South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy

Forrest Alton has been involved in adolescent reproductive health in a variety of capacities and settings for the past ten years.  Currently serving as the Executive Director of the South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, Mr. Alton directs and oversees the Campaign's five mission based areas of programming: education, technical assistance, public awareness, advocacy, and research.  The organization reaches over 1,000 people in each of South Carolina's 46 counties on an annual basis. During his tenure at the South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy the organization continues to expand in scope, reach and sophistication and is now seen as a national leader in the conversation about preventing teen pregnancy.  Forrest's leadership has increased the visibility of the organization beyond the scope of a traditional non-profit to include partnerships with the business community and media outlets throughout South Carolina.  His appearances in television, radio and print media have reached more than four million people in the past year including a recent article in the Wall Street Journal.  Forrest is involved in teen pregnancy prevention efforts at the national and state level, serves on multiple boards and committees, and is frequently sought after as a presenter on topics including adolescent health and sexuality; science based teen pregnancy prevention approaches; youth involvement; and support of comprehensive sexuality education.  Forrest has authored or co-authored multiple Campaign research projects including South Carolina Speaks 2004 an assessment of South Carolina's registered voters' support of comprehensive sexuality education.

Prior to joining the Campaign in 2002, Mr. Alton worked as the Program Manager of an adolescent pregnancy prevention program in Georgetown, SC.  He is a Certified Health Education Specialist who holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Health Promotion from Coastal Carolina University and a Master of Science in Public Health from the USC Arnold School of Public Health.