January 2023: Youth Visioning Group Meeting Highlights
Marin 9 to 25’s Youth Visioning Workgroup, met this past January to advance their Youth Resource Guide and Wellness Campaign. During the meeting, the Resource Guide team, led by Nancy Vernon, discussed the challenges young people face in Marin County and identified subcategories for their resource guide to provide targeted support. The categories included Substance Use & Recovery, Mental Health, Physical Health & Safety, Sexual & Reproductive Health, Basic Needs, LGBTQ+, Immigration, and Academic & Career.
The team carefully reviewed each category and subcategory to ensure it would provide the necessary resources for individuals seeking support. The Substance Use & Recovery category includes subcategories such as Where to Get Help, Treatment Services, Information & Education, Harm Reduction, Crisis Support, Narcan Access & Training. They debated the use of the word "Education" vs. "Information" and decided to use "Information" as it was more comprehensive.
The Mental Health category includes Where to Get Help, Treatment & Therapy, Crisis Support, Wellness Tools & Resources, School Wellness, Healthy Relationships, Relationship Challenges, Domestic Violence, Child Abuse Resources, and Bullying. They also carefully considered the placement of Domestic Violence and decided to include it in both the Mental Health and Physical Health categories.
Physical Health & Safety was identified as a crucial category. The group emphasized the availability of crisis support through text lines and phone calls, as well as medical care and nutrition resources and support for disordered eating. The categories of domestic violence and relationship violence were acknowledged as severe issues, and resources for reporting crimes and receiving support were emphasized.
The group also emphasized the importance of resources for Sexual & Reproductive Health, including STI/STD testing, support for trafficking, and sexual abuse, including child abuse and sexual harassment or assault.
To address the Basic Needs category, the group identified resources that would include food and nutrition, rental assistance, housing programs, and shelters, health insurance enrollment, financial support, clothing resources, voter registration, disability support, accessibility, immigration support, job searches, and spirituality and religion.
For the LGBTQ+ community, the group recognized the importance of a dedicated section of resources that includes crisis hotlines, counseling, and support groups, physical and sexual health resources, transgender support, information, and education.
The Immigration category includes crisis support through text lines and phone calls, legal support, information on individuals' rights, newcomer services, language access and translation services, voter registration, and job assistance resources.
Finally, the Academic & Career category includes resources for volunteer and internship opportunities, financial literacy, job training, tutoring/mentoring, disability support, accessibility, voter registration, language access, financial aid, and college support for students.
Throughout the meeting, they discussed the language and wording of each category and subcategory and made changes based on feedback from the group. The goal of the Youth Resource Guide is to provide targeted support for young people in Marin and to use language that is appropriate for each topic.
Overall, the meeting successfully advanced the Youth Resource Guide and provided a collaborative space for youth to engage with other stakeholders in developing outreach, promotion, and engagement strategies.
For the second hour of the meeting, there was a presentation from a group from Stanford working on a mental health app called “Sonar”. Youth asked questions and gave their input on the app, around how it might be used by young people, along with engagement strategies for the development team.
Links that were referenced during the meeting:
Right to Be (bystander training)
We look forward to what the next meeting will bring to the table!
Please contact Lauren Jacobson at Lauren.jacobson@bluepathhealth.com if you would like to learn more.