Wednesday, December 6, 2023 • 9:30 – 11:00 a.m. PT
Overview:
This presentation aims to prioritize equity and lived experience by examining the significance of a youth advisory board being created to inform all organizations or entities serving young people. By including the viewpoints and voices of young people in these discussions, organizations may enhance their comprehension of the youth they serve, allowing the development of programs and services that are more effective and engaging. The objective of this presentation is to examine various strategies for establishing and sustaining a Youth Advisory Board that is both inclusive and trauma-informed. The participants will get a deeper understanding of the importance of peer support, centering youth voices, equitable and reliable compensation methods, strategies for recruiting individuals, and approaches to ensuring long-term viability.
Meet the Speakers:
Prekiya Kennebrew (she/her), MPA, is a self-starter who’s flexible and innovative with a focus on housing justice, economic mobility, youth development, equity, and self-determination. Kiya is a connector with a proven ability to enhance and advance projects, programs, and initiatives through embedding equity and entrepreneurial practices to address complex issues with private and public systems, structures, and policies. Before coming to C4 Innovations as a Manager II, Kiya provided program and administrative support at Corporation for Supportive Housing. Kiya brings over 8 years of experience working with youth programs across the eastern region with the goal of positive youth development and leading and supporting housing initiatives across the country. Kiya has excelled in operations and program management, having worked on dozens of projects internationally and across the U.S., she is a strategic thought partner and problem-solver who’s dedicated to investing in racially oppressed and financially disenfranchised communities.
Dwayne Watkins (he/him), MPH, serves as the Health Equity Manager for the Center of Health Equity at C4. He has over 10 years of nonprofit professional experience in which his focus has been on driving the data culture to tell a story, streamline data practices, measure impact and to make data driven evidence-based programming decisions. He has spent the bulk of his professional career working for and with nonprofit organizations that are heavily focused on having long lasting transformative change for marginalized groups and communities. A proven Servant Leader and Social Change Agent Dwayne has a personal commitment to continue to use data, research, and programming to help mitigate racial health disparities.
Dwayne, a recipient of the 2016 Top 25 Game Changers in workforce, moved to Atlanta, GA in which he currently resides from a small town called Lumber Bridge, North Carolina. He studied Sociology and Africana Studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and later attained his graduate degree in Public Health from The George Washington University.
Ahmadreza Bahrami (he/him) has worked in county behavioral health systems for over 15 years. Ahmad has been a Division Manager and the Equity Services Manager (ESM) for Fresno County Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) for last six years. Prior to that, Ahmad worked as part of the leadership team in a small County Behavioral Health Department for over nine and a half years.
Currently, Ahmad serves as Division Manager where he and his team oversee the department’s administration of the MHSA, health equity efforts, media and public relations, prevention (including suicide and substance misuse), outreach and education among other duties. He serves on several local and statewide workgroups and committees, including Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) workgroups, Department of Educations’ Student Mental Health Policy Workgroup (SMHPW), and others.
He was selected as a 2019 Mental Health Champion by the Steinberg Institute. Ahmad’s educational background includes a Bachelor of Science in Criminology, a Master’s in Business Administration, and completion of doctoral work in Organizational Development.
Christian Santos (he/him) is currently enrolled as a student at CSU-Fresno. For the past three years, Christian has served central valley youth as the Chair of the Fresno Community Health Improvement Partnership Youth Leadership Council. This council is a student-led organization with a mission to empower the next generation of leaders to create health equity-focused communities. Christian is passionate about providing opportunities and resources to under-resourced youth and promote positive social change in our communities. He has devoted himself to empowering health warriors to do the same and be even better leaders than before.