Teenage Girls at Risk

Adopted 1995.

The League of Women Voters of Portland, Oregon supports equal access to appropriate services for at risk girls and boys.  These services should be comprehensive in nature and should include outreach, treatment and follow-up.

We support:

• Appropriate services that include consideration of gender, developmental phase, intellectual capacity, cultural identification, sexual orientation, as well as mental and physical clinical considerations.
• A comprehensive service directory plan that includes outreach, emergency services, case management, individual and family counseling, housing and follow-up.  Effectiveness of these programs should be evaluated periodically.
• Emphasis on early detection and prevention of child abuse.
• The teaching of parenting skills.
• Strategies to prevent teenage pregnancy which include the following: school-based health centers, sex education programs, teacher training, and the availability of a range of contraceptives at the school-based health clinics.
• Group homes and improved foster care for youth under age 16 in need of housing.  Group homes as part of transition services for youth leaving residential treatment programs.
• Gender specific drug and alcohol treatment programs.