Photos
Brian Hayes, President,Operation Samahan
Youth Program Manager
Stephanie Smith, Secretary/Treasurer
Teen Health Svc. Coordinator
Riverside Community Health Foundation
Jennifer Barber, Membership Director,
Executive Director, The Talk Institute
Angela Bush
Institutional Relations
Elizabeth Locke, Region 6 Coordinator
California Family Health Council
Aarti Harper
Jodee Palmer, Region 7 Coordinator,
Program Director/Executive Deputy Director
Tara Beeston
Michael Lamont
TeenNow California
Preventing Teen Pregnancies, Supporting Young
Families
Board of Directors
Stephanie Smith is the Secretary/Treasurer. Stephanie has worked in the health education field for the past nine years after obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Health Science and Minor in Sociology from Cal State San Bernardino in 1999. Her experience has led her to an exciting career working with youth and adults in the Riverside County. In the past she has worked with the Department of Public Health, Family Planning Branch, and as a Healthcare Social Worker for the Department of Maternal Child Adolescent Health programs, and has collaborated in efforts to connect youth with resources greatly needed to achieve their goals. For the last four years she has worked with Riverside Community Health Foundation as the Teen Health Services Coordinator overseeing a Community Challenge Grant from the State Office of Family Planning.
Brian Hayes Is the President. Brian was born and raised in New Jersey, and attended Springfield College in Massachusetts where he received his teaching degree in Health & Family and Consumer Sciences. In the past Brian has run HIV clinics, designed college health education programs, and worked on a community based research project, Connect to Protect which looked at risk behaviors and HIV infection rates amongst young men of color. Brian joined Operation Samahan as the Youth Program Manager in 2005 and ever since has been working hard on developing new and innovative ways to help the teens in South Bay area of San Diego make informed decisions about their health and well being.
Jennifer Barber is the Membership Director. She has been involved with TeenNow California and on the board since 2005. Jennifer is the Executive Director and Founder of The Talk Institute, which assists parents with communicating with their children about sex and growing up by providing sexuality programs where both parent and child attend together. Her education background includes a Bachelor's degree in Psychology and a Master's degree in Public Health. In addition, Jennifer teaches Human Sexuality and Women and their Bodies part-time at two local colleges and has been in the field of sex education for over 10 years. Jennifer participated in Advocates for Youth’s European Study Tour in 2003, where she studied sex education in Netherlands, Germany, and France.
Angela Bush is a Region 3 Coordinator. Bio coming soon.
Elizabeth Locke is a Region 6 Coordinator. Bio coming soon.
Aarti Harper is a Region 6 Coordinator. Aarti Harper, MPH, is the Health Education Coordinator for the Child Health and Disability Prevention (CHDP) program at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Aarti has over ten years of experience in program and personnel management, with demonstrated expertise in the integration of public health, education reform, and youth development in urban school, clinic, and government settings. Aarti's experience includes working as a Policy Analyst for the DC Deputy Mayor for Education and Director of the Washington, DC replication of the nationally-recognized Carrera Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program. Internationally, Aarti created and implemented a HIV prevention and family planning campaign in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. She received her Master of Public Health in Health Behavior and Health Education at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Maryland Baltimore County.
Jodee Palmer is a Region 7 Coordinator. Bio coming soon.
Tara Beeston is a Region 8 Coordinator. Tara is currently the Health Information Specialist for the HIV, STD and Hepatitis Branch of the County of San Diego, Public Health Services. Tara coordinates California’s STD Community Interventions Program (SCIP) in San Diego, working with youth-service providers to incorporate STD-prevention messaging into their work. Tara also coordinates the Chlamydia Screening Project (ClaSP) in San Diego’s juvenile hall, which ensures that all females entering the facility are screened for chlamydia. Tara is part of numerous community coalitions, including as co-chair for Mid-City CAN’s Teen Sexual Health Momentum Team and Project MOCHA (men of color health alliance). Prior to joining the County of San Diego, Tara worked in the Teen Clinic of a community healthcare center, as the Project Director for a CDC HIV testing grant, and as a Family Planning Specialist, serving low-income, ethnically diverse youth. Tara received her Bachelor’s of Science in Molecular Biology from the University of California, San Diego and her Master’s of Public Health from San Diego State University. Her thesis explored the transition of Plan B from prescription-only to over-the-counter.
Michael Lamont is a Region 8 Coordinator. Michael is currently the Project Director of the California Office of Family Planning's Information and Education grant which teaches pregnancy prevention and HIV/STD prevention to middle school and high school youth. Michael is also a mental health therapist and works with both adolescents and adults providing individual, group and family therapy. Since 2009, Michael has been a member of San Diego County's HIV Prevention Working Group and is currently the community co-chair of that group. Michael taught middle school and high school from 1984 until 1998.