Adolescent sexual health: Programs, Policies, and Politics

Mara Decker, DrPH is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics based at UCSF’s Philip R. Lee Institute of Health Policy Studies. Her research focuses on adolescent sexual and reproductive health and positive youth development. Currently, she is conducting a study using a systems-thinking approach to improve the health of adolescents in rural communities in the Central Valley. She also is collaborating with Mexico’s National Institute of Public Health to assess the experiences and needs of unaccompanied young female migrants. For the past decade, she has evaluated the California Department of Public Health’s adolescent sexual health education programs. Her research interests include authentic community and youth engagement, social and structural determinants of health, and health equity. She is particularly interested in interventions that integrate health and other developmental priorities. She is a member of California’s Adolescent Sexual Health Work Group and volunteers with refugee and newcomer youth in Oakland.