First teen center in F. Bangoy NHS

Issues concerning teenagers can definitely not be solved by not talking about them. Teenagers’ most confusing stage demands that someone shed light on their curiosities, and the most effective and credible person to do that happen to be their peers.
It is on this premise that the first-ever Teen Center in the whole Davao schools was founded in F. Bangoy National High School. Walking up the stairs of its administration building that houses the center, one cannot help but notice the garden painting on the wall that seems to lead and invite one to its Teen Center office located at the third floor.
Symbolically, the bright colors of the sunflowers, the butterflies, and the sun downplay the grim realities facing teenagers.
The Commission on Population reported that as of 2013, 13.6 % of females 15-19 years old in Region XI are now mothers. Also, 2 in 5 youth in Davao region have sexual experience or have engaged in premarital sex (42.8 %).
It is all because 58.7 % of young people in the region do not have any source of information about sex. Moreover, only 37.8 % of youth have somebody in school who can help them if they are confronted with sex-related problems.
As the school is mandated to take care of the total well-being of the youth, the F. Bangoy National High School (FBNHS) for its part has continued to intensify its gender and development (GAD) program.
Josephine E. Marcos, the school’s Junior GAD moderator, recalled that FBNHS started its Junior GAD program last 2011. Since then, the club/organization has reaped a lot of commendable achievements. Hosting the 1st Youth Congress in the city is just one of the feathers on its cap.
Throughout the years, Junior GAD has trained competent peer counselors responsible for hearing the woes of their schoolmates regarding sexuality. The seminars and workshops are under close supervision of the city’s Department of Health and City Population Office. These peer counselors also do room-to-room campaigns on crucial issues such as teenage sex and HIV/AIDS.
Ms. Marcos observed that this works well in attaining the goal of the club to make students come to terms with their own sexuality. She said that only when students are “sexually literate” are they able to make sound choices and judgment for themselves.
Truly, the creation of this Teen Center puts an end to the oppressive silence on sex and gender issues. ALMA MONTESA