Responsible for federal programs which promote the economic and social well-being of families, children, individuals, and communities.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), for matching grants to states to provide abstinence education and, at state option, mentoring, counseling, and adult supervision to promote abstinence from sexual activity, with a focus on groups that are most likely to bear children out-of-wedlock.

The Roundtable on Religion & Social Welfare Policy’s analysis of ACLU of Massachusetts v. Leavitt.

The History of the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States. Read a history of abstinence-only sex education and government funding from the National Coalition to Support Sexuality Education.

ACLU of Massachusetts v. Secretary of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: The ACLU filed a 2005 lawsuit against the U.S. government, accusing it of financing the religious activities of Silver Ring Thing, a national program that provides abstinence-only education. In 2002, the state of Louisiana settled a lawsuit in which the ACLU asked […]

A Stateline.org story. The U.S. government continues to increase funding for abstinence-only education and requires states to teach abstinence only in order to receive funds. In November 2005, Maine joined California and Pennsylvania in rejecting thousands of federal dollars in favor of teaching comprehensive sex education.

Rachelle Mee-Chapman is abbess and founder of a small urban abbey, ThPM (Thursday Night Gathering) in Seattle.

Deborah Loyd is a pastor and planter of The Bridge Christian Church for street kids and socially disenfranchised people in Portland, Ore. and is co-founder of Women’s Convergence that supports women in Christian ministries.

Heather Kirk-Davidoff is a pastor in Maryland and serves on the board of Emergent. She is co-founder of the Emerging Women Leaders Initiative. She has published a number of essays and is a frequent contributor to the Alban Institue’s Congregations Magazine.