Adherence to Title V Guidelines

Keith’s student and parent presentations, as well as his book, Fighting Back, adhere to Title V guidelines put forth in Title V, Section 510(b)(2) of the 1996 Social Security Act. As defined by Title V, a program is able to receive Title V funding if it:

A) Has as its exclusive purpose, teaching the social, psychological, and health gains to be realized by abstaining from sexual activity;

B) Teaches abstinence from sexual activity outside marriage as the expected standard for all school age children;

C) Teaches that abstinence from sexual activity is the only certain way to avoid out-of -wedlock pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and other associated health problems;

D) Teaches that a mutually faithful monogamous relationship in the context of marriage is the expected standard of human sexual activity;

E) Teaches that sexual activity outside of the context of marriage is likely to have harmful psychological and physical effects;

F) Teaches that bearing children out-of wedlock is likely to have harmful consequences for the child, the child’s parents, and society;

G) Teaches young people how to reject sexual advances and how alcohol and drug use increases vulnerability to sexual advances; and,

H) Teaches the importance of attaining self-sufficiency before engaging in sexual activity.

Additionally, since Title V funding is channeled through federal and state agencies, Keith does not include any faith based materials in either his student/parent presentations or his book, Fighting Back.

Keith can provide complete letters of recommendation from federal, state, and local school administrators from throughout the United States who have used his services in connection with Title V funding. Go to the "What Others Say!" and then “school testimonials” section to view a sample of complete letters and endorsements. More are available upon request.

What to look for in an Abstinence Speaker: 

A note from Keith 

   If I don’t have dates available I’m often asked to recommend another speaker.  Rather than recommend a specific speaker, I would like to set out some guidelines to help you.  It is an important decision and your organizations reputation is at risk. 

So, here’s what I caution people to look for: 

• A potential abstinence speaker should have several years experience and letters of recommendation to back it up.
• A potential abstinence speaker should be well versed in the most recent studies that support (and do not support) the abstinence movement.  For example, I would ask a potential speaker “what is your response to the Mathmatica report?” 
• A potential abstinence speaker should be able to quote medically accurate statistics on condom failure/effectiveness rates.
• A potential abstinence speaker should be able to hold the attention of their audience.
• A potential abstinence speaker should be able to adjust their message to deal with different ethnic/economic groups. 
• A potential abstinence speaker should know the importance of keeping religious and political material out of their presentation.
• A potential abstinence speaker should be able to deal with pressure from special interest groups that are opposed to abstinence education.
• A potential abstinence speaker should know that they are there to promote the local group, not themselves.
• A potential abstinence speaker should be willing to make multiple presentations per 24 hour period so that the sponsoring group can show effective use of their funds (maximum number of youth and adults reached)
• A potential abstinence speaker should offer a parent component in order to reach adults with the information that will enable them to help their children resist peer pressure.
• A potential abstinence speaker should be able to help with publicity for evening events.
• A potential abstinence speaker should be comfortable during a TV/radio/newspaper interviews and should have samples of their publicity/media work.