Teen STAR - Catholic Formation in Human Sexuality in the Archdiocese of Denver

Grow
Parish Function
Case Study

Audience: Teens

Publisher

Teen STAR

Background

Teen STAR (Sexuality Teaching in the context of Adult Responsibility) is a developmental curriculum founded by Hanna Klaus, MD (Sr. Miriam Paul, MMS) that helps adolescents and young adults to come to terms with their emerging sexuality and fertility and assists them in making responsible decisions. Beginning with the physical, the young person can then integrate their intellectual, emotional, social, and spiritual aspects of their persona and mature into a fully integrated human being.

Strategy

Background

Teachers of this course are trained by Teen STAR directly at online or in-person training sessions, and accompanied as they begin teaching in the classroom. The Teen STAR teaching strategy utilizes the Socratic Method, in which students are asked questions about their own experiences, the views of the culture and different age groups, and then enter into discourse about the conclusions they uncover. The goal of the program is for students to arrive at the truth and beauty of the Church’s teaching through their own discoveries.

The course is designed for middle school and high school students, with some flexibility in presentation to adapt for different age groups and stages of maturity. While some units can be taught in a co-educational model, several lessons are recommended to be taught to male and female student separately. Unit content includes: gender and identity, social and cultural views of sexuality, anatomy brain and fertility and development, hormones, behaviors, decision making, assertiveness, the sanctity of human life, relationships and dating, and finally how these lessons are reflected in living a moral life (this includes sexual morality, sexually transmitted infections and pornography, as well as cohabitation and pre-marital sex).

While Teen STAR has grown to offer programs across the US and internationally, the Archdiocese of Denver is the first US diocese to promote the program as its preferred curriculum for Catholic schools. Carrie Keating, Marriage and NFP Specialist for the Archdiocese, took on the responsibility of planning and implementation, and continues to work with schools and parishes in the Denver area to expand the program.

Archdiocesan Support

Carrie Keating presented Teen STAR to the archbishop of Denver, who sent his recommendation to the superintendent of Catholic schools:

“I would like to encourage programs and curricula within the archdiocese that equip our youth in the meaning, truth and dignity of human sexuality. I support programs like Teen STAR that instruct our teens on the meaning of their bodies, how to understand them, and to present this knowledge in the context of the virtue of chastity.”– Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila, Archbishop of Denver

Pilot Program

The first schools to train teachers and enroll students in the course was selected based on the school administration’s desire to teach the ethos of Theology of the Body in a way that was practical and accessible to teens. It was important to select a school with both male and female teachers who were passionate about the course content and actively living out the Church’s teaching on human sexuality. The archdioceses selected a religious school in which the religious order had studied John Paul II’s Theology of the Body extensively, and faculty and administrators were eager to participate. The school determined that 8^th grade was a time in their students’ development and curriculum where Teen STAR would be most effective.

The school hosted meetings for parents of boys and girls separately, at which they presented the program and explained the curriculum, its goals, and how it would be integrated into the existing school schedule. Parents were also asked to take an active role in their students’ learning by helping them with interactive homework assignments and discussions and continuing conversations in more detail at home if students had questions. Parents were invited to participate in a second parent meeting mid-way through the course to discuss follow-up questions and any other development they had observed since their students began the class, and a final meeting at the end of the program to provide valuable feedback on the class and how it has impacted their students’ behaviors, decision-making, communication, and their views on human sexuality.

Results

Program Expansion

Keating continues to meet with school administrators personally to present the program and offer support if they choose to adopt the curriculum. After the second successful school program completed the course for the first time, some of the parents collected comments and words of praise for the curriculum and urged parents and teachers of other schools to try it. Many of the parent and student quotes can be found at the Archdiocese of Denver website for Teen Star.

Feedback provided has repeatedly shown that taking the Teen STAR course has been a positive experience for both parent and child. Teens report they feel more comfortable and confident in their understanding and their ability to talk about their sexuality and other challenges they face. Parents report more mature behaviors in their home environments, improved communication and more active communication with them in the areas of dating, sex, and reproductive development after their students have taken the class. Teachers of other subjects in schools offering Teen STAR report that their students are more attentive, exhibit better decision-making and maturing behaviors in the classroom.

Since its inception, Teen STAR in Denver has grown to include 8 locations, including Catholic schools, parish youth ministry groups, and a middle school after-school program. They continue to offer online meetings for teachers to assist in lesson planning, teaching strategies, and provide general support as well as professional development to teachers in the field.