|
As we wrap up the year, we are restarting our monthly newsletter with a brand new DPH logo! This month, we are announcing the Adolescent Sexuality Education Program RFR and highlighting the work of Cambridge Health Alliance's TOP club, which has been busy implementing a youth-led community service-learning project that builds skills and supports healthier choices among teens.
In this issue, you can try out our Wordle of the month, find news about youth workers and youth, learn about upcoming awareness days, and resources to support young people and OSHYD network professional development during the holiday season. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to empowering youth and creating safe, supportive environments where they can thrive.
| |
Word of the Month
Like a good puzzle? Try Out December's Wordle!
This Month's Clue: "Tis the season."
| | |
IMPORTANT UPDATE:
Adolescent Sexuality Education Program RFR is now Open
| |
The Office of Sexual Health and Youth Development is excited to announce the recent posting of the Adolescent Sexuality Education RFR (#262135) to Commbuys, the Commonwealth’s procurement portal. The RFR can be accessed via this link: https://www.commbuys.com/bso/external/bidDetail.sdo?docId=BD-26-1031-BCHAP-BCH01-123259&external=true&parentUrl=close. Please note the following important dates:
-
Bidder’s conference: January 7, 2026, from 11 am-12 pm. Please use the following link: Join the meeting now.
-
Deadline for letters of intent: January 16, 2026, at 4 pm. Please submit letters of intent to DPH-ASEProgram@mass.gov with the subject line “ASE Letter of Intent.” Letters of Intent are not required and non-binding, but give the Department an opportunity to plan for the review process.
-
Deadline for written questions: January 23, 2026, at 4 pm. Please send all questions to DPH-ASEProgram@mass.gov with the subject line “ASE Question.”
- Application deadline: February 5, 202,6 at 4 pm.
Please be aware that, except for the bidders’ conference, DPH staff cannot discuss the procurement with potential vendors. All questions received, along with their responses, will be posted to Commbuys.
It is also important to note that applications must be submitted through Commbuys. The Commbuys system time stamps each submission and the Commbuys system clock is considered the official time record. All applicants should allow adequate time for application submission. DPH is not responsible for delays encountered by bidders or their agents or for a bidder’s local hardware (e.g., computer or network-related) failures associated with application assembly or submission.
| |
SAVE THE DATE:
ASE & PREP Provider Meeting
| | |
The Office of Sexual Health and Youth Development is excited to host our annual ASE/PREP provider meeting in person on Thursday, January 15th, 2026, at the DoubleTree Hotel, 5400 Computer Drive, Westborough, MA 01581. We ask that each DPH-funded program send two staff members. If you'd like more staff to join, please reach out to your contract managers for approval.
We are seeking two participants to present to their colleagues on topics related either to sexuality education or positive youth development. If you're interested in presenting at the meeting, please fill out the attached interest form by TODAY! We will review applications on a rolling basis and will choose two of the proposed presentations to present at this year's meeting. Please review the interest form for additional details.
Date: Thursday, January 15th, 2026
Time: 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Location: DoubleTree Hotel located at 5400 Computer Drive, Westborough, MA 01581
| | OSHYD Community Spotlight | |
A Youth-led community service learning project
Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA)
Wyman Top Club
Recently, a CHA Wyman TOP Club at Everett High School completed a Community Service Learning (CSL) project by transforming a decision-making lesson into a health promotion initiative to address the harms of vaping and smoking. The project, which was youth-led, included youth researching vaping and smoking and designing informational peer-education flyers to share with neighboring high schools. To keep the project truly youth-led, students were asked to include only the information they felt other teens would respond to.
TOP Club members shared that the CSL project was especially impactful, giving them the opportunity to raise awareness of vaping risks and to use their voices to support healthier choices among their peers.
| | | | |
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Substance Use Prevention and Education Model Policy
MGH Center for School Behavioral Health has developed a substance use prevention and education model policy. It was developed for schools and uses evidence-based, non-punitive responses to address underlying mental health challenges, inform change in behavior, address discipline disparities, and enhance school connection.
MGH did a training for DPH's Office of Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing grantees that you are free to view. The recording can be found here.
Tips to Guide Young Parents and Adult Caregivers Through Young Parenthood
Activate
This tip sheet is for youth-supporting professionals who work with young parents who have experienced the child welfare or juvenile justice systems, homelessness, or disconnection from work and school. Its purpose is to provide guidance to these professionals about ways to help young parents and their adult caregivers navigate adolescent parenthood.
Exploring the Dual Experiences of Parenting While Being Parented
Activate
This summary describes research about the relationships between young parents and their adult caregivers, with additional considerations for professionals who support young people and families who face unique adversities. Youth and families who have been impacted by the child welfare and/or juvenile justice systems, homelessness, and/or disconnection from school and work may face additional challenges that can shape the experience of young parenthood, young parents’ relationships with caregivers, and what they need from youth supporting professionals.
Safer | Supports and empowers against domestic abuse
Empowering individuals to break free from abuse
We offer compassionate support, advocacy and guidance, helping those in need build safer, healthier lives. We believe through education and training our community can help eradicate domestic abuse.
| Upcoming Webinars & Training Opportunities | |
| |
CARE Training
By the Trevor Project
The Brookline Center School-Based Telebehavioral Health Pilot Learning Collaborative is excited to sponsor and host this valuable and highly interactive training session designed to inform on practices and practical steps that allies and peers can take to promote a positive environment and respond to a person who is at risk for suicide. This is a must-attend event for any Massachusetts-based staff supporting youth with behavioral health needs!
Date: December 11, 2025
Time: 3:30-5:00 PM ET
Location: Virtual
🎥 Missed a session? No worries! Our Learning Collaborative website offers on-demand recordings of previous trainings, accessible anytime.
| | | | |
Virtual Professional Development: FREE Coaching Sessions
Advocates for Youth
Another round of FREE Virtual Professional Development (VPD) coaching sessions begins December 1st! There are only sixteen hours left to sign up for individualized coaching with Advocates for Youth. It is easy to sign up! To register, please visit the MA DPH Calendly link, select your preferred date and time, and choose the topic you’d like to focus on. You or your health educators may register for any sessions that best fit your schedule.
VPD offers one-on-one support designed to strengthen your facilitation skills and enhance your delivery of sex education curricula. The Office of Sexual Health and Youth Development (OSHYD) is excited to partner with Advocates for Youth to provide these sessions to OSHYD-funded, youth-serving agencies.
During your coaching session, you’ll have the opportunity to practice and refine your skills in one or more of the following areas:
- Adapting Lessons for Multiple Intelligences
- Adapting Lessons for Students who are LGBQ
- Adapting Lessons for Students who are Transgender
- Addressing Parent Concerns
- Answering Difficult Questions
- Creating Inclusive Classrooms for LGBQ Students
- Creating Inclusive Classrooms for Students who are Transgender
- Managing Personal Boundaries and Disclosure
- Responding to Diverse Student Values
- Tailoring Lessons to Age and Developmental Levels
- Trauma-Informed Sex Ed
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out!
| | |
One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OB3): Key Health Care Provisions and Impacts in Massachusetts
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation
On Wednesday, December 3rd from 12:00–1:00 PM, a webinar will be held on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OB3) and its implications for Massachusetts.
The session will:
- Offer a high-level overview of the state’s subsidized coverage landscape
- Review key OB3 provisions affecting Medicaid and Marketplace eligibility and financing
- Discuss anticipated impacts on coverage, financing, and the broader health care delivery system in the Commonwealth
Date: December 3, 2025
Time: 12:00 –1:00 PM
Location: Virtual
| |
Compassionate Communities: Forming a Grief-Supportive Culture in Your School
Brookline Center School-Based Telebehaviroal Health
The Brookline Center School-Based Telebehavioral Health Pilot Learning Collaborative is excited to sponsor and host this valuable and highly interactive training session designed to examine the social, emotional, and developmental impact of childhood bereavement and learn how to access resources, make referrals, and pursue additional training and consultation. This is a must-attend event for any Massachusetts-based staff supporting youth with behavioral health needs!
Date: December 4, 2025
Time: 3:30 –5:00 PM
Location: Virtual
🎥 Missed a session? No worries! Our Learning Collaborative website offers on-demand recordings of previous trainings, accessible anytime.
| Youth and Youth Workers in the News | | Meta is introducing new “PG-13” default settings for all Instagram users under 18, limiting the types of content teens can search for, view, or follow—including topics like alcohol or graphic material—and blocking interaction with accounts that post age-inappropriate content. The same restrictions will apply to Meta’s AI features, and parents can optionally choose an even stricter “Limited Content” setting. These changes are being rolled out now and will be fully in place by year’s end. | | Bhavika Kalia, a long-time youth leader with Somerville Positive Forces, has been honored by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women as a 2025 Commonwealth Heroine for her advocacy in youth health, social justice, and community prevention. She was nominated by State Rep. Christine Barber and will be celebrated at the state house along with other outstanding women at the Annual Commonwealth Heroines Celebration. | | Dimitris Niflis, a senior therapeutic manager at the Home for Little Wanderers in Somerville, was honored with the Excellence in Best Practices Award by the Association for Behavioral Healthcare. He provides structured, strength‑based therapy—using approaches like cognitive behavioral therapy, narrative therapy, and Sensory Motor Arousal Regulation Treatment—to at-risk children and adolescents, many of whom go on to make significant recoveries. | | Do you work with someone who will benefit from receiving the newsletter, or did someone forward you this email? Click the subscribe button to sign up! | | | | |
