Up to Us provides culturally relevant and emotionally engaging sexual health education for justice system-impacted youth. It uses an entertainment-education model that centers narratives created by and for justice system-impacted and formerly incarcerated youth.

the innovation

Up to Us is a series of three fictional short films written by and for formerly incarcerated and justice system-impacted youth. The films are accompanied by interactive arts-based workshops facilitated by trained sexual health educators. The intervention is centered around three topics: identity and gender stereotypes, contraception and sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing, and consent. The workshops use humor, creative activities, and collaborative discussion to encourage critical engagement with the film content and promote attitude and behavior change around the often-taboo topic of sexual health.

Instagram: @uclasexsquad

TikTok: @s3xsquaducla

why is this important to your team?

Although the State of California requires comprehensive sexual health education for all high schoolers, most programs in Los Angeles County still do not sufficiently account for the lived experiences of its youth—a majority of whom come from justice system-impacted communities. Additionally, juvenile incarceration rates in California are significantly higher than most states in the U.S., disrupting young people’s access to sexual health education and impacting their ability to form healthy intimate relationships throughout their lifetimes. Up to Us was designed as a solution to overcome the barriers that have prevented justice system-impacted youth from receiving the sexual health education they need and deserve.

“We want to work with Breakthrough Accelerator to bring Up to Us to more community organizations and reentry spaces, to high schools in the LA Unified School District and beyond, aiming to also reach a general television audience, on the model of successful programs such as Sex Education and East Los High.”

the team

This three-person team brings together an array of skills and expertise, including a human-centered approach to designing and implementing interventions. The team is comprised of practicing arts who incorporate the arts into their research methodologies and intervention work. They believe in the collaborative creation of knowledge and have lived experience navigating the justice system.

• Wilna Julmiste Taylor (she/her), UCLA Art & Global Health Center, Project Lead
• Amanda Giuliano (she/her), UCLA Art & Global Health Center, Research and Evaluation Manager
• Jai Williams (she/her), UCLA Prison Education Program, Project Manager

coaches 

• Sarah Axelson
• Kate Welti

The Stigma Role Playing Game (RPG) empowers LGBTQ+ youth to make informed decisions about their sexual health by using gameplay to facilitate discussions on sex, sexuality, and stigma—topics LGBTQ+ youth rarely can explore with safe adults.

the innovation

Stigma RPG is a role-playing game in which participants combat “Stigma,” and engage with concepts like discussing consent and boundaries with partners, exploring healthy relationship patterns, and preventing disease and pregnancy during sexual activity. With trusted and knowledgeable adults as facilitators, Stigma RPG bridges the gap between marginalized youth and vital sexual health information.

why is this important to your team?

LGBTQ+ youth face systemic barriers to sexual and reproductive health education, including a lack of LGBTQ+ topics in school-based education, limited access to supportive spaces, and societal stigma surrounding non-heteronormative identities and behaviors. Stigma RPG combats this by providing a safe, engaging space for LGBTQ+ youth to explore sexual health concepts through a cognitive behavioral health intervention presented as a role-playing game.

“Breakthrough Accelerator will support our 3–5-year vision for implementing RPG across our region as a tool for LGBTQ+ sexual health education and stigma reduction by helping us foster partnerships with community organizations and health care providers.”

the team

With backgrounds in public health, exercise science, and mental health, each Stigma RPG team member has a history of engaging youth with creative approaches and using evidence-based programming to help LGBTQ+ youth build skills, reach goals, and improve their lives.

• Coley Alston (they/them), Hugh Lane Wellness Foundation, Project Lead
• Madison Baxter (she/her), Hugh Lane Wellness Foundation, Team Member
• Jay Yoder (they/them), Hugh Lane Wellness Foundation, Team Member

coaches 

• Elise Schuster
• Alison McClay
  

The HCBU Wellness Collective seeks to change the culture of sexual health and wellness on HBCU campuses. The Collective is a peer education program that seeks to empower HBCU students to make informed decisions about their sexual health, reduce the prevalence of HIV, STIs, unintended pregnancy, and relationship violence, and contribute to building healthier, more equitable communities on and off campuses.

the innovation

The HBCU Wellness Collective is a peer education program that aims to foster open conversations about sexual health, empower students to advocate for their needs, and reduce health disparities within HBCU communities. The program’s six pillars—student representation, comprehensive training, peer education networks, normalization of conversations, transformational impacts, and advocacy—work together to create a supportive and empowering environment for students.

why is this important to your team?

HBCU students experience higher rates of HIV, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), unintended pregnancies, and relationship violence compared to their non-HBCU peers due to chronic underfunding and other systemic barriers. Through comprehensive training, skill development, and peer networks, the HBCU Collective empowers students to create culturally relevant programs that address the unique needs of their communities.

“Participating in the Breakthrough Accelerator will provide the HBCU Wellness Collective with the resources, mentorship, and funding to expand its reach to more HBCU campuses across the country, develop new partnerships with health care providers and community organizations, and conduct research to measure the program’s impact on student health outcomes.”

the team

The HBCU Wellness Collective team has over 30 years of combined experience in public health; HIV/AIDS counseling, policy, and advocacy; and domestic and global adolescent sexual and reproductive health.

• Vanessa Geffrard (she/her), VagEsteem, Founder and Chief Executive Officer
• Kimmy Sauer (she/her), Fearlessly Loving Yourself, Inc., Chief Operations Officer
• Lienna Feleke-Eshete (she/her), Idget Consulting, Chief Impact Officer

coaches 

• Asari Offiong
• Claudia Nuñez-Eddy

Beyond the Bump aims to promote healthy pregnancies and childbirth by providing teen-friendly, trauma-informed doula support and patient education.

the innovation

Beyond the Bump recruits and trains doulas to provide teen friendly, trauma informed care to pregnant and parenting teens. Our goal is to equip doulas with the tools and knowledge they need to empower teens to have the experience they desire and a positive transition into parenthood. “This was the best experience I ever had.” – A quote from a teen parent who received teen friendly doula support through Beyond the Bump.

why is this important to your team?

Pregnant teens experience inequitable maternal health outcomes, such as high rates of preterm births and cesarean sections, and low rates of breastfeeding initiation. These inequities increase for pregnant women of color, who are at a significantly greater risk of pregnancy-related morbidity and mortality than White women. Doula services are an evidence-based approach to promote healthy pregnancies, births, and postpartum care among individuals—and a promising strategy for creating system-wide change by encouraging more patient-centered, respectful care in birth hospitals.

“We hope that by participating in the Breakthrough Accelerator, we will be able to refine our innovation and finalize key components that make Beyond the Bump unique, equitable, and valuable for all partners, collaborators, and participants.”

the team

The Beyond the Bump team is passionate about improving health and well-being for pregnant teens and their families. A diverse group made up of social workers and a doula with support from a pediatrician, the team has a unique awareness of the challenges expecting teen parents face and extensive experience supporting teen parents with their social, emotional, and reproductive and sexual health needs.

• Christiana Jolda (she/her), Children’s National Hospital, Project Lead
• Akilah Witherspoon (she/her), Children’s National Hospital, Team Member
• Emily Handy (she/her), Children’s National Hospital, Team Member
• Yael Smiley (she/her), Children’s National Hospital, Team Member

coaches

• Jenita Parekh
• Kate Welti

Autistic Teens Learning About Sexuality (ATLAS) first started by providing resources for caregivers of autistic youth regarding sexual health topics. Currently, ATLAS is working to establish an engaging, accessible, and supportive environment for autistic and neurodivergent youth and young adults to learn about sexual and reproductive health through online gaming.

the innovation

ATLAS is a web-based sexual health education resource that deeply considers the learning needs and experiences of autistic youth. This multimedia resource shares plain-language sexual health information through interactive games, real-life scenarios, and personalized learning paths.

why is this important to your team?

In schools, if sex education is provided, it is often not tailored to the learning needs and experiences of autistic students. Caregivers of autistic youth also frequently report that they do not feel equipped to share information about sex with the autistic youth in their lives. ATLAS aims to address this gap by creating accessible, inclusive sex education resources specifically designed for autistic youth, incorporating diverse formats and perspectives to better serve individuals with various identities and experiences.

“Involvement with the Breakthrough Accelerator program will significantly advance our ideas and products by providing access to a collaborative, immersive environment where we work across cohorts and with autistic youth as thought partners.”

the team

Working effectively together since 2021, the ATLAS team shares a passion for advancing equity in adolescent sexual and reproductive health. The team holds interdisciplinary expertise in the fields of psychology, education, public health, and disability advocacy.

• Jaye Capretto (she/her), University of Oklahoma, Project Lead
• Gale Hann (they/them), University of Oklahoma, Team Member
• Jenny Sperling (she/they), University of Oklahoma, Team Member

coaches

• Elise Schuster
• Hannah Lantos

Stephen leads our website development and maintenance, providing expert design and technical guidance. He is Child Trends’ director of communications for digital strategy and has a successful track record of managing web properties at prominent research institutions, including the Population Reference Bureau and the Brookings Institution. At Child Trends, Stephen manages the website, newsletters, data visualizations, and analytics.

He contributes to strategic planning for the communications team and collaborates closely with researchers to help them maximize the reach and impact of their findings and data among key audiences. Outside of work, Stephen enjoys playing drums and producing music.

Elizabeth serves as a coach for teams interested in evaluation. She spent six years providing direct services to children in therapeutic foster care and working as a legal advocate for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault before going to graduate school. Elizabeth earned a Master of Science in Public Health degree from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, with a concentration in reproductive, perinatal, and women’s health. Since then, she has focused on adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health and has over 15 years of experience in the field. Elizabeth has held leadership roles on several large, rigorous program evaluations.

She would like to see more adolescent sexual health programs developed for, with, and by youth with disabilities. Elizabeth moved to Baltimore, MD for graduate school and fell in love with the city, so she never left. Her favorite thing in the world is spending time with her pre-teen daughter, but she also likes taking long walks around Baltimore no matter the season and planting native trees in her free time.

Jen provides senior advice and review to the Learning and Evaluation team, helping our team gather information and sharing lessons learned about supporting teams and innovations. As a PhD researcher, Jen has spent 30+ years researching adolescent and young adult sexual relationships, contraceptive use, and pregnancy; conducting program evaluations; and profiling effective sexual health programming.

She is excited about supporting innovations that ensure young people have access to a broad range of sexual health programming and services that are relevant to their experiences and support their interests and needs. She loves walking her dog around her neighborhood, going to the local farmers market, baking, and swing dancing with her husband and friends.

Jane is part of the Learning and Evaluation team, helping our team understand whether and how we can best support success among teams selected to join Breakthrough. She’s worked in the sexual and reproductive health field for over five years and brings experience in program evaluation, person-centered care, quantitative analysis, and adolescent sexual health.

Jane believes that youth deserve programming and health care that respect their autonomy and give them the tools to lead healthy and fulfilling sexual and reproductive lives. Outside of work, you can find her reading, hiking, and hanging out with her cat Juno.

Novia serves as the deputy project manager, working behind the scenes to ensure that Breakthrough is running smoothly, on track, and organized. Before joining the team, she had nearly seven years of experience serving in administrative roles supporting executives, managing facilities, and managing various projects. She hopes to continue expanding her skills and bring her expertise to the accelerator.

She has a soft spot for making sure adolescents have proper and equitable access to resources, especially in mental health, to allow them to lead safe and meaningful lives. Novia holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Maryland. Outside of work, you’ll find her exploring a city, attempting a new hobby with her cat (she’s currently learning to crochet), being a teacher, or trying a new recipe.

Alison keeps the Breakthrough functioning behind the scenes as project manager and supports teams as a coach. Growing up in a rural community—and then teaching in that same community—left Alison wanting more from the sexual and reproductive health education available to adolescents and young adults in her community, which led her to pursue a Master of Public Health in Maternal and Child Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Alison wants adolescents and young adults, especially those who face systemic barriers, to be equipped with the support and resources they ask for and to feel empowered by the adults who work with them to pursue their dreams, goals, and passions. Alison has rigorous training in quantitative and evaluation methods and is passionate about applied, multidisciplinary research and interventions that support and promote adolescent health and positive youth development. A lifelong bibliophile, Alison’s favorite genres are romance and young or new adult fiction, and you’ll find a colorful tower of books on her TBR prominently featured in her video call background.

Emma leads quantitative work on the Learning Agenda team, which measures and disseminates lessons learned about SRH innovation from Breakthrough. She brings years of work in the field across many methodologies to the role, as well as her creativity. In particular, Emma is excited to incorporate her insights on mixed method work, intervention development, and health justice.

Emma has a Master of Public Health degree in Community Health and Social Sciences and has been working in the sexual and reproductive health field for over seven years. She’s deeply invested in interventions that ensure young people have the resources needed to have the safe and fulfilling reproductive and sexual lives they desire. She loves trying her hand at new DIY and craft projects, riding her bike, and spending time with her chi-weenie, Jimmy Dean.

Andrea leads learning and evaluation efforts for our Breakthrough, helping the team understand whether and how we can best support success among teams selected to join Breakthrough. Andrea is committed to ensuring that adolescents and young adults are supported in their sexual and reproductive (SRH) health journeys, wherever these journeys may take them. Andrea brings over 15 years of experience in the SRH field, serving in diverse roles to implement and evaluate programming across the globe.

She is a storyteller at heart and is especially adept at using qualitative research to illuminate a program’s strengths. Andrea received a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in 2012. She loves an open dance floor, makes a great lasagna, and is secretly fantastic at impersonations.

Claudia serves as a coach for teams interested in commercialization. She is passionate about finding innovative and impactful ways to advance health equity. Claudia previously supported teams using human-centered design (HCD) to develop and launch novel solutions to adolescent health through an OPA-funded SRH innovation incubator (Innovation Next) and coordinates the rigorous evaluation of Real Talk as a PREIS grantee.

She has worked in SRH field for nearly 10 years and has experience in coaching, training design and facilitation, and HCD; she is a senior program manager at Power to Decide. Claudia holds an interdisciplinary Master of Science degree from Arizona State University focusing on the intersection of health and society. When Claudia is not thinking about how to increase access to comprehensive and inclusive sexual health information and services, she enjoys traveling to new places, cooking extravagant recipes, and wheel-throwing her next ceramics piece.

Kate supports teams as a coach for rigorous evaluation, bringing expertise in quantitative methods and program evaluation. Kate has served in a lead role on the evaluations of a variety of adolescent sexual health programs (ASRH) implemented in schools, community organization, clinics, and online spaces.Kate believes young people deserve SRH programming and resources that recognize their unique needs and desires.

She has worked in SRH research for nearly 15 years and is excited to collaborate with Innovation Design Teams to bring new ideas into the field. She has a Master of Public Policy from the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University. Kate enjoys spending time in the mountains and at the beach with her family and her goofball pup. She believes she might become a great pickleball player someday.

Asari Offiong serves as a coach and supports recruitment efforts. As an adolescent health researcher and public health practitioner, she has a decade of experience leading youth development programs; providing technical assistance; and conducting mixed methods, community-based research in various metropolitan areas across the United States related to substance use prevention and reproductive health.

Applying an equity and youth-centered lens to her work, Asari views youth as “at-promise,” not “at-risk.” As a Black early immigrant woman who grew up in Detroit, she understands and personalizes the need for innovations that are designed for and with youth because their experiences are unique, captivating, and worth centering—despite when society says otherwise.

Lisa leads recruitment efforts for Breakthrough and has over five years of experience leading and supporting qualitative and quantitative research across various areas, including adolescent sexual and reproductive health, intimate partner violence, and healthy relationships.

She is committed to improving access to high-quality care for underserved communities and understanding the impact of racial and ethnic disparities, socioeconomic factors, and policies on health outcomes. Lisa holds a bachelor’s degree in public health from the University of Rochester. Outside of work, you’ll find her creating chaotic travel itineraries that never work out, borrowing and attempting to read too many books on her Kindle, and hanging out with her cat, Mango.

Elise helps shape how teams will experience the accelerator and will provide direct support in the form of webinars and coaching, drawing on their knowledge and experience of building an innovation. Elise is adept at bridging the worlds of traditional teen pregnancy prevention and innovation, tech, and startups, frequently providing coaching and training to sexual and reproductive health experts looking to expand their innovation work.

Elise has over 15 years of experience in the field and is an expert in youth development, sexuality education, and LGBTQIA+ issues. Elise is the co-founder and executive director of OkaySo, an innovative teen pregnancy prevention intervention that uses technology to provide accurate information and build self-efficacy skills with young people. They hold a Masters in Public Health with a focus on Sexuality and Health from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. When not working, Elise is happiest reading a book outside or hanging out with their kiddo.

Hannah leads the development of training and technical assistance materials and provides support to coaches, bringing over a decade of research experience and learnings from prior training and technical assistance projects. Hannah grounds her thinking and questioning in two underlying values:

1. How can outcomes for adolescents be better? and

2. What are developmental reasons for different adolescent behaviors and/or needs?

Focusing on these questions guides her approach to coaching and training. Hannah completed her PhD from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, an MPA in International Development from the Harvard Kennedy School, and a BA in international development from Brown University. Hannah enjoys spending time with her husband, 1-year-old, and two cats, and being outside at the playground/pool/in the garden (if it’s not too hot!) or curled up with a new novel (though that happens more rarely these days!).

Sarah leads the design and delivery of innovation-related activities for Breakthrough. She has over 15 years of experience in innovation and adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH). After learning about the intersection of design and health, Sarah brought human-centered design (HCD) to Personal Responsibility Education grantees while serving as a project officer for the Family and Youth Services Bureau. She also participated in HHS Ignites, a highly competitive federal accelerator program designed to spur innovation in the federal sector.

Sarah has published peer-reviewed articles on innovation in ASRH in Prevention Science, presented on innovation at state and national conferences, partnered with world-renowned design firm IDEO, and received training in HCD at the Stanford d.school. In addition to her full-time role with Power to Decide, Sarah is an adjunct faculty member and DrPH candidate at the George Washington University School of Public Health, where she teaches a course on Design Thinking in Public Health. When she isn’t working full-time or teaching, you can find her volunteering with something related to reproductive health and rights, daydreaming about new teaching/training tools and products (yes, that’s really what she daydreams about!), or hanging out with her partner and dog.

Jenn is the expert guide providing support on the overall direction of the project and mentorship to the Breakthrough leadership team. Jenn is a leader in advancing sexual and reproductive health and well-being nationwide, with more than 20 years of experience working with federal, state, and local health agencies to achieve health equity.

Jenn’s passion is to create a nation in which young people feel comfortable talking about sexual health, health care providers provide person-centered sexual and reproductive health care, and all people have access to information and services without facing stigma, discrimination, or fear. At Child Trends, Jenn is the director of the Sexual and Reproductive Health program area, where she leads a portfolio of research and technical assistance projects to improve the rights, health, and well-being of young people. Jenn holds a Master of Public Health from Boston University with an emphasis on reproductive health, has served as a birth doula, is an avid reader, and is a parent to two red-headed kiddos.

Jenita provides direction and strategic guidance to the Breakthrough team, and technical expertise and support toward executing its vision. Jenita is a leader in advancing adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) equity and is dedicated to challenging harmful SRH research. She has over 15 years of experience directing large implementation and impact evaluations and conducting training and technical assistance.

She is a nationally recognized researcher in racial equity approaches to research and is published in Prevention Science, Evaluation and Program Planning, Violence against Women, and the American Journal of Public Health. Jenita holds a PhD from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and an MPH in Community Health Practice from the University of Texas Health Science Center. Jenita is the daughter of Indian and South African immigrants who grew up in a conservative community in Texas, motivating her desire to ensure that high-quality SRH is accessible and shame-free. She has a self-help book addiction, loves live country music, and is happiest spending soulful time with friends and family.