Baptism

One of my favorite movie characters said he\u27d worn lots of shoes, meaning he\u27d been a great many places and done a great many things. Well, I\u27ve never been to war or run across America or founded a shrimp company or shook the President\u27s hand or returned kickoffs for the University of Alabama. But I did grow up in a church, come of age, and stay there, which is perhaps as interesting. I am now a husband, worship leader, singer-songwriter, and college writing instructor, struggling to capture fragments of who I was before I was any of these things, and hoping to shed some light on how I came to be who I am today. If you need the entirety of the story, read no further. But if a few scenes will do for now, in a brief Master\u27s Thesis, then by all means... Faith, doubt, commitment—I have cupped my hand, dipped, tasted. I have been immersed in such waters

Adolescent Health: Are We Willing to Pay the Price for Inaction?

Several years ago, a legislator spoke clearly of the wishful unawareness we often confront in public health. After a session of frank exchange in his committee about teen pregnancy in Arkansas, he said, "Dr. Elders, until you became the health department director, we didn't have this problem." The facts paint a startling scenario for such people. We have not provided an environment in which our children can flourish. Instead, we have allowed the number of children who are economically, educationally, and medically disadvantaged to grow. Called "at-risk," their existence is an affront to democratic ideals, especially the belief that all have an equal chance for prosperity. It is time for true reform, but before that can happen, we must face the state of our children's health. After this, we must set to work at effective strategies. Copyright 1994 by The Policy Studies Organization.