Youth Enrichment Services (YES)
Title: Mental Health Matters
Student Interns:
Esmeralda Narvaez
University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy
Haliyat Oshodi
University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health
Academic Preceptor:
Mary Goldberg, PhD
University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Community Preceptor:
Deanna Sinex, PhD
Director of Research and Program Strategy, Youth Enrichment Services
Community Site:
Youth Enrichment Services (YES) is a nonprofit organization that empowers Pittsburgh-area youth through academic support, leadership training, and workforce development. Since 1994, YES has supported thousands of young people — especially those from underserved communities — by helping them build confidence, develop life skills, and prepare for future success. YES is a provider of the Learn and Earn Summer Youth Employment Program, which offers paid work experience to youth aged 14 to 21 in Allegheny County. Participants receive career readiness training and academic support, and they engage in hands-on projects such as Youth Participatory Action Research. The program ends with youth presenting their work to local leaders, which helps strengthen their community awareness and communication skills. Through Learn and Earn, YES helps youth earn income while gaining real-world experience, mentorship, and the tools needed to succeed in school, work, and life.
Team’s Experience:
After meeting with the community preceptor at YES, the need to raise mental health awareness was identified. In response, the Bridging the Gaps interns developed a training module focused on trauma-informed approaches for staff. This module will be integrated into an existing training website for staff, which is under development. The purpose of the training is to help create an inclusive and nurturing environment where students can feel safe and grow into healthy individuals. It covers why this approach is important specifically for this community, how trauma impacts behavior in the classroom, how common disciplinary actions can be re-traumatizing for students, and the effectiveness of trauma-informed approaches in the classroom.
Reflections
“During my time at YES, I’ve been pushed in more ways than I thought I would. I led my first classroom lecture and facilitated group collaboration, despite my longstanding fear of public speaking. I’ve been learning how to navigate moments of silence or resistance from students and reminding myself not to interpret them as personal failures, but rather opportunities to grow more resilient. Engaging with the students on a day-to-day basis has helped me move beyond labels such as ‘at-risk youth’ and see them as full individuals, each with their own flares and quirks. Working in Homewood, which often carries a negative reputation, I came in with hesitation. But through fieldwork, I’ve also seen a kind of beauty that doesn’t often make it into the media. There exists community, pride in shared history, and strength. It has been a wonderful, learning experience and am incredibly grateful for this opportunity.”
Esmeralda Narvaez
“Interning at YES made me realize that youth should be more involved in policy development and community activism. They see the discriminatory practices occurring in their neighborhoods and are greatly affected by them. They have the power to create meaningful change when given the tools, platforms, and support to do so. It also helped me understand that empowering youth to lead and advocate not only benefits their personal development but also strengthens our communities and ensures that future policies are more inclusive, equitable, and effective.”
Haliyat Oshodi