New Racial Justice Education Modules Help Sex Educators Confront and Combat Racism

Washington D.C. – Advocates for Youth, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring young people’s reproductive and sexual health and rights, continues its work on racial justice by launching a series of educational modules created in partnership with SisterReach. Advocates for Youth and SisterReach, along with other key experts and thought-leaders in the field, have created free, fully online e-learning modules to address issues of racial justice in sex education. Through ten engaging and dynamic e-learning modules delivered via Moodle, each 30-45min in length, educators can learn and reflect on the following issues as they relate to sex education.

“We know educators need help reflecting on their own internalized racism, and racism present in school systems as well as the field of sex education. Racial justice is not a checklist but rather a different approach to inclusivity than ticking off activities on a list. Centering racial justice when teaching sex education is a lens that needs constant work and reflection. Expanding and deepening an educators’ understanding and awareness of racial justice strengthens their ability to look at it through that lens,” said Nakisha Floyd, Associate Director for Racial Justice in Sex Education at Advocates for Youth. 

Each e-learning module can be accessed for free and paired with optional Virtual Professional Development skill rehearsal modules to help educators reflect and learn how to be anti-racist teachers.  

Drawing on the expertise of seven thought-leaders in the fields of sexuality education, racial justice, youth development, racial microaggressions, public health and HIV prevention, the Racial Justice in Sex Education’s Professional Advisory Council integrated their expertise into every e-learning module. Professional Advisory Council members included: Dr. Jaymie Campbell, Marriotta Gary-Smith, Trina Scott, Justine Ang Fonte, Alicia Andrews, Sadia Arshad and Gabrielle Evans.

SisterReach, a Tennessee-based reproductive justice organization with national recognition, has been working with school districts in Tennessee to integrate racial justice in sex education.  Led by Dr. Sylvia Rhue and Executive Director Cherisse Scott, SisterReach helped craft each e-learning module providing crucial feedback to help shape the final project. 

“George Floyd’s death sparked a national conversation that we need to continue. Young people were galvanized and they’re counting on us to continue to do this work, including in our classrooms,” said Nakisha Floyd.

Contact: Emily Bridges, emily@advocatesforyouth.org