Health Department Program Is Finalist in Global Competition

Corvallis, OR  February 28, 2008 – The Benton County Health Department's Male Advocates for Responsible Sexuality (MARS) Program has been chosen as a finalist in a global competition of programs designed to help young men at risk.

The MARS Program is one of 14 finalists selected out of 364 applicants from 39 nations in Ashoka's Changemakers "Young Men at Risk" online competition. The Ashoka's Changemakers project is building the world's first global online "open source" community that competes to identify the best social solutions to the world's most pressing issues. To date, Changemakers has launched 14 successful collaborative competitions and attracted more than 2,000 initiatives from more than 125 countries.

"Successfully competing with projects from all over the US and the world demonstrates the expertise we have developed in Benton County," said Benton County Health Administrator Tom Eversole. "This project grew from the imagination of one staff member who recognized an unmet need. It has successfully built local, regional and statewide partnerships and operates on grant funding."

An international panel of judges selected the finalists based on outstanding innovation, social impact and sustainability. The public is invited to vote online for the top three innovations at www.changemakers.net/competition/men. Each of the winners will receive cash awards from Ashoka's Changemakers and will have the opportunity to compete for additional funding available through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Voting is open now, and continues through March 10, 2008.

The Benton County Health Department developed the MARS Program in 2000. It emphasizes sexual and social responsibility and provides reproductive health information to young men ages 13-25.  It is the only sexual health education program in Oregon that focuses on the needs of young men.  The project works in partnership with Oregon State University, as well as with area schools, YES House, Community Services Consortium, Jackson Street Youth Shelter and the Benton County Juvenile Department.

Jackson, Deschutes, Marion and Multnomah County Health Departments have adopted the MARS model and work in collaboration with Benton County.  The program is currently developing a "MARS Behind Bars" initiative that will provide comprehensive sexual health information to incarcerated youth, focus on transition-planning for young men scheduled for release from juvenile correctional institutions, and to link them to community-based sexual health services.

"Incarcerated youth and those involved with the juvenile justice system are more likely to engage in unsafe sexual behaviors that put them at an elevated risk for sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS and unintended pregnancies," said Jackie Cupples, MARS Program Coordinator.  "Additionally, these young men stand to benefit greatly from MARS Outreach Workers who are responsible peer role models – they lend credibility to program messages and provide participants with positive ideas about the people they can become."

The public is invited to comment on finalists' entries and vote for the winners. Anyone can register to vote for three innovations at www.changemakers.net/competition/men. The three projects that garner the most votes will be announced on March 11. Each will receive a $5,000 Changemakers award.  Winners will also have the opportunity to compete for additional funding available through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.