2017 Teen Birth Data Released
In less than a decade, the teen birth rate across Spartanburg County has dropped by more than 50%, improving educational, social, and health outcomes for teens and saving county taxpayers money in the process. In 2008, 606 children were...
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Adopting a Health Equity Lens
Adopting a Health Equity Lens During a recent meeting of the Mary Black Foundation’s Board of Trustees, the following statement regarding health equity was approved: The Mary Black Foundation believes that health and wellness are basic human rights. A...
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A Fond Farewell
In March of 2013, I had the great honor of being named CEO of the Mary Black Foundation. Later that year, the trustees and staff created a 3-year strategic plan and we were challenged to be a more pro-active...
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Connect Teen Spotlight: Sabriyah “Bri” Aponte
Like many other teens in Spartanburg County, Bri Aponte has a very busy schedule. A rising junior at Spartanburg High School, a member of the JROTC, a committee member for PFLAG’s Youth Pride, and a leader of the Mary...
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Funding for Connect Reinstated
Spartanburg County has seen tremendous success in its efforts to reduce teen pregnancy. From 2010 to 2016, the teen birthrate in Spartanburg County decreased 50 percent (for all 15- to 19-year-olds) compared to the South Carolina rate of 43...
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Listening for Good
“Each of us is more than the worst thing we have ever done.” These are the words Bryan Stevenson, well known author, attorney, and Founder/Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative, shared with an audience of over 400 attendees...
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Nonprofits Train to be Change-Makers
Spartanburg County nonprofits are investing in growing their cultural competency of the Latino community in order to more effectively fulfill their missions and create a stronger community. Cultural competency is the ability to understand, appreciate and interact with people...
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MBF Award Recipient: Excellence in Adolescent Health
Today’s blog is written by Andrea Moore, Executive Director of Middle Tyger Community Center. On April 23, 2018, Mary Black Foundation was honored by receiving the 2018 Excellence in Adolescent Health Award from the University of Michigan’s Adolescent Health...
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Improving Spartanburg’s Health through the HC50 Challenge
An Interview with Natalia Valenzuela Swanson, Program Specialist, Healthy Eating | Active Living What is the HealthyCommunity50Challenge? The two-year Healthiest Cities and Counties Challenge, now referred to as HealthyCommunity50 (HC50), is a joint initiative of the Aetna Foundation, the...
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