Hello Youth Movers! Chris here. We just had our quarterly membership and allies meeting this week, and I thought I'd share a bit of what we talked about and what we're up to. We're developing new programs, existing ones that continue to MOVE across the state, and are increasing our advocacy efforts. Let's dive in!

YMPA is about to conduct interviews for members of our soon-to-be-formed Youth Advisory Council! This council would be a group of young people ages 16-29, and two junior members as young as 14, who would guide Youth MOVE PA's activities using their experience, values, and expertise to ensure that we are operating in a way that is true to today's youth values. That's right, Movers, that means YOU can help us take the next step to becoming truly youth-driven and make an impact on the issues that YOU care about! 

We've been hard at work in the Transition Age Youth and Young Adult (TAYYA) Subcommittee of our state's Mental Health Planning Council (MHPC) as well. YMPA has supported the development of an Advocacy 101 workshop that will be going for a test-drive soon. So if you've ever wanted to learn how to become an advocate, let us know and we'll tell you how to you can check it out!

We've got a whole bunch of upcoming trainings for FREE from now through May, such as our youth-friendly Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and more! Check out the Training and Education tab on our website for more info.

Finally, our school-based programming is continuing to crush it out there! Sources of Strength, our newest program, has been offered in 3 schools now and continues to gain traction. Our partnership with The Copeland Center's youth-focused "Doors to Wellbeing" program continues going strong as we bring their Peer Generation: Youth Empowerment (PGYE) curriculum to more students! PGYE is about to train the 3rd cohort of Pennsylvanian students next month in Beaver County, with many more to follow!

Phew, you made it! It's been an exciting time over here for sure, and even with all this snow and cold weather, YMPA continues to keep the fire burning! If you want to get involved or have any questions, shoot us an email at ympa@youthmovepa.org.

That's all for now. I hope you're all staying warm out there. Remember to be kind to your minds and motivate others using your voices of experience. See you in the next one!