What We Do
CHS is dedicated to providing top-quality, evidence-based programs and services to children and families throughout North Carolina. SYNC uses the evidence-based curriculum, Making Proud Choices, to work with young people ages 12 – 18 to:
- reinforce self-respect & respect for others
- clear up misinformation about sex
- discuss healthy relationships
- prevent unplanned pregnancies, relationship violence, & STIs
- identify & discuss future goals & dreams
Who We Serve
The SYNC program provides FREE sexual health education for both out-of-home teens and the professionals who work with them to answer the need of youth in foster care to access appropriate and accurate information regarding sex, love, and relationships.
SYNC is offered in all 100 counties across North Carolina.
SYNC Program Goals
50% of young men aging out of foster care report fathering a child before they turn 21.
Teen girls in foster care are 2.5x more likely to get pregnant than those not in foster care.
Professional Training & Support
We offer free staff development workshops on a variety of topics for adults and professionals who work with youth in out-of-home care. This includes DSS staff, LINKS staff, Guardian ad Litem staff and volunteers, foster parents, group home staff, juvenile detention staff, and other organizations.
Topics addressed can include:
Refreshers on:
- Puberty
- STDs/STIs
- Reproductive Anatomy
Specialized Content on:
- Substance Abuse Prevention
- Teen Rights on Health Care & Confidentiality
- Providing Trauma-Informed Sexual Health Information
Our trainers can also provide hand-tailored workshops based on requests. If you need another topic addressed, just let us know, and we can develop a workshop to meet your needs.
For more information, or to schedule a youth program or professional workshop, please contact:
Our Guiding Principles
We believe that sexual health education is critical to the health and wellbeing of young people in care, and that sexual health education should be:
- Presented as a normal, natural, and healthy part of human development;
- Medically accurate and unbiased;
- Trauma-informed;
- Comprehensive; evidence-based and skills driven;
- Relevant to current needs and age appropriate;
- Taught early and often, especially during adolescence;
- Updated regularly based on emerging new information;
- Grounded in honoring the diversity of young people;
- Provided in coordination with additional resources and referrals as needed;
- Developed in collaboration with youth in care with ongoing feedback; and
- Delivered by authentic, qualified and caring professionals in an interactive approach where youth voices, experiences and questions are valued.
Many youth in out-of-home care do not have a trusting relationship with an adult that could provide sexual health education during adolescence, when risky sexual behaviors could occur. We believe that all professionals who care for young people should receive ongoing staff development to facilitate conversations about sexual health education and collaborate to provide SYNC programming directly to youth in care.
Resources for Teens
At any age you have the right to any and all of the following:
See a health care provider...
See a health care provider for STI treatment/testing, birth control, pregnancy tests, prenatal care, substance abuse treatment, or outpatient mental health treatment without a parent’s permission.
Access to certain types of emergency contraception...
Purchase certain types of emergency contraception — including Plan B One-Step, Next Choice ONE DOSE, , My Way, After Pill and Levonorgestrel — over the counter at a pharmacy without a prescription. This is true for all people, regardless of sex, age, or gender.
Get a prescription for Ella emergency contraception.
Both Plan B (levonorgestrel) and Ella (ulipristal) pills have the same purpose. They are meant to be used as emergency contraceptives after having unprotected, or unplanned sex. This should never be the main form of birth control, but an emergency contraceptive can be there if your primary method fails.
Get birth control from a medical provider...
This includes prescription-based birth control and methods you get at a health care provider’s office like the shot, implant and IUD.
Opill
Birth control with no prescription. If on Medicaid get Opill at no cost in North Carolina. Learn more at https://opill.com
Purchase condoms and lube...
Visit the clinic locator to find the closest provider to you.
Find additional laws that pertain to me...
Since laws are constantly changing, we encourage you to visit guttmacher.org to find information about laws that are impacting YOU.