Thank You

This flyer arrived in my inbox today and I wanted my blog to be the first place I share it. After all, my nomination for an Ontario College's Premier's Award is thanks to Sex Ed Central's ongoing growth and success.

It is an honour to be nominated for such a prestigious award and I am grateful to many special family members and friends for their never-ending love, encouragement and support. Of course, thank you to my readers, followers and supporters for being part of this awesome journey. And thank you to Georgian College for this wonderful recognition!

Wish me luck at the Gala in November!

Candice :)

P.S. Thank you to Analyzed Marketing Solutions for taking care of all of my web needs!

 

Sex Ed Central in the Georgian View

The 2011/2012 issue of Georgian View has been released, and I'm a featured alumnus! If you're interested in checking it out, you can view the PDF version here: Georgian View 2011/2012

Georgian View is Georgian College's annual Alumni magazine. The magazine features alumni from various Georgian campuses who stand out from the crowd in one way or another. Check out what my fellow alumni are doing, and feel free to spread the good news! I'm on page 12 - "Let's Talk About Sex"!!

Thanks for your support!
Candice :)

Sex ed workshops, partnerships and being a CYW ...

I've been holding off on this post for a few days, as I wanted to make sure things were relatively solid before I said anything.  Now, I can make a few announcements ......

 

1) I'm employed!  Yes, after two and a half months, I have a job, as a Child and Youth Worker (CYW), and I am thrilled!

2) I have officially developed a partnership with Bartimaeus Inc., where I will be offering specialized training workshops as well as child and adolescent group programs, all in the field of sexuality education.  I'm very excited about this opportunity -- stay tuned to my blog to hear all about it!

3) The Guelph Sexuality Conference was AWESOME.  I learned all kinds of great information and useful ideas.  Keep reading to hear more!

4) I am graduating next week!  The day is almost here, where I will become an official, full-fledged CYW.  Look out youth, here I come!

5) I have more exciting training and professional development coming up, including a workshop next week at the AIDS Committee of Guelph.  The topic is LGBT and Aging, and you can find more information here.

6) The workshops I'm developing right now are related to sexuality for individuals with developmental disabilities.  Do you have something to contribute?  I would love to hear from you!

I know this has been a short post, but I need to get back to my workshop development.  Stay tuned and thanks for your support!

Candice :)

Talking about SEX is so much fun!

Last night I had an opportunity to get back into what I love most, and facilitate a workshop!  Yeah!  Thanks to my cousin, Steph, for telling her fellow staff about her "Sexpert" cousin, and getting me an "in"!  It also helps that, as a Child and Youth Worker (CYW), I love working and interacting with teens.  Go CYW!  :)

Last night's session, with a dozen or so early/mid teen girls, was fun, exciting, entertaining and -- as always -- a great learning experience for me.  The girls were excited to talk, ask questions and get a first-hand look at many of the contraceptive options available to them.  I was equally (perhaps more!) excited to share my knowledge and engage them in discussion.  Woody made his usual appearance for an interactive condom demonstration, inviting laughter and jokes, as well as a few size-comparisons (sorry Woody, it seems you don't always measure up!).  End the evening with delicious cake (if you know me, you know I definitely enjoy cake!) and we've got a pretty awesome-tastic evening!

If you or someone you know may be interested in booking a workshop, pass this along or contact me!

Enjoy the sunshine!

Candice :)

It's time for more sex!

Well folks, the time has come ... I am officially FINISHED college and now await graduation to officially become a Child and Youth Worker (CYW).  Thank you, Georgian College, for providing me with skills, knowledge, excellent contacts and an opportunity to pursue my passion.

Now that school is over, it's time for the good stuff!  I have relocated to Cambridge, Ontario and am launching myself into building Sex Ed Central.  What does this mean to you, dear readers?  It means more education, more workshops, more blog posts, more news updates ... in short, MORE SEX!

Doesn't that sound like fun?!?

I am open to and seeking new opportunities and networking contacts.  You can help me continue to build by simply sharing this website with anyone you know who may be interested.  If you have an idea, contact me.  I want to hear from you!

Stay tuned, folks ... it's all coming together!
Candice :)

p.s. Updated business cards are on the way!  Here's a preview ;)

Sex Ed and the OACYC

This week, my program (Child and Youth Worker, or CYW) and college (Georgian College, Orillia) hosted the bi-annual regional conference for the OACYC. The OACYC, which stands for the Ontario Association of Child and Youth Counsellors, is the representational organization for my profession. As stated on their website, "The Ontario Association of Child and Youth Counsellors (OACYC, ou en français, AOCEJ, l'Association Ontarienne des conseillers à l'enfance et à la jeunesse) is the professional association representing the 2000+ Child and Youth Counsellors - members, students and associates in the province of Ontario, Canada. It also provides a voice for the other 8,000 child and youth workers in the province."

If you know me, you may already know that I love conferences!  To me, a conference is an opportunity to network and learn (and of course, to eat lots of yummy food!).  In the past, I've attended leadership conferences for Relay for Life, which were always fun and very inspiring.  This summer, the Guelph Sexuality Conference was an excellent opportunity to network and learn with other individuals who value sexuality in similar ways to myself.  This conference was just as valuable; although the attendees and the topics of discussion were different from any other conference I have attended, opportunities to learn and connect with others abounded!

Having made some valuable connections this week, I am eagerly anticipating whatever opportunities - workshop or otherwise - may arise over the next several months.  I will keep you posted as things continue to develop.  As always, thank you for taking the time to learn about what's happening with Sex Ed Central and myself!

Candice

Who's responsible for teaching sex ed?

Whose responsibility is it to teach our young people about sex?  Is it up to parents, who are often uncomfortable and sometimes unprepared to discuss this topic with their kids?  Is it the religious groups, who often exclude those topics with which they do not agree and may only discuss abstinence as the "right" choice?  Is it the responsibility of teachers, many of whom are also uncomfortable discussing sex with young people, and may be lacking enough information to really teach the subject?  Or should we skip sex ed all together and let kids learn from their friends and older siblings, or "figure it out for themselves"?

Sex is a part of life.  It's not something that can be ignored, hidden or avoided.  It's not something shameful and it's certainly not unnatural.  It's the reason we all exist (no storks around here!) and it's the most vital part of our survival as a species.  It is intertwined with many wonderful things ... love, laughter, pleasure, and fun.  It can also be used in negative ways ... manipulation, abuse, assault, victimization.

Sex can also be scary.  STIs are out there, and many of them are on the rise.  Rates of Chlamydia are continuing to rise, especially amongst young people 15-24 years old.  Gonorrhea is rising as well.  And syphilis, which had become very rare in Canada, increased by 62% from 2008 to 2009 (Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit, Public Health Ontario, 2010).

Anyone who engages in any "risky" sexual activity (e.g. unprotected vaginal or anal sex, unprotected oral sex, having multiple partners, sharing toys, etc) is at risk for STIs.  While some STIs are curable, many are not.  Herpes, for example, makes itself comfortable and stays for life.  It can be transmitted even when the person does not have any symptoms, and yes, if you have a cold sore and give your partner oral sex, they can get genital herpes!

Although I cannot speak as a parent, I can speak as an experienced Sexual Health Educator and as a Child and Youth Worker.  I can tell you that, regardless of what kind of sex ed they receive, some young people are going to have sex and others are not.  Handing a young person a condom is no more likely to make them have sex than handing someone $50 is going to make them go to the casino and gamble.  In fact, if the youth are educated - thoroughly, honestly, accurately - they are more likely to choose not to have sex.

Which brings me to my original question - whose responsibility is it to teach our children and youth about sex?  In my opinion, sex ed should be taught by those who are comfortable doing so, and who are prepared to be honest and frank with their audience.  Sexual health educators need to be confident and provide plenty of opportunity for the audience to engage with the information.  I can speak from experience when I say that, when presented with the opportunity to talk openly and ask questions, young people are eager to learn.

Sex ed isn't about telling people what they "should" or "shouldn't" do, or preaching about what's "right" and "wrong".  It's about presenting the information - the factual information - and letting people decide for themselves.  That's what Sex Ed Central is all about.  I talk to people about sex and offer the facts: STIs are out there, pregnancy can happen at any stage in a woman’s cycle, and to be unsure about your sexual orientation does not make you any less of a person.

If you're interested in this topic, check out my other posts, read this article or contact me.

Thanks for reading,

Candice

The path to sex ed is long and convoluted ...

When I decided to go back to school for Child and Youth Work (go Georgian College!), I didn't really think too much about my human sexuality related ambitions. After graduating from U of G, I had briefly considered doing an MSc in Human Sexuality but decided that research wasn't really my thing ... I prefer to get "in there" and connect with people, and CYW seemed a great way to do that.

Jump ahead to April 2009, at which point I found myself on placement at a really great elementary school in the Orillia/Barrie area. My supervisor gave me the freedom to schedule my time however was best suited to everyone involved, and also gave me the opportunity to pursue what I REALLY wanted to do. At that point I began offering to teach sex ed to the seventh and eight grade students at the school - and all of the teachers went for it! Needless to say, I loved every moment of it and learned more than I had ever anticipated.

Fast forward a few more months, to September 2009. Although I was only anticipating completing my second (six week) placement in the upcoming spring, I was determined to make it the best placement I possibly could. A few revisions and suggestions later, I found myself planning instead for my final 400 hour placement, which was even better! I started phoning and emailing and visiting agencies in the area, offering to do sex-ed outreach, to teach, to run a workshop ... whatever they needed and wanted! At first I didn't have too much success ... I quickly discovered that Simcoe county is rather conservative in many ways, and doesn't offer much in terms of sexual health resources to youth. Even an offer of free labour and an independent student wasn't enough to entice!

My luck turned around when I was referred by one of my fabulous teachers to the Orillia Youth Centre. Kevin quickly agreed to take me on as a student and let me develop, implement, and evaluate my own workshop. He offered me free reign to do as I pleased ... topics, content, guest speakers, activities ... it was all up to me! At that point I was ecstatic, though I was still looking for a second agency to partner with; my ultimate goal was a split placement with an agency whose name and affiliation could benefit me in the long run.

On January 8 I was attending a Leadership Conference at the Georgian campus in Barrie, where I noticed that one of the agencies attending the "networking lunch" was the AIDS Committee of Simcoe County. I introduced myself and explained what I was trying to do, and my ultimate goal of having a "split placement" with an organization such as the ACSC and the OYC. Karyn immediately agreed and said that a split placement would suit her perfectly. If I had been ecstatic before, now I was bursting with excitement!

Now that I had both of my placement supervisors arranged, I started to think about everything involved with planning and running a sex-ed workshop. Of several things I was certain: that I would be working 95% independently, that I wanted to give myself lots of time to plan the workshop, and that I wanted more than 8 weeks to run it. I talked to a few people, did a little self-advocating, and within a few days I had made the arrangements to start my placement two months early, on a part-time basis. I officially began my placement on February 8, 2010.

Though nowhere near over yet, this journey has taught me a great deal. I have realized, among other things, that I am a strong advocate for myself as well as others. I've learned that if I am determined to make something happen, I can do it! And now, as the workshop really gets going, I'm learning that I'm a pretty good sexual health educator as well!

Let's hear it for comprehensive sex ed! :)