Do the CHA-CHA! A look back at our Community Health Advocates' adventures in 2025!

As the year comes to a close, we look back and reminisce about the many wonderful memories created by outreach in the communities of Northern Nevada. Our Community Health Advocates were busy in 2025, attending career fairs, presenting at middle and high schools, and running our summer camps at the University of Nevada, Reno in the summer just to name a few of our activities.

The impactful work we do is in part thanks to our wonderful partners in the area. We would like to shout out Roni Green, one of our partners at Reed High School. She has been an avid supporter of our CHW I certification program and an even better person who cares for her students.

Our Substance Use Disorder Community Health Advocate, Kylie Phillips, and our Community Health Advocate Lead, Roman Urbano, with Roni Green in the center.

KIDS U

One of the more hands-on programs we enjoyed was our KIDS U camps. These are two distinct summer camps done in partnership with the University of Nevada, Reno. Our first camp, called CSI Camp, introduces eager students to topics in forensic science. They get the opportunity to solve a mystery by uncovering clues throughout the week. This is a popular camp, which has been fully booked for the last three years.

Another camp we provide is called Healthcare Heroes Camp. This camp introduces students to many different topics in healthcare, with experts coming in to share and teach our students. They also get to participate in many hands-on activities like finding the DNA of a strawberry, dissecting the heart of a mammal, and teambuilding exercises!

Students at Healthcare Heroes Camp are working on applying sutures to a banana.

CHW Certification Program

Our busiest program this year was our Community Health Worker Certification program. We take students through an intensive eight-module course, where, upon completion, they apply for their CHW I certification through the Nevada Certification Board. We helped certify 41 students this past year!

Reed High School students participating in our virtual reality simulations, with different healthcare career-focused activities.

Project ROARR

One of our introductory programs, Project Reach Out and Revitalize Rural (ROARR), focuses on introducing students to the topics of healthcare, becoming advocates for oneself, and higher education. Our Community Health Advocates go into Title 1 or rural schools to engage with students who don't have the same opportunities as students in higher-populated cities do. We look to empower them with methods to begin exploring the fields of healthcare through critical thinking, teamwork, and having fun.

Our students at Yerington High School are working on a poster project highlighting one of the barriers to equal access to healthcare that rural communities struggle with.

We visited over five different schools in over three different counties in 2025. Some locations include Silver Stage High School, Yerington High School, O'Brien Middle School, and Dayton High School.

Our Workforce Team has had a busy year, and we are already looking forward to more success in 2026!