Black Lives Need to Matter in Sex Education, Too.

Written by Maria, RSEI Educator | Published June 11th, 2020 You’ve heard it from us, and if you work as an educator, you’ll likely hear it again: beware of sharing personal values with your students. As sex educators, it’s something we are mindful of all the time. In many contexts, it’s helpful advice. For example, … Continued

National Masturbation Month

Written by Lily, RSEI Educator | Published May 23rd, 2020 This year, the entire month of May is dedicated to appreciating nurses through National Nurses Month, but did you know that May is also National Masturbation Month? This lesser-known awareness campaign comes with its own interesting history. It originated in 1994 when former U.S. surgeon … Continued

Virtual Sex Education: Where to Start?

Written by Meghan, RSEI Educator | Published April 30th, 2020 For many the in-person 2019-2020 school year ended much earlier than anticipated and with new and challenging obstacles to combat while grappling with the COVID-19 global pandemic. At RSEI we usually do a lot of programming at the end of the school year. This is … Continued

Trauma-Informed Sex Education

Written by RSEI Educator | Published April 30th, 2020 As youth-serving adults, our youth come to us with many different experiences, feelings, thoughts, and values when it comes to sex education. Comprehensive sex education has long been considered a critical piece in sexual violence prevention, but what about youth that already have sexual trauma when … Continued

National Native HIV AIDS Awareness Day

Written by Becki, RSEI Educator | Published April 2nd, 2020 National Native HIV AIDS Awareness Day (NNHAAD) is a national campaign celebrated every March 20th. It was founded in 2007 by Indigenous relatives from Turtle Island, the Northern territories, and the Hawaiian Islands. The date is usually on or around Spring equinox because of what … Continued

Starting the Conversation about Dating Abuse

Written by Maria, RSEI Educator | Published March 3rd, 2020 February 2020 marks the tenth anniversary of Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month (TDVAM). In addition to being Black History Month, this month has also served as an opportunity for individuals and organizations to educate youth on the risk factors for dating violence and … Continued

Common Myths Among Youth

Written by RSEI Educator | Published February 6th, 2020 As educators, there are dozens of common questions that our students ask about sex, bodies, and relationships. While we hope that youth have access to information that is accurate and comprehensive, we know this isn’t always the case. As young people navigate the tricky waters of … Continued

Language Matters: Combating Stigma Through Adjusted Language

Written by Meghan, RSEI Educator | Published January 6th, 2020 When it comes to teaching, we know that the language we use is incredibly important. It shapes how participants understand and internalize our material. This means that it is extra important when it comes to sexuality education. Sex education has a long history of using … Continued

Unpacking Age of Consent Laws: What Should Meaningful Conversations Look Like?

Written by RSEI Educator | Published December 2nd, 2019 Let’s start with an uncomfortable truth: age of consent laws are flawed. Their intention of protecting young people from exploitation and abuse is great, but so often this intention is lost amongst negative side-effects of setting an age where sex between a teenager and someone much … Continued