Oral

With an increasing focus of advocacy in the field of health education, it is important to remember those who are the future of the field. Often times, seasoned health educators have little opportunity to mentor rising professionals. Yet these students are required to advocate on behalf of the profession. In this session, examples of training young health educators in the field of advocacy will be presented. In addition to advocacy work, accreditation of health education programs, including information on the new MCHES credentialing, will be presented. Other topics covered will be social capital in the workforce and how it related to public health, as well as health disparities among American Indians.

Session Objectives: • Discuss importance of mentoring students’ professional development for advocacy success • Assess a program for inclusion of the criteria upon which accreditation will be based. • Explain the concept of social capital as it relates to the public health workforce.

CE Credits: Medical (CME), Health Education (CHES), Nursing (CNE), Public Health (CPH)