Kavitha Cardoza
The Hechinger Report
- Many pregnant students say they are encouraged to discontinue their education.
- Some educators still believe that having pregnant or parenting teens in school or providing services like nurseries will encourage other students to get pregnant.
- According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only about half of teen mothers receive a high school diploma by age 22, compared with approximately 90% of their peers who do not give birth.
LaTavia BigBack was 17, a high school junior, when she and her friends were in a car crash. In the hospital, the doctor asked if she minded her friends being in the room — he had some news for her. BigBack said no; she thought maybe she had a concussion. But the doctor told her she was pregnant.