What's Happening

By ETR | May 2, 2017

Are you thanking a teacher today? We are. It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! Of course, we thank teachers regularly, even when it isn’t a special time of recognition.

Here at ETR, pretty much everyone on the team can name a teacher who had a meaningful impact on their lives. Most of us would name many.

By Marcia Quackenbush, MS, MFT, MCHES | April 27, 2017
Senior Editor, ETR

Yesterday I spent some time with an extraordinary group of people. They're not the kind of folks you're likely to see on TV or read about in the news. They're the kind who go out into their communities every day, do their work with commitment, and make a world of difference.

By Katrina Hunter | April 25, 2017
Research Assistant, ETR

I was in a college calculus course. We were learning how to use quadrants and angles to solve functions.

People can either solve the function visually, or by calculating out their answer. As we were going through different problems, I was using the visual method to solve the function. My instructor commented that it was good that I could solve the equation that way, and that it was rare for women to be able to visualize the solutions. 

By John Henry Ledwith April 19, 2017
Senior Sales Manager, ETR

I just got back from the hospital. I’m fine, but one of my long-time friends is not. He’s recovering from a heart attack. This was one of the ones that put a real scare into me.

When a friend has an experience like this, you can’t help think about certain things. Life. Death. Family. The value of good health.

By Laura Norvig, MLIS | April 12, 2017
Digital Media Strategist, ETR

I’m a huge believer in the power of online community for professional development. I’ve received so much useful “just in time” information and made so many valuable personal connections this way, it’s second nature to me.

Recently I joined HEDIR, a longstanding discussion list designed to help health educators communicate more effectively and efficiently. 

By Marcia Quackenbush, MS, MFT, MCHES | April 7, 2017
Senior Editor, ETR

Teen pregnancy rates are down. A wide range of statistics and figures show this. If you work in the field of adolescent health, you’ve certainly already heard this news.

Think for a moment about how you hold that information in your mind. Perhaps you remember the rate of births per 1,000 females aged 15-19 years. You might think about a national map that shows state rankings in teen birth rates. Maybe colorful bar graphs or pie charts come to mind.

By Tracy Wright, MAED | April 4, 2017
Project Director, ETR

Ready for a quick activity to build community while discovering differences and commonalities? Tech Evolution will get you there!

By Emily Green, MA | March 30 2017
Research Assistant, ETR

There is something about being a teacher that you carry with you, even if you transition to something else. I didn’t expect to become a K-12 science teacher, but I loved doing it. Now, I find myself being a teacher in everything I do. It gets into your blood. It changes the way you think. And I cannot thank my students enough for changing me in this way.

By Elizabeth McDade-Montez, PhD | March 28, 2017
Senior Research Associate, ETR

TV is not what it used to be. Over the past decade, we have seen a range of new methods of content delivery (Netflix, AmazonVideo, Hulu), new ways of watching (bingeing on favorites, catching short segments on YouTube, checking out cute kittens suggested by friends on Facebook), and new ways of calculating ratings.

Unfortunately, although television platforms have clearly modernized over time, television themes and stereotypes around gender and sexuality have not. 

By ETR | March 23, 2017

ETR’s Dr. Karin Coyle is stepping into a different role. She’s our new Chief Science Officer. This appointment has our entire Science Department looking to the future with excitement.

By John Henry Ledwith | March 21, 2017
Senior Sales Manager, ETR

Are you rested? Did you have breakfast? How many glasses of water did you drink today?

These three markers of healthy behavior—sleep, nutrition, hydration—are on my mind at the moment. 

By Gina Lepore, MEd | March 16, 2017
Research Associate, ETR

 “Everything is about sex except sex. Sex is about power.”

This saying is usually credited to Oscar Wilde, probably erroneously, but I love it anyway! It brings home an essential truth. When we talk about norms related to sex and sexual consent, we are often actually talking about norms related to power.

By Ayn N. Whyte, MS—Diné | March 14, 2017
STD/HIV/AIDS Prevention Program Manager, Albuquerque Area Indian Health Board

As many of our communities prepare to recognize National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, I am compelled to honor the group of individuals who envisioned and made this day a reality. I am blessed to work today with many of these people in raising awareness and promoting testing among our people. 

By Narinder Dhaliwal, MA | March 8, 2017
Program Manager, ETR

Did you happen to see the recent Slate article about secondhand smoke? It had an enticing headline—the kind that often makes Slate such a compelling and engaging read:

“We Used Terrible Science to Justify Smoking Bans”

By Marcia Quackebush, MS, MFT, MCHES | March 6, 2017
Senior Editor, ETR

Bringing people together can make a world of difference. ETR just finished up our 2017 All-Staff Retreat, and yes, it was a challenge getting everyone into one room for a day. Our workforce is distributed around the state of California and across the nation.

But it was also, in the words of one staffer, “a blast!” 

By Brittany Nielsen, MPH| March 1, 2017
Program Manager, Sutter Health

The future of health care in America looks uncertain. There is an abundance of opinions on the left and right about what our nation needs to do. However, before we can move forward effectively, it’s important to understand what science has to tell us on the topic.

By Vignetta Charles, PhD | February 23, 2017
CEO, ETR

I’m thrilled to be ETR’s new CEO. This is a job I’ve wanted for 19 years!

In 1998, I was Program Director of a teen pregnancy prevention program in Oakland, CA. I went to a training on Reducing the Risk (RTR), one of the best-known evidence-based programs in the field. It also happens to be a program ETR developed, evaluated and distributes.

By Janine Saunders, EdD, MPH | February 21, 2017
Program Manager, ETR

Neil deGrasse Tyson famously said, "The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it." During this time of fake news and alternative facts, promoting science-based approaches is more important than ever. If you’re like me, you encounter people every day who, knowingly or unknowingly, are making decisions based on false information.