Marin County Life :: Promising Practices :: Project A.S.K. (Adolescents Seeking Knowledge)

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A Good Idea meets the following HCI criteria:

1. The program description includes: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program funding source, program implementation steps and outcomes.

2. The program evaluation is limited to descriptive measure(s) of success/accomplishment (i.e., program participation rates, number of services/education sessions/radio messages provided). Note: oftentimes, the program has been newly implemented and a program evaluation has not yet been conducted. Programs that have not yet been evaluated, but which show promise in improving health or quality of life, are classified as Good Ideas until an evaluation is conducted.

Project A.S.K. (Adolescents Seeking Knowledge)

NOTE: This program has been archived and the content and contacts are no longer being updated
Ranking	Good Idea
Description	Project A.S.K. (Adolescents Seeking Knowledge) provides an innovative approach to address teen health issues in Nashville, by developing the next generation of public health leaders. Seven Metro Public Health Department (MPHD) Youth Advisory Board (YAB) students, ages 14-18, participated in the project. Selected MPHD employees volunteered to teach basic public health skills to YAB members every other Saturday for four months. Each three-hour session consisted of interactive teaching, Q&A including opportunities to ask career-focused questions, and project work time. The YAB used this new knowledge to scientifically identify a primary health concern affecting Nashville youth, research it, and create interventions to address it.
Goal / Mission	Project A.S.K. seeks to raise youth self-efficacy, improve knowledge of health issues, highlight math and science concepts tested in school, build leadership qualities, and improve the sense of community.
Results / Accomplishments	Eight MPHD professionals worked with the students for four months, training them in the various areas of public health research and science. Once the research topic (body image and weight) was identified, other community stakeholders became involved in the process. Local media were invited to partner with the Mayor's Youth Council to help create a pubic service announcement related to body image and weight.
Categories	Health / Teen & Adolescent Health Social Environment / Social & Civic Involvement
Organization(s)	Metro Public Health Department
Source	National Association of County and City Health Officials
Date of Publication	2005
Date of Implementation	2001
Location	City: Nashville, TN
Primary Contact	No current contact information available
For more details	http://www.naccho.org/topics/modelpractices/dat...
Target Audience	Teens
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