Public Health Task Force

About the Program

Category: Children and Youth (Best in Category)

Year: 2021

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, its tragic impact on communities of color, and the crisis in adolescent well-being, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (DPH) has initiated an innovative youth leadership program, the Public Health Task Force. This program enlists high school students from underserved communities across Los Angeles County (LAC) to help lower the transmission of COVID-19. The program engages participants in an experience that builds their sense of community and confidence as impactful leaders, increases knowledge of proven protective measures for staying safe and healthy, supports their academic achievement, and, for many, sparks an interest in public health careers.Public Health Task Force members receive education by infectious disease specialists who creates dynamic presentations for students to share their learning with peers on their individual campuses as well as with family and others in their communities. The program is based in Positive Youth Development principles, employing Youth Advisors from the Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Division of the DPH as teaching assistants and co-facilitators and encourages a strong youth voice in the effort to lower infection rates in LA County.