Community Health Educators (CHE)

Our Mission:

Community Health Educators (CHE) is a student-led group dedicated to promoting health education on campus and in the greater New Haven community. We implement an annual health education program in several New Haven public schools with the hopes of empowering students to make informed decisions about their health and fostering conversations around topics that are traditionally stigmatized. Our curriculum consists of interactive workshops/activities delivered through a peer-to-peer model.

Our Activities:

Education Program in New Haven Public Schools Direct Service One of CHE's hallmark events each academic year is implementing an after-school health enrichment program at several New Haven public middle and high schools. We use a peer-to-peer education model in which Yale students create and teach original lessons (in workshop format) to younger students in the hopes of empowering them with the relevant knowledge to make responsible lifestyle choices. This initiative serves to enrich our members' civic engagements with the local community as well as strengthen collaborative efforts between Yale and NHPS. Skin Cancer Prevention Program Direct Service Last year, CHE contacted the American Academy of Dermatology and received resources and materials to expand current curriculum to include 4 new modules on skin health/care/cancer-prevention, with the hopes of offering information on supplementary topics to those found in traditional state health standards. These lessons involve several hands-on activities to hone students' applications of the concepts as well as allow Yale volunteers to practice engaging with different teaching modalities. One such "experiment" involves building an edible model of the skin out of marshmallows (subcutaneous fat), pudding (dermis) and epidermis (Frosted Flakes), while another seeks to educate students about protection from UV light radiation by illustrating the effects on UV color-changing beads. World Mental Health Day Tabling Event Advocacy or Activism In honor of World Mental Health Day on October 10, CHE will be conducting a tabling event on Cross Campus to enhance awareness about comprehensive physical and emotional health. We plan to distribute educational materials about various mental health support/counseling resources on campus as well as allow students to make a mental/self-care kit (consisting of sleep masks, stress balls, a pocket journal/diary and lip balm in a reusable mesh pouch) to promote sustainable health actions that extend beyond Mental Health Day.

Student Leaders:

Kaley Mafong - Co-Coordinator/Co-President Elijah St Martin - Co-Coordinator/Co-President Sooah Park - Co-Coordinator/Co-President Karsten Rynearson - Co-Coordinator/Co-President

How others get involved:

Please reach out to yalecommunityhealtheducators@gmail.com and join us on Mondays at 8 p.m. in WLH 208 for our weekly meetings.