What do UC Irvine Public Health and Team Kids have in common?
Our shared aspiration to instill in the next generation the value of critical thinking, encouraging curiosity, and appreciation for the role of science in shaping our lives.
UCI Public Health welcomed a new site to our growing community of practicum partners. Starting in the Winter ‘24 Quarter, Team Kids began hosting our fourth-year undergraduate students who are interning at their site for an entire quarter. No stranger to the campus, Team Kids has been partnering with UCI for more than 23 years. Our public health students will join nearly 200 past interns from various disciplines including education and psychology.
“Our nation is facing an unprecedented youth mental health crisis and Team Kids, along with our public safety and university partners, are committed to helping students feel safe, significant and empowered as powerful advocates addressing issues, they are passionate about. Our innovative collaboration with UCI Public Health can serve as a national model to help scale our proven programs to increase thriving indicators for youth, while also strengthening protective factors,” says Julie Hudash, Founder and CEO of Team Kids.
“It feels like a natural union between Team Kids and UCI Public Health. We are ecstatic to be able to partner with Team Kids to not only provide a valuable learning experience to our students, but to also provide support and value for Team Kids to fulfill their mission,” said Rocio Gonzalez, community manager at UCI Public Health.
Building community among our youth is a public health priority
Amid recovering from the pandemic and the continuous trauma all over the world, feeling connected at school where students have a sense of being cared for, supported, and belonging can have long-lasting effects on their health and well-being.
“Our programs rally students together, fading away from the cliques, to achieve a shared goal whether it be collecting towels for a local animal shelter, or hosting a charity carnival to raise money for a cause the students feel passionate about such as homelessness, ending racism, food insecurity, mental health, and more,” says Irene Vazquez, Program Director for Team Kids. “I anticipate that UCI Public Health students will help empower our youth to lead causes that are bigger than all of us.”
During their practicum experience, public health students serving as supportive role models and mentors, can gain hands-on experience where they can also bring a perspective from their courses and view problems with a lens on addressing social determinants of health (conditions that we live, work, and play in that impact our health). Whether it is public safety in the community, limited access to healthy food choices outside of school, or the effects of discrimination, public health students know how these factors can impact a student’s mental and physical health.
I anticipate that UCI Public Health students will help empower our youth to lead causes that are bigger than all of us.”
– Irene Vazquez, Program Director for Team Kids
A public health perspective is direly needed as new data collected since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic reveal that teen girls, teens from racial and ethnic minority groups, and teens who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning (LGBQ+) are experiencing extremely high levels of mental distress, violence, and substance use.
“Future leaders who feel connected at school and in their community are significantly less likely to experience health risks related to sexual health, violence, and mental health in adulthood,” said Tamara Nabulsi who holds an MA in counseling, is a UCI alumna, a former Lead Coach for Team Kids, and current school counselor for the Santa Ana Unified School District. “The combined expertise of UCI Public Health students, Team Kids, and our partnering schools can help usher in a more resilient and community-driven, philanthropic generation.”
