Thank you for your support. The ULTRA Teen Choice program has been reinstated in Washington, DC Public Schools. In a meeting on February 19, Dr. Richard Nyankori, Special Assistant to DC School's Chancellor Michelle Rhee indicated that ULTRA Teen Choice can continue to provide Clubs that support youth in staying abstinent, as well as classroom presentations. Clubs may occur before or after school, or at lunch time, but not during classroom time (at one school we had been holding ULTRA Teen Choice Service Club meetings during class time).

Your signatures and calls definitely made a difference, as the involvement of the Mayor's office was crucial in this reversal of the previous decision. Dr. Nyankori apologized for having stated that we could not continue to operate clubs, even after school hours. We will continue to be vigilant and see if any roadblocks occur as we proceed.

For those in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area, please show your support for directive abstinence education by participating in the third annual celebration of Abstinence Awareness Week in Washington, DC, from March 8 to March 14, 2008.

On March 8, Please join us for an Abstinence Awareness Week Youth Forum at the Wilson building, 1450 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20004, Room 412 (Enter on D St. ) Washington DC area youth will be speaking on the topic "Why is sexual abstinence a good choice?" The moderator is WAMU talk show host and author Jonetta Rose Barras. If you are interested in having a table display at the Youth Forum for your organization, or if you would like to help with the Forum please contact me.

Sign up to be on the youth panel.

The panelist with the presentation judged best in each age group; 6th to 8th grade, High School, and Young Adult will receive a $50 US Savings Bond.

The second STAR Guide Accountability Partner Mentor Dinner will be held on March 8 at 6 p.m. Middle and High School youth will be matched with a young adult ULTRA Teen Choice STAR Guide Accountability Partner Mentor. The cost of the dinner is $10 per person, with "scholarships" available.

Finally, join us on March 14 to lobby City Council members to fund directive abstinence programs for the benefit of Washington, DC youth. Please call me at 202-544-5081 if you would like to participate in this effort.

Sincerely,

Richard Urban
Co-Founder
Urban Life Training and Reality Assessment(ULTRA) Teen Choice

Mission: To provide education, peer counseling and clubs for youth that will empower them to be successful in life by choosing abstinence from sex outside of marriage and abstinence from drugs, alcohol and tobacco. We provide services to schools and youth serving organizations, including services by college students from nearby universities who support these values.

www.ultrateenchoice.org