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MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Peer Health Exchange offers health education for young peers

WAVE NEWSPAPERS — Founded by young people, for young people, the Peer Health Exchange (PHE) has worked to fill the health equity gap for youth in underserved communities.

Published

6 years ago

February 9, 2019

Oakland Post

By Angela N. Parker

Founded by young people, for young people, the Peer Health Exchange (PHE) has worked to fill the health equity gap for youth in underserved communities.

The organization began as a labor of love by six Yale students who, responding to New Haven public schools ending their health education programming due to budget cuts, began teaching health workshops in many of those public schools.

In 2003, believing that all young people deserve equal opportunities to be healthy — including access to health education — regardless of where they lived or socioeconomic status, the founding members officially established PHE to replicate this successful program in other communities with unmet health education needs. Since then, the organization has provided mental health, sexual health and substance misuse prevention education to more than 200,000 high school students in New York, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and the Bay Area.

The organization literally utilizes a peer-to-peer model, training college students to teach a skills-based health curriculum to ninth-grade students in under-resourced high schools. Those skills include how to communicate effectively, identity sexual consent, evaluate health information, make decisions, seek help and access health resources. PHE launched in Los Angeles in 2009, reaching up to 2,050 young people in the current school year.

“Despite the need for high-quality health education, schools often do not commit adequate resources to deliver effective health education and connect students to health resources in their communities,” said LaDawn Best, executive director of Peer Health Exchange Los Angeles. “PHE helps fill this critical gap and [our] commitment to health equity is at the center of the work we do. I continue to be inspired by the way we show up for young people in the provision of effective health education.”

Best, who joined the team in 2013, has worked in the public school system, the non-profit sector, LGBTQ anti-violence advocacy and peer education, and recognizes the power of bringing different sectors together to address unmet needs.

“We build linkages to preventative resources … and connect students to the preventative care they need,” Best said. “Every day young people navigate difficult decisions around their mental health, sexual health and substance use. These decisions have serious consequences for their health, academic success and their futures.”

Best is particularly proud of the way the organization has created a dialogue for young people dealing with depression and anxiety.

“I’m really excited about the conversations we are having with young people about their mental health,” she said. “I don’t see these kinds of conversations happening in a lot of other spaces.

“I’ve seen ninth-grade students ask honest questions and seek additional help and resources regarding their mental health. PHE’s volunteers do a great job in helping to reduce mental health stigma in the classroom and connecting young people to resources, two critical components of supporting young people’s mental health.”

Despite their many successes, the organization continues to be challenged by how to get the word out to those who can benefit from the program.

“There are thousands of young people in L.A. County alone that can benefit from our program,” Best said. “We are constantly faced with the challenge of how to reach more young people and to ensure that young people in L.A. have access to health information and resources.”

Best believes that by participating in PHE, young people get a greater understanding of what they need to make active, informed choices for a healthy life.

“By participating in our program, students get stronger at decision-making and develop skills in communication and advocacy,” Best said. “As an example, after completing our program students are more likely to visit a health center. They are also better able to define consent and are able to spot warnings signs of poor mental health for themselves or a friend.”

Information BOX

Organization: Peer Health Exchange Los Angeles

Executive Director: LaDawn Best

Location: 3055 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 300, Los Angeles 90010

Website: www.peerhealthexchange.org

This article originally appeared in the Wave Newspapers.

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Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

Published

1 day ago

December 20, 2024

Oakland Post

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City of Oakland Celebrates Reopening of Main Library

“Libraries are such critical facilities for all Oaklanders, whether it’s children coming to story-time, adults reading the newspapers or borrowing the latest novels, and people engaging with a range of services and programs that the library hosts,” said Council President and District 2 Councilmember Nikki Fortunato Bas. “Such library services and programs are only possible when the facility’s electricity, heating, roof, and lighting are fixed and running efficiently. I’m proud to join this re-opening of our Main Public Library.”

Published

4 days ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

Left to Right- Jamie Turbak, Director of Library Services, LaTonda Simmons, Assistant City Administrator, Nikki Bas, President Oakland City Council, Shen Thao, Mayor of Oakland, Carroll Fife, Oakland City Councilmember District 3, Harold Duffey, Assistant City Administrator, Sean Maher, Projects Coordinator. Photo by Kevin Hicks.

The branch had been closed since May for critical infrastructure upgrades

Special to the Post

The City of Oakland leadership and community partners gathered to celebrate the reopening of the Main Library after completion of critical infrastructure upgrades to enhance the library’s facilities and provide a better experience for patrons.

Renovations include new roof installation, skylight repair, critical electrical system upgrades, new boiler control system installation, auditorium heating and cooling system installation, and improvements to lighting, flooring and ceilings throughout the building.

“This is truly something to celebrate, the reopening of our wonderful Main Library! I congratulate the staff and our partners for this important project to make the Main Library a more comfortable place for everyone for years to come, said Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. “Thank you to Oakland voters and the California State Library for making these crucial improvements possible.”

“Public libraries are a wonderful resource for our residents, offering a safe space for learning and being,” said District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife. “It is critical to improve and modernize our libraries so more members of our community can utilize and enjoy them. I’m excited that the necessary renovations to the Main Library have been completed successfully and thank everyone involved, particularly the City team, who helped secured the necessary grant funds for this work.”

“I am proud of the City staff and project partners who kept this important project on schedule and under budget,” said Assistant City Administrator G. Harold Duffey. “The library is an incredibly important resource for our community members, and this project is an investment into the library’s future.”

“December 2nd was a momentous occasion for Oakland Public Library as we proudly reopened the doors of the Main Library following extensive infrastructure repairs,” said Director of Library Services Jamie Turbak. “Closing the Main Library for six months was no easy decision, as it serves as the central hub for our library system and is truly the heart of Oakland. Yet, this renovation was essential, representing more than just physical upgrades—it reflects our ongoing commitment to creating a safe, welcoming space for everyone.”

The City Administrator Jestin Johnson also attended the press conference and signalled his support for the completion of the record-setting completion of the renovations. Gay Plair Cobb, a newly appointed Library Commissioner said the Library represents the soul and brains of our community.

The Oakland Public Library secured funding for these crititcal repairs through a variety of sources. The California State Library’s Building Forward Library Facilities Improvement Program awarded the Main Branch $4.2 million. To comply with the grant terms, the City of Oakland provided matching funds through Measures KK, as approved by the Oakland City Council in October 2023.

The Main Library will host an Open House to celebrate the reopening on February 22, 2025, 10 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

About the Oakland Public Library

The Oakland Public Library is a part of the City of Oakland in California and has been in existence since 1878. Locations include 16 neighborhood branches, a Main Library, a Second Start Adult Literacy Program, the Oakland Tool Lending Library, and the African American Museum and Library at Oakland (AAMLO). The Oakland Public Library empowers all people to explore, connect, and grow. Oaklandlibrary.org

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Biden’s Legacy Secured with Record-Setting Black Judicial Appointments

His record surpasses previous efforts by his predecessors. President Jimmy Carter appointed 37 Black judges, including seven Black women. In stark contrast, Donald Trump’s first term resulted in only two Black women appointed out of 234 lifetime judicial nominations. The White House said Biden’s efforts show a broader commitment to racial equity and justice.

Published

4 days ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

iStockphoto.

By Stacy M. Brown
WI Senior Writer

President Joe Biden’s commitment to diversifying the federal judiciary has culminated in a historic achievement: appointing 40 Black women to lifetime judgeships, the most of any president in U.S. history.

Biden has appointed 62 Black judges, cementing his presidency as one focused on promoting equity and representation on the federal bench.

The White House said Biden’s efforts show a broader commitment to racial equity and justice.

Meanwhile, Trump has vowed to dismantle key civil rights protections, including the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

“Having the Black woman’s experience on the federal bench is extremely important because there is a different kind of voice that can come from the Black female from the bench,” Delores Jones-Brown, professor emeritus at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told reporters.

Lena Zwarensteyn of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights told reporters that these district court judges are often the first and sometimes the final arbiters in cases affecting healthcare access, education equity, fair hiring practices, and voting rights.

“Those decisions are often the very final decisions because very few cases actually get heard by the U.S. Supreme Court,” Zwarensteyn explained.

Biden’s nomination of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court further reflects his commitment to judicial diversity. Jackson became the first Black woman to serve on the nation’s highest court.

Patrick McNeil, spokesperson for the Leadership Conference, pointed out that over half of Biden’s Black female judicial appointees have backgrounds as civil rights attorneys and public defenders, experience advocates consider essential for a balanced judiciary.

Meanwhile, Congress remains divided over the expansion of federal judgeships. Legislation to add 66 new judgeships—approved unanimously by the Senate in August—stalled in the GOP-controlled House until after the election. House Republicans proposed distributing the new judgeships over the next decade, giving three administrations a say in appointments. President Biden, however, signaled he would veto the bill if it reached his desk.

Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., argued the delay was a strategic move to benefit Trump’s potential return to office. “Donald Trump has made clear that he intends to expand the power of the presidency and giving him 25 new judges to appoint gives him one more tool at his disposal,” Nadler said.