CDPH and Chicago Public Schools Need YOU!

Good afternoon! The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) encourage you to attend a meeting to learn about the CPS/CDPH Expanded STI Education and Screening Initiative Project. This school year, we would like to provide these services to 30 CPS High Schools and cannot do this without the help of our Community Partners. As you probably know, Cook County ranks # 1 for gonorrhea and # 2 for chlamydia in the number of reported cases. Gonorrhea and chlamydia are especially widespread among adolescents. The adolescent population of Chicago comprises 16.3% of the general population, yet more than 60% of new infections of gonorrhea and chlamydia are reported in this group. With the high rates of STI�s among adolescents in Chicago, there is a great need for this expanded STI project. Please plan to attend this important meeting on September 29th at 9am (location TBD) to learn about the project, determine if your agency can be a part of this important project and to inform us of the barriers your agency needs to overcome in order to be a part of this project. This project affords a wonderful opportunity for your organization to gain access to CPS schools to provide your services and to meet other grant requirements that CDPH or other sources may require. Please RSVP to Cynthia Evans at Cynthia.evans@cityofchicago.org. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Jaime Dircksen, Deputy Commissioner, at Jaime.dircksen@cityofchicago.org. Thanks in advance for partnering with us on this essential service to adolescents Also, take a look at Healthy Chicago�you�ll see that Adolescent Health is a priority for Chicago! http://www.cityofchicago.org/content/dam/city/depts/cdph/CDPH/PHFINALAGENDAAug162011.pdf Jaime Dircksen Deputy Commissioner Chicago Department of Public Health 312-747-9435