For this feature, we interviewed Cassalyn David, Network Director with Santa Cruz County Adolescent Wellness Network. Cassalyn was recognized as the 2013 New and Emerging Network Leader of the Year. Since joining NCHN, she has participated in the 2012 - 2013 Leadership Learning Community, presented at the 2013 NCHN Conference, and will be serving on the Program Development Committee and Evidence-Based Outcomes Task Force. Read on to find out more about Cassalyn and what's going on over at SCCAWN.

Q: You recently took over leadership of Santa Cruz County Adolescent Wellness Network and were recognized as the New and Emerging Network Leader of the Year in April 2013, less than a year after taking on your role as Adolescent Wellness Network Director with SCCAWN. You bring with you a broad range of experience. What characteristics and lessons have helped you the most in your role?

CD: I had great experiences working for Habitat for Humanity as an AmeriCorps family services coordinator. The affiliate was rapidly expanding from one home a year to a development of 18 homes, so I learned how to develop programs and policies. I wanted a better understanding of the root causes of poverty and how to address broader health issues, so I went back to school. In my graduate public health program, the students were required to plan and facilitate all of our own classes, which prepared me to manage the fun and fast-paced network meeting schedule. I should have something clever to say about how dealing with grizzly bears and backpackers as a park ranger prepared me for network directing. It taught me to always be prepared and a good communicator because like grizzlies, nobody likes surprises.

Q: How did your network come into being and what is its purpose? What are the unique needs your community/s have that led to the development of your network and its programs?

CD: SCCAWN began in 2007 when service providers wanted to address disparities in adolescent health literacy. The group decided youth in our rural border community need more than improved access to health information, so it expanded its scope to work for an integrated system of health, education, and social services. In 2010, SCCAWN received a HRSA Rural Health Network Planning Grant, and in 2011 the Network Development Grant. In response to high rates of teen pregnancy in the county, SCCAWN helped members secure a state teen pregnancy prevention grant to reduce risk behaviors with a program tailored to local demographics and culture.

Q: What programs does SCCAWN offer and what kind of results have you witnessed in your service area?

CD: The network documents and responds to local adolescent wellness needs that individual organizations can’t address on their own. In response to a survey of teachers and service providers, we provide trainings on complex issues such as bullying and referring at-risk youth to counseling. We host forums that bring together diverse groups of organizations on topics such as integrating behavioral health into SCCAWN programs and involving youth in program leadership. We are supporting the development of school-based or linked health care by bringing together education and health providers and connecting them to state and national resources. SCCAWN surveyed all county schools using the Centers for Disease Control's School Health Profiles tool. With this report, administrators, students, and parents see where our schools stand compared to state and nationwide averages and best practices. We are helping them use this information to support improved school health and wellness policies. Member organizations and others in the community are using our data, ideas, and the connections we’ve created to solve problems in innovative ways. We are communicating and acting in less isolated and more collective ways.

Q: From your perspective, what is SCCAWN’s biggest accomplishment to date?

CD: SCCAWN's most successful activities produce deliverables of lasting value to the community. In researching and developing our own youth involvement program, we produced a toolkit and hosted a forum to support youth leadership in sixteen other organizations. The toolkit represents a resource of lasting value to the community, and the forum brought in state and national experts on youth empowerment. Through this initiative we are acting as the catalyst for authentic youth leadership, not just in our organization but throughout the county.

Q: Your network is comprised of 5 members. How do they work together to promote adolescent wellness? What role does SCCAWN play in that process?

CD: Our members say that SCCAWN provides the cohesiveness and momentum needed to address broad health issues. When it comes to taking on social determinants of health they face barriers like the fragmented nature of health, education, and social systems. Our role is to help members understand each other’s needs and resources. For example, schools are learning what role they can play in students’ health and well-being, and the rest of the community is stepping up, combining resources, and supporting them.

Q: What are your short-term (e.g., 6 mo. – 1 year) and long-term (e.g., 5 year) goals for the network?

CD: The most exciting thing on our horizon is the launch of youth involvement in the network. This fall we will begin a leadership development program where participants learn about issues that affect adolescent wellness, provide input and leadership on SCCAWN programs and decisions, and advocate for policy changes benefitting youth well-being. This leads us into our long-term goals of creating a healthier, more inclusive environment for youth to grow up in. 

Q: What are your network’s biggest challenges?

CD: We exist because there are limited time and resources to address big health issues, so our biggest challenges are also what unite us. It’s very satisfying because we are creating a more integrated, efficient system of health, education, and social services with every connection we make and every goal we accomplish.