Teen STAR: Empowering Our Young People to Make Better Decisions

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Date:  April 16, 2020

Listen to Presentation

Intro to Teen STAR PDF

Teen STAR is a curricular program that teaches young people about sexuality and affectivity.  When adolescents and young adults learn about their bodies and fertility in conjunction with principals of Natural Law and the teachings of Human Vitae and the Theology of the Body, they learn to appreciate and value what has been given to them, to make better decisions about how to use these gifts and become integrated human beings:  balancing the physical, spiritual, emotional, intellectual, and social aspects of their lives.

Teen STAR’s pedagogy is based on a Personalistic model of accompaniment, a “walking with” the young person through their experiences.  They are encouraged to “discover” their inherent value as children of God, using the Socrative method combined with presentations, activities (including interviewing their parents and grandparents) and videos that build on each other.
Girls learn how to chart their fertility in a basic way (we do not teach a method) and both boys and girls learn to chart their emotions to guide them as they are confronted with problems.
Teen STAR prepares Instructors to guide Youth Groups, Confirmation classes, home-school groups, etc.  The curriculum is age-appropriate to Middle School, High School, and Young Adults (called Holistic Sexuality).

Deacon Santiago Molina is the acting Executive Director of Teen STAR USA.
Deacon Santiago is originally from Argentina. Married to Laurie Molina for 32 years and with a daughter. He is Professor of Anatomy and Physiology at Tallahassee Community College. He has been a permanent deacon since 2000. He has lived in Tallahassee, Florida since 1990.