BY GRETCHEN KEISER

Staff Writer

CONYERS--Following a Rockdale County decision not to accept state funds for a program called Teen Plus, St. Pius X Church held a forum April 26 to continue discussing the needs of local teenagers.

About 100 parishioners took part in the Sunday morning discussion, hearing from state Sen. Bob Guhl of the 45th District, Mark Griffin, executive director of the Rockdale Coalition for Children and Families, and Ron Burger, chairman of the Rockdale County Board of Health.

Father John Kieran, pastor, and Barb Garvin, St. Pius X youth minister, hosted the meeting and also spoke of parish efforts to better serve teens and their families.

Rockdale County has had between 181 and 190 teen pregnancies per year from 1991 to 1995 and there has been a significant increase in the number of teenagers with sexually transmitted diseases between 1993 and 1997. AIDS is the second leading cause of death among 20 to 44-year-olds in the county.

The parish was among a number of groups and individuals in Rockdale County who opposed accepting funds for Teen Plus. The church took the position, Father Kieran said, to oppose anything "that would enhance abortions or other unacceptable means of birth control" among teenagers.

However, he said, "we need to support efforts to find solutions to these problems" of teenage pregnancy and inappropriate sexual activity.

The April 26 forum was designed to "work in conjunction with other groups for the good of our youth," Father Kieran said.

Griffin told the group that while some youth are labeled as "at risk" because of social characteristics, "it is safe to say all of our children are at risk to one degree or another."

His viewpoint was shared by the audience, many of whom spoke of their concerns about the sex-saturated culture in which teens are growing up and the difficulty families face in communicating strong moral values.

Griffin said that the coalition intends to proceed with after school programs at three Rockdale County middle schools for 75 "at risk" children at each of the schools. These students, who are either performing poorly academically or already involved in the juvenile justice system, will be given individual attention at the schools for a few extra hours after class, Griffin said. "It is a small piece. It is a step in the right direction," he said.

Griffin also said that he is personally "very committed to engaging the faith communities" of Rockdale County in finding solutions to the needs of teenagers.

Burger said that he was disappointed in the loss of $150,000 in funds that would have come from the Teen Plus program. "We were not committed to building a clinic out here," Burger said, adding that the program has earned a "bad name" in the county which he believes "it shouldn't have."

He asked parishioners to help identify what they would like the county to provide for teenagers in need, if the Teen Plus approach is not what is desired.

In conjunction with the forum, which lasted about an hour and a half, Father Kieran and Garvin distributed a form to parishioners inviting them to become more actively involved in the parish Life Teen program or other outreach to parish youth. There are 400 St. Pius X teenagers attending Rockdale County public schools, Garvin said.

The parish will also begin next fall a new Wednesday evening religious education component for the middle school, grouping sixth-graders with the seventh and eighth grade, rather than the elementary school, Father Kieran said. "This will give us more time to work with these kids who are at the most vulnerable age," he said.

The pastor said Garvin is also looking at more ways to make the parish "teen room" available more often as a safe place for teens to hang out, particularly in the after school hours between 3 and 6 p.m.

"I think good is going to come out of this in the end," Father Kieran said of the continuing discussion about teens and their needs in Rockdale County.