Newspapers / The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.) / Dec. 26, 1985, edition 1 / Page 2
Part of The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
Viewpoints Teenage pregnancies are haunting problem A group of Hoke County residents is close to coming up with a plan for slowing down the number of teenage pregnancies, which have become a severe problem for this community and the nation during the last decade. During the last two years, teenage mothers have averaged giving birth to 25* of the children born in Hoke County, and if the pro blem continues to be ignored by the community, it can only grow worse. Because of recent national attention to teenage pregnancy and because of the promise of some state funds for corrective programs, Hoke County is in a good posing to take steps which will make a difference to lives of everyone who lives here. Although in recent years, the number of teen pregnancies has dropped in Hoke County, the problem is still critical. In 1979, Hoke County was ranked second in the state in teen pregnancy. In 1983, this county dropped to a 30th place. Much of the credit can be given to limited counseling in the schools, but if a real dent is going to be made, more is needed. According to an article in Time magazine on December 9, most teen mothers are poor and unmarried. The prospect of a good life for their children is slim. National statistics show most teenage mothers are not likely to finish high school and most will be welfare recipients. Children born to teen mothers are more likely to be victims of abuse or neglect and to be placed in foster homes. Children of teenagers are also prone to illness, educational problems and many end up in prison. In most cases, teens beget problems when they have children. Here are the facts: ?During the last fiscal year in Hoke County, there were 47 children born to teenage mothers of whom 90ro were unmarried. The mothers ranged in age from 14 to 18. ?Currently one-third of the children under the protective custody of the Hoke County Department of Social Services were born to teenage mothers. In Hoke County, foster care has a budget of about $50,000. Nationwide it costs taxpayers 58. 1 billion. ?Nationally, 71?o of women under 30 who receive Aid to Families With Dependent Children (AFDC) had their first child as a teen. In Hoke County, where over 900 children are served by the an nual AFDC budget of Si. 2 million, it is safe to assume the national statistics apply, DSS staff members say. ?About 80ro of the 150 children, who are referred to the Hoke County juvenile court system each year, are believed to be the off springs of unmarried teenage mothers. Since a child must be 13 to enter the system, today's problems began prior to 1972. As juveniles, their crimes generally range from petty larceny to truan cy, but statistics show many will go on to commit more serious of fenses. ?Nationwide, half of the girls, who get pregnant prior to their 18th birthday, do not finish high school. In Hoke County, 89 students dropped out of school last year, and 32 girls who were 17 or younger had babies. ?Last year in Hoke County, two babies were born to 14 year olds, five to 15 year olds, 11 to 16 year olds, 14 to 17 year olds and 15 to 18 year olds. Only five mothers were married. Out of the 47 births to teens, nine mothers had their second child, two had a third and one a sixth. ?Teen mothers also give birth to teen mothers. Sur\eys have shown 82ro of girls who gave birth at 15 or younger, were daughters of teenage mothers. A recent study by Johns Hopkins University researchers found one in five 1 5 year olds, one in three 16 year olds and 43?7o of the 17 year olds were sexually active. The study also showed most were ig norant of birth control methods, and many believe myths such as: You do not get pregnant the first time you have sex. You can not get pregnant if you have sex standing up, and you can not get pregnant if you only have sex occasionally. One third of the teenagers 15 to 19, who are sexually active, do not use contraceptives. Hoke County health officials recently conducted a survey of local teens about pregnancy. Most felt many unwanted pregnancies could be avoided with better counseling and if contraceptives were made easily and discretely available. In St. Pauls, Minnesota, teen pregnancy rates dropped dramatically after full service health clinics were opened in the city's high schools. Once the clinics were in place, the birth rate in one school fell from 45 per 1,000 to 10 per 1,000. Only 1 had a second unwanted pregnancy. Members of the local teenage pregnancy task force are looking in to a number of approaches to the problem in Hoke County, in cluding more counseling through churches and schools. A clinic like the one in St. Pauls is also under consideration. We believe it-would make a big difference here. Sociologists attribute teenage pregnancies to a lack of sex educa tion and a lack of easy access to birth control, but they also believe the true root to the problem is a sense of worthlessness and despair on the part of the mother. Most of those who become pregnant as a teenager are from a lower socio-economic group and they do not have a sense of the future. Having a baby gives than a feeling of belonging. To paraphrase answers given to health officials by Hoke County teens: Many times girls don't have a good home life and feel the need for love and attention. Having a baby is a way to acheive fullfillment of the needs. If parents don't show her concern and respect, then why should she respect herself. It is the syndrome of "I was nobody, but now I am a mother." In her Tlmte article, "Children having children" writer Claudia Wallis summed up the problem whxh exists in Hoke County "As long as adolescents look in the minor and see nobody there, they are likely to seek identity by becoming somebody's mother." | it is tone to stop ignoring the problem of teeaace children having children In Hoke County. We need to take our heads out of the '.pi and do something about reality. ^ To do Itsa would be unconscionable. MPk Jl^dilyri Old Christmas can be savored Complaints grow louder each year that Christmas has become mostly a party binge and commer cial bonanza but those who wish to enjoy an old-time Christmas can do so, with proper planning and determination. Family members will enjoy help ing mothers prepare special Christmas dishes and foods ahead of time. Some of these specialties can be the presents to be given family, friends and neighbors. All of us appreciate self-made remem brances ? which also save money and shopping time. The secret to a relaxed Christmas is to plan ahead so that Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and one or two days after Christmas are not hectic. Imagination and perhaps sometimes discipline will be needed to keep the family together and calm during the holidays. Televi sion can often be profitably disconnected, temptations of the highway resisted. Instead, family games, talks, sports, meals and home projects of pleasure can be enjoyed-- good food, good company, and the meaning of Christmas. VALLEY FORGE ... One of the most discouraging Decembers for Americans was that in 1777, after the battles of Brandywine and Ger mantown, which led to the occupa tion of the nation's capital at Philadelphia that autumn. Washington had kept his army intact, which numbered about 1 1 ,000 men, and he moved it into a strong position about twenty-four miles northwest of Philadelphia. The position was easily situated for defense and Congress when then sitting in York; from Valley Forge, Washington was in a posi tion to block the British if they movtxi on the temporary capital. Washington encamped there ex actly 206 years ago on the 19th (1777). It was to be perhaps the hardest winter for hit army because the commissary depart ment and quartermaster general failed to deliver adequate supplies to his troops. But under the strong training of German-born Baron Steuben, the man were turned into a disciplined army. After thai- gloomy winter, American hopes began to rise. The Cliff Blue People and Issues British evacuated Philadeiptua in June, 1778. Washington reoc cupied it on the 18th. Lord Corn wallis surrendered to Washington on October 18. 1781. at Yorktown. Virginia, ending the Revolutionary War. GOVERNMENT CHECKS ... The familiar green punch cards issued by the U.S. government since the 1940s are being replaced by multicolored paper checks that are lighter, easier to store and more difficult to counterfeit. The first checks are being delivered to 20 million Social Security reci pients. HOSPITAL PROFITS ... Hospitals receiving Medicare payments recorded above-average profits during the first year of a new payment strategy that the in dustry had said might cause substantial losses, says an internal report by the Health and Human Services Department. ON DEBATES ... Making can didate debates a formal part of presidential campaigns won the en dorsement of the Republican and Democratic Party chairmen, who also conceded that they lack the power to force their nominees to go along. WEATHER ... Does winter have days with less sunlight than the other seasons? Is this why it's the coldest of our seasons? Strangely enough, winter does not have less sunlight than any other season. Fall, which ends December 20, this year, averages the same amount of sunlight, per day, as does winter. The shortest day of the year, December 21, is the winter solstice in June, the days are setting longer as soon as winter begins. Winter is the coldest of seasons because the earth loses most of its summer heat by January and February contain more daylight than Ncwanber and Decarober. New education group has great potential RALEIGH ? When Gerry Han cock was a state senator, he ran in to a problem many legislators com plain of. They'll like some guidance on education policy but when they turn to the education community, they often find it was divided as the different factions in the legislature. In hopes of developing a unified voice for education, a number of influential North Carolinians have joined together to form the North Carolina Public School Forum. The Forum will be comprised of politicians of both parties, educators and businessmen. Han cock is chairman. Jay Robinson, superintendent of the Charlotte - Mecklenburg schools, is president. The Z. Smith Reynolds Founda tion has chipped In with S75.000 to help gel the Forum rolling. The idea is to pro\ide the many groups concerned with education a form of ongoing summit *here they can find common ground on education issues. If the potential good of such unity is to be realized, however, the forum will have to walk a pair of political tightropes. First, the Forum must help build trust be tween its business and educational interests, and keep both committed to the idea of the Forum. Second, the leadership of the N.C. Associa tion of Educators will ha\e to com mit themselves to a greater flex ibility on issues than they may have shown in the past. '"Over the past decade there has been considerable distrust between the different elements of the education lobby. Groups representing teachers, superintendents, school boards and principals have had different ideas and they've clashed. The business community, with its push for tax cuts and merit pay for teachers, has alienated elements of the education community. in the past two years, however, one man has played a big role in bringing the different education groups together. John Dornan. ex ecutive director of NCAE. has played a pivotal role in forging a peace between the groups. As Robinson said. Dornan "has the Watching By Aim/ T OTowwr abililtv to bring diverse groups together." That experience made Oxoan a natural selection for c\wmvt director of the Forum. But the test before him in this job ?tl! he far greater than that he has already passed. Gov. Jim Martin toVi a recent meeting of the N.C. Foundation for Research and Economic Education. a business, group that plans to Ilex some political muscles, that heMl push for more tax cuts in coming years- He got a healths round of applause. Educators worry that such tax cuts and new mones to help the Highway Fund will come out of resources that should go to the public schools. But Sherwood Smith, chief executive of Carotma Power Jt Light and Forum direc tor. said business is committed to increased education funding. He said that state revenues are grow ing fast enough to allow both extra spending for schools and tax cuts. If business leaders are to com-, promise on one hand. thevTI ex pect compromise from education leaders on the other. In the past. NCAE has been pretty thick headed. Gladys Graves. NCAE president, admitted almost that much but said that obstinance came in a different climate. In past years. Ms. Graves said. NCAE was arguing that con siderable improvements were need ed in teacher salaries before other issues could be addtessed. Those improvements have started no*, she said, and NCAE might be in a better mood to compromise, if others share thai attitude But >h< warned thai on some issues, like mertt pay. NCAE \ op position *ill never be compromis ed. The Forum may be a great idea but >?e can all be excused if we are a bit skeptical about its chances for success. Holiday season gives time for reflection Historically, the holiday season is a time for reflection, a lime to count our blessings which are many in this country. It is sometimes easy to lose sight of how fine and great a country we have. And, a lot of this nation's strengths are due to agriculture. Agriculture can take pride in its accomplishments because without an abundant food supply much of this prosperity, which we take for granted, would not be possible. American farmers remain un challenged as the world's greatest supplier of food. As farmers, we are quite proud of this. Americans are the best fed of any country and it takes less of our disposable income than ever before. It's difficult these days to think of anything as cheap. However, whether we admit it or not. this country does have a cheap food policy. Occasionally, it may bring temporary relief at the checkout counter. Bui the long-term costs can and will be very high indeed and the dangers of continuing in this direction are great. For one thing, it threatens one of the real basic strengths of our economy; our ability to produce food and fiber better than any other nation in the work! Oir freedom to a great extent is based on a strong and independent agriculture system. Today, production agriculture prov ides jobs for nearly one out of every five Americans employed in the private sector. It fights infla tion with a productivity growth five times that of non-farm in dustry in the past several years. Without agriculture, our dollar would have less buying power since exports haw been a leading factor in our balance of trade. So. let's be thankful for our country as we get ready for 1986 and especially for the fanners who help make it all possible! The News-Journal UMmw Pit*. I*-.. fw| waMMk IW. IW* *??*. f.o. Im S9? ?*<?<. N.t . am s?>?>npliBi Raits la Mtaact la ( nM> ht Vm iW.M ? Vha*, WW Owl ul ( MMh h? >nr ? SU N 4 MmmR? ? SkM LOtIS H. IOGUMAV. JR. WARREN N. JOHNSTON .. ?ON ANDERSON HENRY L BLl'E SAM C.MORRIS ANN N. WEN RAM FREDERICK A*? rtsrs vr.
The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Dec. 26, 1985, edition 1
2
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75