Kids Miss 'Stay Teen' Event Due to Scheduling Snafu

An effort to celebrate youth involvement and urge young people to avoid teen pregnancy missed out on a lot of participation because it started too late to catch the after school crowd, but still reached a core group of teens Wednesday afternoon.

The third annual "Stay Teen" event took over the gym at the for the afternoon.

Marked with performances by teens and the White Hawk Dancers, an Aztecan dance troupe, the event brought together local health and wellness agencies to educate teens about what the Watsonville community has to offer.

"They see what services are available to them," said Leticia Mendoza, an event organizer.

Kids could collect free swag, indulge in a cupcake and grab healthy snacks during the event.

But attendance was down, likely because started at 3:30 p.m., instead of directly after school. A lot of kids went home before the party started.

Mendoza noted that the majority of the students who did make it to the event were required to by Watsonville High School. Attending "Stay Teen" was an option to avoid Saturday School, so long as students visited each informational table and got a signature from the presenter.

That means the event likely reached more at-risk students, since they had already encountered trouble at school, Mendoza said.

Some of the organizations represented included the , , and . Mendoza said the organizations involved in the program—which is a joint effort with the city of Watsonville—will be sure to host the event right after classes get out next year.