The Cost of Implementing a Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program for Middle School Boys

Publication Date: February 4, 2021
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  • Published: 2021

Introduction

Research Questions

  1. What was the cost to the local social service provider to deliver Wise Guys in school as part of a voluntary elective class?
  2. What resources did the local provider require to deliver the program?
  3. How did the cost compare to other federally funded teen pregnancy prevention programs?

Cost is often a primary concern when policymakers and practitioners consider a new program. This brief provides information on the cost of implementing a teen pregnancy prevention program for 7th-grade boys. The information comes from an evaluation of the Wise Guys Male Responsibility Curriculum in Davenport, Iowa, which Mathematica conducted for the Administration for Children and Families within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. For the evaluation, a team of two trained facilitators from a local social service provider, Bethany for Families and Children, delivered Wise Guys as a 14-session voluntary elective class during the regular school day. Mathematica partnered with Bethany staff to collect information on the program’s cost, with the goal of understanding the resources required to provide the program and how its cost compares to other federally funded teen pregnancy prevention programs.

Purpose

This brief summarizes key cost findings from the evaluation of Wise Guys in Iowa. It presents information on the resources required to deliver the program for one academic year and the average cost per student. The brief also summarizes how the average cost per student compares to other federally funded teen pregnancy prevention programs.

Key Findings and Highlights

  • The study team estimated the per-participant cost of Wise Guys in Iowa as $488 per student served.
  • Personnel costs for two facilitators and other program staff accounted for the largest share (78 percent) of the total cost.
  • The use of two facilitators and voluntary nature of the program led to higher costs compared with other in-school teen pregnancy prevention programs.

Methods

Program costs were estimated using the resource cost method, which involves identifying all the resources required to deliver a program and assigning dollar values to each resource identified. The cost estimates rely on data on the resources Bethany for Families and Children used to deliver Wise Guys during the 2014-2015 academic year. These resources reflect what other similar organizations would likely need to replicate the program during a steady state of operations and do not include any training or other start-up costs.

Citation

Schulte Neelan, Theresa and Brian Goesling. (2020). The Cost of Implementing a Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program for Middle School Boys. OPRE Report #2020-134. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation.

Glossary

PREP:
Personal Responsibility Education Program