2015 APHA Annual Meeting & Expo

Home Events & Meetings Annual Meeting Schedule & Program

Recorded Annual Meeting Presentations (RAMP) are now available for purchase.
Only $90 for presenters, $140 for registered attendees and $200 for non-attendees.

Online Program

336740
Youth Leadership, Systems Change, and Community Economic Development


Tuesday, November 3, 2015 : 3:30 p.m. - 3:45 p.m.

Olis Simmons, Youth Uprising, Oakland, CA

The teenage and young adult years are a crucial time in which neighborhood circumstances that offer, or fail to offer, positive opportunities can make a decisive difference in the trajectory of a young person’s life and health. Essential components for young people on the cusp of adulthood include economic opportunities and opportunities to find their own voices and discover their own capacities for leadership. Just as important is the chance to have an impact on the world around them.  I founded Youth Uprising, a 25,000 sq. ft. “youth transformation center,” in an impoverished community in Oakland, California, to bring together job development, education, creativity, health, and leadership development opportunities for Oakland youth. In this presentation, I discuss the vision for the center, its success in transforming the opportunities for the youth it serves, and the process of partnering with a wide range of traditional and non-traditional partners to revitalize a neighborhood and improve overall community wellbeing.

Learning Areas:

Other professions or practice related to public health

Learning Objectives:
Describe the Youth Uprising "youth transformation center", a community development effort aimed at transforming the health and life opportunities for disadvantaged youth and young adults. Discuss the range of cross-sectoral partnerships that make the center possible.

Keyword(s): Community Development, Youth

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: As founding CEO of Youth Uprising, I conceived and built its youth center, and in eight years grew the organization to its current $10 million annual budget. I bring to this work a background in children's services, and in welfare to work and workforce development. I have received a James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award and recognition from US Attorney General Eric Holder for the work of the Center.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 4294.3: Investing in the Infrastructure of Neighborhoods: Cross Disciplinary Partnerships for Revitalization and Community Health Improvement