November 12, 2025 Love Notes and Life Lessons: Building Resilience among Youth Where It’s Needed Most
Relationship education (RE) has been effective for youth, especially in contexts of adversity (i.e., high rates of STDs, teen pregnancy). Resilience theory suggests that youth under more adversity benefit more from resource-based interventions. However, most evaluations of RE programs focus on majority youth or take a deficit approach. Our mixed method study evaluated the effectiveness of the Love Notes curriculum, comparing improvement in program outcomes for youth from various backgrounds of potential disadvantage (urban high schools, alternative education, and behavioral health contexts).
We found that youth from behavioral health contexts had greater gains from participating in Love Notes than other groups on some outcomes, indicating resilience. Participants found relationship skills, recognizing risks, and sex education most useful. Our study emphasized the importance and effectiveness of youth relationship education, highlighting unique experiences based on context.
Objectives: Participants will be able to: Learn about relationship education among youth and its main goals Understand the concept of resilience Dive into the meaning of adversity and how interventions can tackle it among youth from different backgrounds
Presenters: Who should attend: Youth Service Providers in High-Adversity Contexts, Educators and School Administrators, Program Evaluators and Researchers, Relationship Education (RE) Program Providers and Staff, Policymakers and Funding Agencies
When: Wednesday, November 12, 2025 @ 1:00pm Pacific/4:00pm Eastern Duration: 60 minutes Cost: Free! | 
