Planned Parenthood Votes Colorado (PPVC) congratulates Mary Seawell, Andrea Merida and Nate Easley on their respective elections to the Denver Public Schools Board of Education. PVPC is the political advocacy arm of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains.

Prior to the Nov. 3 election, PPVC outreached to all school board candidates and gave them the opportunity to respond to a survey addressing their stances on comprehensive health education programs that include information about abstinence and contraception.

According to their respective replies, all three candidates support prioritizing the implementation of H.B. 07-1292, which is designed to improve comprehensive sexuality education in Colorado's schools thereby reducing the rates of sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy and abortion among teenagers.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in four sexually active teenage girls will contract a STD. Further, Colorado's teen pregnancy rate is 22nd in the nation. These are not just statistics, but rather the very real and preventable experiences of young people in our community.

As a community educator and strong advocate for age-appropriate, medically accurate, culturally sensitive sexuality education, PPVC believes that youth deserve honest information and access to resources empowering them to take responsibility for their sexual behavior.PPVC hopes to see these newly elected school board officials engage in a public dialogue on these important issues.

"We look forward to working with and supporting the full Board in providing Denver's students with the information and skills necessary to make responsible, healthy decisions," said Kinsey Hasstedt, political affairs manager for Planned Parenthood Votes Colorado.