Peace Corps DR plans to expand and deepen Volunteers work with communities to design and implement context-appropriate prevention interventions addressing the keys drivers of the epidemic, including sexual and behavioral risk, harmful gender/cultural norms. PC promotes behavior change through use of evidence-based programs and integration of efforts with other USG agencies and implementing partners. Programs also include a cross-cutting focus on reduction of stigma and discrimination among low-income and at risk adolescent populations.

In prevention, volunteers work with communities to design and implement context-appropriate and evidence-based prevention interventions, including sexual and behavioral risk, skills and attitudes to make healthy decisions to care for themselves and their families.In support of care and treatment, Volunteers aid community members and organizations in designing and implementing care programs for PLHA, OVCs and their caretakers to mitigate the effects of HIV, improve the developmental growth of OVCs, improve household nutritional status and optimize the quality of life of adults and children living with and affected by HIV.

In the area of Governance and Systems, Volunteers work side-by-side with community partners to leverage all appropriate and locally-available resources and technology for development of sustainable, community-led responses to HIV. Volunteers placed in local organizations strengthen institutional capacities in the areas of communication, financial management, outreach to target populations, monitoring, evaluation and reporting.

Project Background

The Initiatives I Choose My Life, known worldwide as Escojo and Sports for Life (Deportes para la Vida), are the institutional response of Peace Corps Dominican Republic to the lack of quality information about how to make healthy decisions to prevent HIV/AIDS and early pregnancy in low-income adolescents living in rural and marginal urban communities. The focus of Peace Corps Dominican Republics efforts is on the prevention of the epidemic within the youth population.

These initiatives have received the support from the Presidential Plan for AIDS Relief through the health unit of the Office of Training and Program Support of Peace Corps Washington.

Project Design

The overall purpose of initiative is to improve the capacity of low-income youth living in rural and marginal urban communities of the Dominican Republic to make healthy decisions in their sexual life. It is expected that by 2013, 2100 youth leaders (organized in 300 Escojo Groups and more than 100 in Deportes para la Vida) will be trained as trainers in the promotion of healthy decisions as well as 30,000 youth oriented.

Evaluation Objectives:

1. Determine the effect of the Escojo and Deportes para la Vida Initiatives in the comprehensive knowledge of HIV/AIDS within the Dominican youth population served by PCVs and Escojo Youth Groups;

2. Determine to what degree healthy decisions have been adopted by Escojo and Deportes para la Vida key players: Regional Coordinators, Group Leaders and Group Members;

3. Determine the effect the PCVs, Escojo and Deportes para la Vida Groups introduction activities to healthy decisions has had on the youth population;

4. Identify the capacity of the Escojo Consortium and Public Schools (Ministry of Education) to sustain the Escojo Initiative;

5. Determine the strength and level of commitment of the Escojo network as a potential National Volunteer Organization

Methodology:

1. Interview: 100 youth from different geographical units, 20 regional coordinators, 30 Group Leaders and Group Members; 2. Focus Group for 10 members: 4 regional coordinators, 3 Group Leaders and 3 Group Members3. Key informants: 10 Teachers Interview: 100 youth from different geographical unitsFocus Group:10 Youth4. Focus Group: Consortium Members (10) and Teachers From Public School (10)5. Survey: 150 Escojo MembersFocus Group: 4 Groups of 10 Members Each6. Survey: 75 Deportes para la Vida graduates, 4 Focus Group: Groups of 10 Members Each

Escojo has a growing network of Regional Coordinators and Peer Youth Educators to be affiliated to and supported by the members of the Escojo Consortium. The Consortium is the main national structure responsible of providing sustainability to the Escojo Groups and promoting the Escojo strategy at the national level.

Small grants (know as VAST grants and are up to US$10,000 for each of the 10 consortium groups) will be available for Escojo Consortium organizations. The grant requests will be prepared by PCVs and Consortium members and will provide resources for the following two institutional strengthening Consortium activities: 1) training events in coordination with consortium members and 2) institutional assessment of consortium members.

Training events in coordination with consortium members are as follows: consortium members and PCV's plan, implement, and evaluate a series of national, regional, and province-level workshops to help meet the needs of vulnerable children due to HIV/AIDS, to promote abstinence and fidelity as the HIV/AIDS prevention strategy in evangelical churches, and to ensure a collaborative grass root referral system of pregnant women for testing and counseling. Institutional assessment of consortium members for each of the selected consortium organizations in their legal standing, administrative organization, and programmatic strengthening. Results of the assessment will be used to develop an individual organizational assistance plan.

Volunteer and Project Partners will have the following activities:Certification Workshop. Youth leaders are trained and certified as Coordinators.Executive Conference to promote the Escojo methodology and to create an opportunity to dialogue between key Escojo/PEPFAR stakeholders.Regional Conference to focus on training youth in the basic curriculum which includes healthy decision making, HIV/AIDS prevention, avoiding adolescent pregnancies, building self-esteem, and focusing on creating positive futures.Sub regional Management Workshop to learn about how to coordinate the sub-regional follow-up meetings.Sub-regional Follow-up Meeting, a small scale, one-day meeting to focus on forming networks between groups working in the same geographic areas.Monitoring, Reporting and Evaluation Workshop to learn how to report according to the Peace Corps procedures and guidelines provided by PEPFAR.Sustainability Conference to give support to active groups who are no longer working directly with a Peace Corps Volunteer in their community.National Conference to train participants on maintaining the level of qualityinformation, to continue social marketing, and to promote sustainability of the groups.VAST Grants to provide resources for community groups to develop and organize local conferences and activities for HIV/AIDS prevention training.World AIDS Day event to promote HIV/AIDS awareness among Dominican youth.National Health Promoter Conference to further train Healthy Communities participants who are community leaders.Health Promoter Regional Workshop to focus on training the Health Promoters in the basic Healthy Communities curriculum of healthy decision-making which includes HIV/AIDS prevention.Health Promoter Certification Workshop rural community leaders are trained andcertified as Healthy Community Trainers.Brigada Verde (Green Brigade) Regional Conference to focus on training Dominican youth in basic community environmental action and healthy decision making, and HIV/AIDS prevention.National Conference Brigada Verde, to further train Brigada Verde participants on Peer sharing of successful interventions and education on HIV/AIDS.Five day National GLOW Girls Camp for Peer Educators to receive training in leadership, healthy decision making, prevention of HIV/AIDS and early pregnancy through the use of interactive activities.Regional GLOW camp conferences to focus on training youth Peer Educators in the basic GLOW goals of positive decision making and HIV/AIDS prevention.Superman Five day National Boys CampSuperman Regional camps for boysSub regional GLOW conferences to reinforce local girls groupsSports for Life (Deportes para la Vida) TOT to replicate in bateyes with children at risk.Sports for Life National Trainer Network meetingsGender and Discrimination ConferenceOVC National Conference for professionals working with at risk youthOVC Family CampsGLOW/DpV National Sports CampBuild Your Dreams economic empowerment workshops on making healthy decisions