Between 2014 and 2020 in Lee County, there were 20.8 births to teenage girls ages 15 to 19 per 1,000 women ages 15 to 19. That rate is higher than Florida’s average rate as a state at 18.4 and higher than the United States’ average at 19.3.
Gulf Coast News is digging into what’s driving the numbers in Lee County and what’s being done to bring the rates down.
Inside the Early Childhood Learning Services Center in Fort Myers, babies and toddlers spend their days learning and playing while some of their teenage parents attend school steps away in the Young Parent Education Program .
Right now, about 50 teenage students are learning and getting help here. The program helps young moms and dads alike.
Alicia Jesus works at the front office of the school. She helps people check into the building. Not long ago, she was a student here herself. “I started off in Bonita High School. Then I came here for my senior year,” Jesus explained. “It was different compared to a traditional high school.”
Jesus said it led her to a successful graduation with her son, Javier, by her side at just 18 years old. The school has supported students like her for years. Formerly known as LAMP, the Young Parent Education Program has been a resource for hundreds of young parents and soon-to-be parents in our community.
Crystal German teaches here. She, too, was a student here at one time. “If I didn't have the support that I had here, I don't know that I would be a teacher here today,” German explained.
It’s that support that German said can be hard to come by for some families in Lee County. “Teen moms are very fragile,” German said. “They're going through a different, difficult time at a young age, and I think it's very important that they have better access.”
Access to health care when pregnant and education before potential pregnancy has been an issue of concern in Lee County for years.
“We know that we have a higher rate than other places, and many factors contribute to that,” explained Dr. Christina Dzioba. She’s an associate professor at the School of Nursing at Florida Gulf Coast University.
BY THE NUMBERS:
A report from 2020 shows the downward trend in adolescent births in Lee County from more than 9% between 2009 and 2011 to under 6% from 2016 to 2018.
While trending in the right direction, the numbers are still higher than the state average.
“If you look at Lee County in particular, we are in a deficit here,” Dzioba explained. “We don't have enough primary care providers or even women's health providers trying to get in to see somebody. To get contraception or to have those conversations can be very difficult.”
In fact, the Rural Health Information Hub says that Lee County is experiencing a shortage of primary care providers. That’s as of October 2024. “We're also growing significantly,” added Dzioba. “We're adding in a lot of new people to our community, including teenagers, middle school, high school.”
I checked the U.S. Census Bureau. Lee County has gone from 760,822 residents in April 2020 to an estimated 834,573 residents in April 2023. That’s a gain of 73,751 people. On top of that, by the year 2035, the state as a whole will need nearly 6,000 more “traditional primary care” specialists, according to a report from the Florida Medical Association.
“We're making progress as far as overall sexual health,” Dzioba told me. “We just need to work on making sure that we can actually provide contraception and, and work with folks so that they only have planned pregnancies instead of unplanned ones.”
COMMUNITY RESOURCES:
When unplanned pregnancies do happen, those young parents need help. That's where Our Mother’s Home of Southwest Florida comes in.
“I think for any young person, even if it's not a family member, if it's a teacher, if it's a friend, if it's a mentor, just having anybody who loves and cares about and supports the young person will make all the difference,” shared CEO Angela Rackley-Meadows. The nonprofit works to help young mothers who have nowhere else to go.
“I was a teenage mom,” shared Rackley-Meadows. “I think having been a teenage mom and understanding how challenging that is and how programs like this and people who just love and care about people can impact and change the trajectory of somebody's life.”
The nonprofit also helps empower young mothers in foster care and survivors of human trafficking. “We have a lot of different programs, so we offer parenting classes, empowerment classes, financial literacy,” Rackley-Meadows added.
The nonprofit says 22% of daughters born to teen moms become teen mothers themselves, and only 30% of teen moms graduate from high school. “It's important to know what those options are and know what those resources look like in their specific community,” Rackley-Meadows explained.
This year, Our Mother’s Home of Southwest Florida is marking 25 years of helping young women. Its new facility in Fort Myers offers resources like a diaper pantry and a learning center for the young mothers who live here. It is even working on a closet of professional clothing that can help young women get started in a career.
“It allows us to be able to take and house young people and help them become self-sufficient,” said Rackley-Meadows.
STARTING THE CONVERSATION:
Prevention is also part of the statewide conversation.
“The average teenage student is learning very little about pregnancy prevention, sometimes nothing or even worse, misinformation,” said Kira-Lynn Ferderber, an outreach educator and community liaison with Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida . Ferderber explained, “One of the most frequent questions we get is, could I be pregnant?”
It’s a question that could be difficult to ask parents or family members as a teen. Ferderber suggested starting the reproductive health conversation early when age-appropriate. “One way you could start the conversation is asking what they've learned in school, asking what ideas they already have.”
Planned Parenthood even offers classes for teens’ parents called Time for Your Teen. It’s an opportunity to learn how to talk with your kids about difficult topics.
Back at the Young Parent Education Program on Michigan Avenue, educators remind their young parents they’re not alone.
“Yes, you are a teen mom,” said German. “But what are you going to do after that? It doesn't have to be the end of the story, right. Just like it wasn't for me and my son. He went on to play college football.”
Teachers like German inspire the next generation while the school offers resource rooms filled with clothing, shoes, toys and diapers. Care packages are also given to parents after they give birth.
It’s a safe space for children to stay, whether mom and dad are still in school or starting a new career like Jesus. “Coming here and being able to bring my son with me, I think, gave me the comfort and kind of gave me that push I needed,” Jesus added.
As for encouraging other young parents, Jesus shared, “I try to tell them I'm like, 'Hey, like, you're almost done. You know, keep your child in your thought. Like, that's what helped me, and that's what can help you.'”
In a recent study by Wallethub , Florida ranked 41 out of 51 when it comes to the best states to have a baby. Number 51 is the worst. Mississippi took the worst spot in that study; Massachusetts ranked the best.