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Okanogan Healthy Youth

We support youth resiliency through comprehensive sex education, healthy relationship classes, leadership programming, and advocacy for youth friendly systems.

The Okanogan Healthy Youth (OHY) team was formed in 2015 to address three major public health issues that disproportionately impact rural youth in Okanogan county: unwanted teen pregnancy, inadequate reproductive healthcare access, and abuse and violence experienced by youth and young adults in interpersonal relationships.

We provide classes, training, workshops, and technical assistance that work towards a rural community where all youth and young adults can live healthy lives.

OHY Annual Report 2021-2022

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Health Education

We are skilled in teaching the most current, medically accurate, and highest rated sexual health curricula. In addition to our classroom support, we also assist schools with technical and professional assistance and training to ensure whomever is teaching sexual health feels supported and prepared.

For more information, email Shannon Russell at shannon@roomone.org.

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Positive Youth Development Programs

We help young people both understand the elements of a healthy relationship and gain skills that empower them to be resilient are crucial to our work. In these programs we focus on unpacking the issues that affect teens the most. Topics include: practical self-defense, exploring gender, healthy and un-healthy relationships, preventing and dealing with sexual harassment, coping with stress, and finding your voice.

For more information, email Shannon Russell at shannon@roomone.org.

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Youth Leadership

Investing in young people's leadership capacity is vital to our community's well being and an indicator of the success of our programs. That's why we run youth leadership and advisory councils to get young people's voice into the development of programs and advocacy work.

Current and Past Youth Leadership Programs Include:

  • Youth Leadership Council
  • Host Home Advisory Group
  • Youth4Youth Advisory on the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Project

We partner with the Foundation for Youth Resiliency and Engagement for our Youth Leadership Council. Find out more HERE.

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Teen Sexual Assault

This resource page was created by teens in Okanogan County who want to provide support and resources around sexual assault response and recovery.

This page includes information on the following:

  • What sexual assault is
  • What to do immediately following an assault
  • Your rights, reporting, and criminal justice process
  • Ideas for recovering from a sexual assault

The stories of young people in our community are central to how we do our work. In 2018 Okanogan Healthy Youth staff worked with teens from across our county on a powerful project: The Youth Storytelling Project.

We have used these films to promote awareness around housing, sexual health, health equity, and juvenile incarceration. If you would like to use these videos in your advocacy efforts, please inquire with Kelly Edwards at kelly@roomone.org.

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