Laying the groundwork for first year of Youth Action Scholars

The Youth Action Scholars, our newest addition to the UCCP Progressive Youth Leadership Continuum, have spent the Fall semester carrying out the plans they created this summer. Here are some of the highlights of their progress:

Heath 5 Dimensions (H5D) ran a workshop November 20th at Penrose Playground exploring the five dimensions of health: Mental, Social, Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual. The workshop shop was attended by about 35 people who learned how to nourish themselves in these different aspects of health. Eric Dalloway from Urban Blazers, an organization that hosts outdoor trips for Philadelphia youth, spoke about the inequalities of recreational activities for low income youth in Philadelphia. He also provided easy ways to get to nature hikes right here in Philadelaphia! After his talk H5D facilitated an activity where the workshop were challenged to set up a tent and practice the 5 dimensions of health. It was a fun night of discussion, learning and eating healthy food.

The Polital Youth Team (PYT) is currently putting together a newsletter to urge young people to "go behind the veil" and "look deeper" into the politics that effect their daily lives. Some of their topics include: the profits of guns sales in the US, the social and political implications of Nike's Air Force Ones, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) in teenagers, and food deserts in North Philadelphia. If you have questions about one or all of these issues, be sure to check out their first newsletter in Spring 2010!

Race, Culture, and Mass Media is almost finished putting together their first workshop on the importance of black youth understanding African AND African American History. The workshop will explore how historical occurrences have shaped the current mindsets and culture of black youth and demonstrate the significance of this missing history from the Philadelphia Public School curriculum. Please come out to this workshop January 29th at 4:30 at Penrose Playground! RCMM has also been hosting shows on blogtalkradio! Check out their first broadcast entitled "Whats Up with the African American History Curriculum?" at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/maatforbaba/2009/12/15/whats-up-with-african-american-history-curriculum

Teen Health Café Launches with Great Success!

The Teen Health Café is a youth-led initiative that aims to provide a safe haven for teens to interact, learn and become active in their communities. Located at Penrose Recreation Center (12th & Susquahannah), the Café also seeks to become a hub for other organizations that wish to serve youth and the community. As such, the Café will feature numerous events designed to attract youth and other community members to the Penrose Playground.

The first event took place on Friday February 13th. It featured a workshop on healthy relationships, led by a guest speaker from Women Against Abuse. The youth prepared games and other fun activities designed to encourage youth to socialize in a safe, welcoming and informative environment.

In support of the National Girls AIDS Awareness Day the Teen Health Café is partnering with St Christopher’s Hospital to host a workshop on HIV prevention with special conversation sessions for girls and boys. The event will take place on March 10th, from 4:30 to 6:30 at Temple University, in the Women's Studies Lounge, 8th floor of Anderson Hall, 1114 W. Berks St. The next Teen Health Café is scheduled for March 20th at Penrose Playground, 12th and Susquahannah, at 4:30pm.

The Teen Health Café emerged from a series of conversations between the UCCP, Temple faculty, Arthur Ashe Youth Tennis and Education and Greater Philadelphia Federation of Settlements. Under the guidance and mentoring of UCCP staff and Temple students, youth participants from these organizations have been meeting weekly to develop the Teen Health Café. As part of their planning process, they met with students from the Fox School of Business at Temple to gain a better understanding of business plans and sustainable business practices, visited farmers’ markets, spoke with the vendors, conducted research on other similar initiatives, and identified possible funding sources.

For more information, contact Catalina Gonzalez at catalina.gonzalez@temple.edu.