Training Associate: Reproductive Health & Justice

Training Associate: Reproductive Health & Justice

Opportunity: The Young Women's Project (YWP) is a dynamic, brave organization that develops leaders, takes on institutions, and builds youth power in DC. We are looking for an experienced leader with a flexible skill set to help us develop and deepen our youth-led sexual health education and advocacy. Ideal candidates should be at home training youth leaders or developing program plans. Demonstrated commitment to comprehensive sexual health and reproductive justice is a must. Organization with a big agenda and limited resources—expect to learn a lot and wear a lot of hats and to make a difference in the lives of hundreds of youth. The position is situated at the intersection of public health practice, youth development, and policy.

 YWP Mission: The Young Women's Project (YWP) builds the leadership and power of young people so that they can transform DC institutions to expand rights and opportunities for DC youth. YWP programs engage youth on three levels – as organizers (educating, engaging, mobilizing their peers, working as teams to make decisions), as advocates (presenting testimony to city Council, advocating with Agency leaders, developing and passing policies) and as system rebuilders (developing programs, creating new peer-led systems, integrating youth into decision making). Our work engages under-resourced BIPOC youth ages 14-21 from all DC Wards and most public high schools. The vast majority of your youth identify as women, 20% identify as LGBTQ. Last year, we hired and trained 242 young people from 25 DC public and charter schools. All YWP youth staff work 5-6 hours a week, develop a portfolio of products, build cross-neighborhood friendships, earn $10-17/hr and receive more than 150 hours of training. Founded in 1994 as a Collective, YWP has a staff of 6 adults and 150 youth and a budget of $650,000. We are value-driven, anti-racist, feminist, grounded in youth development and partnership, and work every day to dismantle oppression and rebuild institutions.

YWP Program: YWP's work is organized into two program areas, driven by long-term-system-change-focused goals. The Youth Health Educator Program (YHEP) develops youth as sexual health advocates and educators who work to expand reproductive rights, reduce unintended pregnancy, distribute condoms, and connect youth to sexual health services. Recent projects include the 2023 Sexual Education Centers that provide sexual health information, resources, and services, conducting a Youth Sexual Health Survey taken by 650 youth across 24 DC High Schools  (Results are here) and  presenting 22 testimonies to DC Council. The Youth Justice Campaign (YJC) develops youth as advocates and organizers to advance a bold agenda and leverage their power through collective action. In response to the youth mental health crisis and the need for school based services, YJC youth started the  Mental Health Campaign, aims to strengthen school-based mental health programming, connect youth to services, reduce stigma, expand access to mental health education, and advocate for stronger school based programming and funding. Since 2019, YJC Youth Advocates conducted 3 Annual Youth Mental Health Surveys with more than 2,000 students,  presented 72 Performance Oversight and Budget Testimonies  on a range of health, employment and education issues to DC Council, helped create the School-Based Behavioral Health Student Peer Educator Pilot (P2P Pilot) that codifies the essential role of peer educators into law, and created the Student On-line Support (SOS) Virtual Wellness Centers in 16 schools (and in Spanish), 

Position Summary: The RHJ Training Associate will work as part of a 3-person team including the RHJ Coordinator, RHJ Fellow, and 75 Youth Advocates to implement YHEP. The position has three main responsibility areas: 1) Recruit, train, and manage 2 youth staff teams to develop their knowledge and skills and work alongside them to implement school-based projects; 2) Work with youth to implement youth-led school based projects, campaigns, and policy advocacy; and 3) Contribute to social media outreach and infrastructure building. During the school year, the Training Associate must be available to train 3 nights a week from 4-6:45 to accommodate an after-school youth training schedule. YWP is currently operating on a hybrid schedule. Generally, each individual staff member has 2.5 days that are virtual (and free to work at home) and 2.5 days that are in the office or at library-based training sites. Youth trainings are conducted in person at libraries and the YWP office located at Dupont Circle. Staff meets together in the office for 1 full day each week . 

Specific responsibilities of the Training Associate are as follows:

Ø Youth Staff Training Development, Preparation, Delivery, and Management (40-50%): Conduct weekly trainings and working sessions for 2-3 teams of ~15 participants each from 6-8 schools; guide participants to meet key objectives. Prepare training materials, contribute to lesson plan development,collect evaluation and attendance data, Oversee, track, and manage all aspects of youth work; provide individual support and referrals to youth staff as needed.

Ø School-Based Recruitment & School-Based Partnerships (10%): Work intensively with 6-8 public schools in order to recruit students, assess school leadership and student support infrastructure, and work with existing school and student leaders to improve school based health services and youth integration in to decision making.

Ø Youth-Led Project Development (10%): Coordinate youth-led sexual health projects at 6-8 schools. Projects are likely to include: peer support groups, peer-to-peer resilience building training,virtual education and service links (see SOS VWC as an example), campaigns, clinic assessments, and other projects.

Ø Policy, Advocacy, & Campaign Development (10%) Contribute to YWP’s work with DC Agency and DC Council leaders to integrate youth into school-based health decision making and delivery systems: 1) Conduct policy research including primary data collection, collection state models, and policy analysis; 2) Develop materials for use in education, outreach, and advocacy including reports, briefing papers, and testimony; 3) Work with youth staff to tell stories through written and visual means, testimony development, and meetings hearings, and other events.

Ø Communications & Social Media (10%): Work with ED and Program Coordinator to expand youth leader and organizational visibility through the following: 1) Contribute to communications planning, strategy, and calendar development; 2) Train youth staff in social media; develop LPs and other training material to support this work; 3) Track youth social media posts and track, update and analyze social media statistics; 4) Write, proofread, format, and publish content on our website and blogs; and 5) Contribute to quarterly e-newsletters, announcements and other email messages sent to our electronic mailing lists.

Salary Range: $40,000-50,000 commensurate with experience

Benefits: Vacation, Sick, FMLA, Healthcare, 401(K) 6% match, Short and Long Term Disability Insurance

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in education, public health, social justice, social work, or related fields. 
• 2 years of experience working with youth, women, and with communities of color;
• 1 years of experience as a facilitator and trainer; skilled in popular education and experiential learning; experience with virtual training a plus    
• 1 years of experience with project development and implementation;     
• Demonstrated knowledge of and experience in mental health and wellness, school safety, sexual health, and comprehensive sexual health education;       
• Demonstrated knowledge of and experience in communications, social media, evaluation, data collection, and admin systems
• Deep, demonstrated commitment to building youth power and working with youth as partners to improve youth serving institutions; understanding of youth development framework    
• Strong problem-solving & critical thinking skills, and written and verbal communication skills;       
• Highly organized with a demonstrated ability to prioritize and manage complex projects
• Flexible, diverse skill set and work approach
• Pluck

To Apply:  Please email a cover letter, resume, and four professional references to: Nadia Gold-Moritz (nadia.gold-moritz@youngwomensproject.org). Please write “RHJ Associate” in the subject line.  The position is open now.  Interviews will be granted on a rolling basis and the position will remain open until filled.  The Young Women's Project is committed to affirmative action.  See www.youngwomensproject.org and our our 2023-24 Program Summary for more information.