The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #47792

Laurie Kominski, MSW, Youth Project, UCLA Labor Occupational Safety & Health Program, Hershey Hall, P.O. Box 951478, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1478, 310 794 5992, lauriek@ucla.edu

Equipped with their learner-centered curriculum unit designed to educate youth about teen worker rights, UCLA-LOSH has undertaken a two-pronged approach for reaching all teen workers. First, they have collaborated with a variety of school administrators in an effort to incorporate the curriculum into classrooms as a mandatory component of life skills training. However, recognizing the obstacles of multiple demands on teachers limiting widespread adoption by schools, the Project has undertaken efforts to identify and utilize youth as peer educators (both from community-based organizations and from state agencies) to serve as the conduits for training outside of schools and school hours.

In California, one such example is the State Employment Development Department’s Youth Employment Opportunities Program (YEOP). This program provides special services to youth, ages 15 to 21, to assist them in achieving their educational and vocational goals. Services include peer advising, referrals to supportive services, workshops, job referrals and placement assistance, and referrals to training and community outreach efforts. YEOP Specialists provide the employment services. Another forum is the annual Youth in Action (YIA) Conference. YIA is the first youth led coalition in Los Angeles County comprised of different organizations that focus on health, civil, social, and environmental justice issues youth and communities in general face. The presenter will discuss “train the trainer” strategies used by the Project to collaborate and coordinate with these and other community entities.

Learning Objectives: Participants will be able to

• describe at least 2 strategies to create and sustain mutually beneficial relationships with community and governmental organizations that will educate youth workers and
• identify factors which assist efforts to establish peer education interventions in a variety of settings.

Keywords: Youth at Work, Occupational Safety

Related Web page: www.losh.ucla.edu

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: UCLA Labor Occupational Safety and Health (LOSH) Program
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.