Yelitza Mandujano

2/13/14
Teen Pregnancy at MacArthur High School
An energetic one year old baby boy ran across his living room pushing a Play Station III
controller toward a petite young woman with long brown hair curled up on the couch. She
grinned down at him with tender love thanking him.
That energetic baby boy is Jacob Junior Cortez and the young woman is Berenice Medrano his
teen mother. Jacob Junior surprised his mother during her junior year at MacArthur High School
in Houston, Texas.
She was 16 and her boyfriend Jacob Cortez was 15.
The couple kept Berenices pregnancy in top secrecy.
We kept it to ourselves, from our parents about seven months but we told four close friends
right after we found out, Berenice said.
A secret that both say they regret.
Personally I was scared and we were worried about our parents reactions, Medrano said.
I wish we would have prepared better and talked to someone about it, said Cortez.
Cortez and Medrano are not alone.
Pregnant girls are a very common sight at Mac, says Stephanie Nandlal, a former student at the
Texas high school. I think that many girls probably come from traditional catholic families who
are strict about premarital sex and therefore dont use condoms, birth control, or have the option
of abortion.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services there were 42,748 births from
females between the ages of 15 and 19 in the state of Texas during 2011. Of those 42,748 births
27,876 were from Hispanic females.
I think there is definitely a correlation between the religiosity of the Latino culture and the high
rate of pregnancies, its very visible at Mac, said Nandlal.
Another young couple from MacArthur High School who are currently seniors had to deal with
the difficult decision of keeping or aborting their future child.
Julia Villa found out she was pregnant when she was 16 years old.
I was so scared and depressed, I didnt know what to do, said Villa.
Abortion was definitely an option but Alan stopped me, he was the first one to motivate and
push me to go through with the pregnancy.
I told her if she did that I would never speak to her again, said Alan Barron the father of their
seven month old daughter Alexa.
Julia during her pregnancy often felt alone and that she couldnt keep going, she hated being
pregnant. The strained relationship between her and Alan only made things worse but the
thought that she had a responsibility to take care of someone elses life gave her strength.
Despite the hardships the couple went through Julia says she has no regrets.
At the end of it all, I got her, says Villa.
The best part of being a father is chilling and watching cartoons with Alexa, says Barron.
Ive changed, I am nicer and more loving. I give Julia hugs now and of course you too, Barron
said as he looked down at his baby girl.
Statistics from the Department of Health show that there was a 1 percent decrease overall
nationally between 2010 and 2011. Statistically there was a decrease but locals of the Aldine
community where MacArthur is located say that they have witnessed an increase of teen
mothers.
I see more teen moms each year, when I go to pick up my 6 year old daughter from school so do
all these young girls its crazy! said Dora Vera a local 28 year old mother.
Barron and Villa say that there is not a well developed sex education program or class at their
high school. Current coaches teach the required health class at MacArthur but do not go over sex
education thoroughly. Most students regard it as a blow off class and an easy A reports the
couple.
No one takes it seriously, says Barron, Students dont learn a lot.
I dont predict a decrease in the number of pregnant girls unless students are properly taught
about sex education and the use of contraceptives. I dont believe in abstinence, teens are still
going to do it anyway, Nandlal said.
Medrano like fellow teen mother Julia Villa has no regrets about the decisions she has made. She
and Cortez enjoy going out with their son and prefer taking care of him than letting others do so.
Being teen parents is not as impossible as people make it seem, says Medrano.
Just because you have a baby doesnt mean you cant do anything, you just have to have the
motivation. Your kid should be your motivation.

















Contact Information:
Bernice Medrano Cortez: Phone # 713-261-5979 Email: bernicemedrano17@yahoo.com
Jacob Cortez: Phone # 281-888-9826 Email: Jacob.316@live.com
Alan Barron: Phone # 281-900-1767 Email: alan.barron@yahoo.com
Julia Villa: Phone # 713-670-6982 Email: juliavilla_2008@yahoo.com
Stephanie Nandlal: Phone # 832-651-4738 Email: snandlal05@yahoo.com
Dora Vera: Phone #832-908-0267 Email: doris_villarreal85@yahoo.com