16]

Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Michigan ranks 7^th in reported cases of Chlamydia among young people ages 15–19 in the U.S., with an infection rate of 25.3 cases per 1,000 compared to the national rate of 19.51 cases per 1,000. In 2008, there were a total of 18,926 cases of Chlamydia reported among young people ages 15–19 in Michigan.[17]

Michigan ranks 6^th in reported cases of gonorrhea among young people ages 15–19 in the U.S., with an infection rate of 7.8 cases per 1,000 compared to the national rate of 4.52 cases per 1,000. In 2008, there were a total of 5,831 cases of gonorrhea reported among young people ages 15–19 in Michigan.[18]

Michigan ranks 16^th in reported cases of primary and secondary syphilis among young people ages 15–19 in the U.S., with an infection rate of 0.03 per cases 1,000 compared to the national rate of 0.04 cases per 1,000. In 2008, there were a total of 21 cases of syphilis reported among young people ages 15–19 in Michigan.[19]

Comprehensive Approaches to Sex Education

SIECUS is not aware of any examples of model programs, policies, or best practices being implemented in Michigan public schools that provide a more comprehensive approach to sex education for young people.

We encourage you to submit any updated or additional information on comprehensive approaches to sex education being implemented in Michigan public schools for inclusion in future publications of the SIECUS State Profiles. Please visit SIECUS’ “Contact Us” webpage at www.siecus.org to share information. Select “state policy” as the subject heading.

Federal Funding for Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs

The Department of Community Health and community-based organizations in Michigan received $2,540,185 in federal funds for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs in Fiscal Year 2009.[20]

Title V Abstinence-Only-Until Marriage Funding

Michigan received $1,063,359 in federal Title V abstinence-only-until-marriage funding in Fiscal Year 2009. Due to the expiration of the grant program on June 30, 2009, three months prior to the end of the federal fiscal year, the state received three quarters of the total funding allocated for the full fiscal year.

The Michigan Department of Community Health distributes federal Title V abstinence-only-until-marriage funds to eight sub-grantees, including three local health departments, two faith-based organizations, one community-based organization, one healthcare organization, and one school district.

The Title V abstinence-only-until marriage grant required states to provide three state-raised dollars or the equivalent in services for every four federal dollars received. The state match could have been provided in part or in full by local groups.

In Michigan, sub-grantees contributed to the match through direct revenue.

The Department of Community Health also uses in-kind funding to support a statewide media campaign and health promotional materials that promote abstinence.

Community-Based Abstinence Education (CBAE) Funding

Organizations in Michigan received $1,200,000 in CBAE funding for Fiscal Year 2009.
There are two CBAE grantees in Michigan, including one community-based organization and one faith-based organization, which operates a crisis pregnancy center.

Adolescent Family Life Act (AFLA) Funding

There is one AFLA grantee in Michigan, the Ingham County Health Department, which received $276,826 in AFLA funding for Fiscal Year 2009.

Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Curricula Used by Grantees

Some abstinence-only-until-marriage grantees in Michigan use commercially available curricula. These include, but are not limited to:

A.C. Green’s Game Plan
ASPIRE: Live your life. Be free.
Choosing the Best
Navigator
Sex Can Wait
WAIT Training

To read reviews of abstinence-only-until-marriage curricula commonly used by federal grantees please visit the “Curricula and Speaker Reviews” webpage of SIECUS’ Community Action Kit at www.communityactionkit.org.

Federal Funding for Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs in FY 2009[21]

Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Grantee	Title V	CBAE (Length of Grant)	AFLA (Length of Grant)
Michigan Department of Community Health www.michigan.gov/mdch	$1,063,359 (federal grant)
Bethany Christian Services www.bethany.org		$600,000 (2006–2011)
Catholic Charities of West Michigan www.ccwestmi.org	$99,998 (sub-grant)
District Health Department #2 www.dhd2.org	$100,000 (sub-grant)
District Health Department #4 www.dhd4.org	$100,000 (sub-grant)
Ingham County Health Department hd.ingham.org			$276,826 (2004–2009)
Jackson County Health Department www.co.jackson.mi.us/HD	$75,000 (sub-grant)
South Side Community Coalition www.southsidecommunitycoalition. org	$100,000 (sub-grant)
St. John Community Health Investment Corp. www.stjohnprovidence.org	$100,000 (sub-grant)
Tuscola Intermediate School District www.tisd.k12.mi.us	$100,000 (sub-grant)
Wedgwood Christian Services www.wedgwood.org	$100,000 (sub-grant)
YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit www.ymcadetroit.org		$600,000 (2007–2012)

Adolescent Health Contact[22]

Carrie Tarry

Adolescent and School Health Manager

Division of Family and Community Health
Michigan Department of Community Health

109 West Michigan Avenue, 4^th Floor
Lansing, MI 48913
Phone: (517) 335-8906

Michigan Organizations that Support Comprehensive Sexuality Education

American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan 2966 Woodward Avenue Detroit, MI 48201 Phone: (313) 578-6800 www.aclumich.org	AIDS Partnership Michigan 2751 East Jefferson, Suite 301 Detroit, MI 48207 Phone: (800) 515-3434 www.aidspartnership.org
The LGC Network of Western Michigan 345 Atlas Avenue SE Grand Rapids, MI 49506 Phone: (616) 458-3511 www.the-lgbt-network.org	Michigan AIDS Coalition 429 Livernois Ferndale, MI 48220 Phone: (248) 545-1435 www.michiganaidscoalition.org
Michigan National Organization for Women P.O. Box 860 East Lansing, MI 48826 Phone: (517) 485-9687 www.michnow.org	Michigan Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice P.O. Box 739 East Lansing, MI 48823 www.mircrc.org
Planned Parenthood Affiliates of Michigan P.O. Box 19104 Lansing, MI 48901 Phone: (517) 482-1080 www.miplannedparenthood.org	Triangle Foundation 19641 West Seven Mile Road Detroit, MI 48219 Phone: (313) 537-3323 www.tri.org

Michigan Organizations that Oppose Comprehensive Sexuality Education

Michigan Family Forum P.O. Box 15216 Lansing, MI 48901 Phone: (517) 374-1171 www.michiganfamily.org	Michigan Association for Sexual Health P.O. Box 80224 Lansing, MI 48908 www.misexualhealth.org
Right to Life of Michigan 2340 Porter Street SW P.O. Box 901 Grand Rapids, MI 49509 Phone: (616) 532-2300 www.rtl.org

Newspapers in Michigan[23]

The Ann Arbor News Newsroom 340 East Huron Street P.O. Box 1147 Ann Arbor, MI 48106 Phone: (734) 994-6989 www.mlive.com/annarbornews	Detroit News Newsroom 615 West Lafayette Boulevard Detroit, MI 48226 Phone: (313) 222-2300 www.detnews.com
Flint Journal Newsroom 200 East First Street Flint, MI 48502-1925 810-766-6100 www.mlive.com/flintjournal	Grand Rapids Press Newsroom 155 Michigan Street NW Grand Rapids, MI 49503 Phone: (616) 222-5400 www.mlive.com/grpress
Kalamazoo Gazette Newsroom 401 South Burdick Street Kalamazoo, MI 49007 Phone: (269) 345-3511 www.mlive.com/kzgazette	Lansing State Journal Newsroom 120 East Lenawee Lansing MI 48919 Phone: (517) 377-1020 www.lsj.com
The Macomb Daily Newsroom 100 Macomb Daily Drive Mount Clemens, MI 48043 Phone: (586) 469-4510 www.macombdaily.com	Muskegon Chronicle Newsroom P.O. Box 59 Muskegon, MI 49443-0059 Phone: (231) 722-0320 www.mlive.com/chronicle
The Oakland Press Newsroom 48 West Huron Pontiac, MI 48342 Phone: (248) 332-8181 www.theoaklandpress.com	The Saginaw News Newsroom 203 South Washington Avenue Saginaw, MI 48607 Phone: (989) 752-7171 www.mlive.com/saginawnews

Political Blogs in Michigan

Blogging for Michigan www.bloggingformichigan.com	Michigan Liberal www.michiganliberal.com
West Michigan Rising www.westmichiganrising.com

[1] Michigan Code 380.1507, Section (1), <http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(3nkwvt451srdxjydgnaa2buf))/mileg.aspx?page=GetMCLDocument&objectname=mcl-380-1507>.

[2] Michigan Code 380.1506, Section (1), <http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(5mvli4nkjlpimtiru0umq4q5))/mileg.aspx?page=getobject&objectname=mcl-380-1506>.

[3] Michigan Code 380.1507, Section (8), <http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(3nkwvt451srdxjydgnaa2buf))/mileg.aspx?page=GetMCLDocument&objectname=mcl-380-1507>.

[4] Danice K. Eaton, et. al., “Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance—United States, 2009,” Surveillance Summaries, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, vol. 59, no. SS-5 (4 June 2010): 98–109, accessed 4 June 2010, <http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pdf/ss/ss5905.pdf>. Note: Detroit also participated in the 2009 YRBS.

[5] U.S. Teenage Pregnancies, Births, and Abortions: National and State Trends and Trends by Race and Ethnicity, (Washington, DC: Guttmacher Institute, January 2010), accessed 5 March 2010, <http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/USTPtrends.pdf>, Table 3.1.

[6] Ibid., Table 3.2.

[7] Joyce A. Martin, et. al, “Births: Final Data for 2006,” National Vital Statistics Reports, vol. 57, number 7 (Hyattsville, MD: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 7 January 2009), accessed 5 March 2010, <http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr57/nvsr57_07.pdf>, Table B.

[8] U.S. Teenage Pregnancies, Births, and Abortions: National and State Trends and Trends by Race and Ethnicity, Table 3.2.

[9] Martin, et. al, “Births: Final Data for 2006,” 4.

[10] Ibid., Table B.

[11] U.S. Teenage Pregnancies, Births, and Abortions: National and State Trends and Trends by Race and Ethnicity, Table 3.5.

[12] “Cases of HIV Infection and AIDS in the United States and Dependent Areas, 2007,” HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report, vol. 19, (Atlanta, GA:Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, February 2009), accessed 5 March 2010, <http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/surveillance/resources/reports/2007report/pdf/2007SurveillanceReport.pdf> , Table 18.

[13] Slide 6: “Estimated Numbers of HIV/AIDS Cases among Adolescents 13 to 19 Years of Age, 2007—34 States,” HIV/AIDS Surveillance in Adolescents and Young Adults (through 2007), (Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, May 2009), accessed 25 March 2010, <http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/surveillance/resources/slides/adolescents/index.htm>.

[14] Ibid.; “AIDS Case Rate per 100,000 Population, All Ages, 2007,” (Menlo Park, CA: Kaiser Family Foundation), accessed 5 March 2010, <http://www.statehealthfacts.org/comparetable.jsp?ind=513&cat=11&sub=120&yr=62&typ=1&sort=a>.

[15] Ibid., Table 16.

[16] Slide 15: “Reported AIDS Cases among Adolescents 13 to 19 Years of Age, 2007—United States and Dependent Areas,” HIV/AIDS Surveillance in Adolescents and Young Adults (through 2007), (Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, May 2009), accessed 25 March 2010, <http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/surveillance/resources/slides/adolescents/index.htm>.

[17] “Wonder Database: Selected STDs by Age, Race/Ethnicity, and Gender, 1996-2008 Results,” (Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), 30 June 2009, accessed 5 March 2010, <http://wonder.cdc.gov/>; see also Table 10: “Chlamydia: Reported Cases and Rates Per 100,000 Population by Age Group and Sex: United States, 2004–2008,” Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance 2008, (Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of STD Prevention, November 2009), accessed 5 March 2010, <http://www.cdc.gov/std/stats08/surv2008-Complete.pdf>, 95.

[18] Ibid; see also Table 20: “Gonorrhea—Reported Cases and Rates per 100,000 Population by Age Group and Sex: United States, 2004–2008,” Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance 2008,106.

[19] Ibid; see also Table 33: “Primary and Secondary Syphilis—Reported Cases and Rates per 100,000 Population by Age Group and Sex: United States, 2004–2008,” Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance 2008, 121.

[20] This refers to the federal government’s fiscal year, which begins on October 1^st and ends on September 30^th. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, Fiscal Year 2009 began on October 1, 2008 and ended on September 30, 2009.

[21] Through the Fiscal Year 2010 appropriations process, Congress eliminated all discretionary funding for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs, including the entire CBAE program and the abstinence-only-until-marriage portion of AFLA. The grant years listed in the chart reflect the years for which funding was originally approved; however, the grants effectively ended in Fiscal Year 2009.

[22] SIECUS has identified this person as a state-based contact for information on adolescent health and if applicable, abstinence-only-until-marriage programs.

[23] This section is a list of major newspapers in your state with contact information for their newsrooms. This list is by no means exhaustive and does not contain the local level newspapers which are integral to getting your message out to your community. SIECUS strongly urges you to follow stories about the issues that concern you on the national, state, and local level by using an internet news alert service such as Google alerts, becoming an avid reader of your local papers, and establishing relationships with reporters who cover your issues. For more information on how to achieve your media goals visit the SIECUS Community Action Kit.

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Michigan State Profile Fiscal Year 2009