William J. Taverner

Who is William J. Taverner?

William J. Taverner, MA, is the editor of the American Journal of Sexuality Education and the executive director of the Center for Family Life Education. He has co-authored numerous sexuality education manuals, including All Together Now: Teaching about Contraception and Safer Sex, Making Sense of Abstinence: Lessons for Comprehensive Sex Education, Positive Images: Teaching Abstinence, Contraception, and Sexual Health, Streetwise to Sex-Wise: Sexuality Education for High-Risk Youth, and Older, Wiser, Sexually Smarter.

As a trainer, Taverner presents such topics as “Unequal Partners,” and "Making sense of abstinence," training thousands of educators, counselors, social workers, nurses, therapists, and other professionals. He frequently trains early-childhood professionals, helping them respond to young children’s sexual questions and behaviors, And in 2008, he gave an address at a congressional briefing advocating for sex education.

Before joining the CFLE in 1998, Taverner served as the sexuality educator and trainer for Phoenix House, where he developed Sexuality and Substance Abuse, a comprehensive sexuality education program and training program. Prior to Phoenix House, he worked with people with developmental disabilities, and co-authored the Verbal Informed Sexual Consent Assessment Tool, to help measure an individual’s capacity to give informed sexual consent.