Updated April 21, 2020

Just like most schools, Health Connected has been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. Since shelter-in-place orders went into effect in mid-March, our team has been hard at work adapting our in-person programs and services for distance learning. Read on for more information about how this might impact your school, district, family, or student. Please check back regularly as we will be updating these FA...

Dear friends,

A few months ago, when we selected the theme for our annual fundraising luncheon, we landed on Finding Power in Connection. Little did we know how relevant these words would be now, as we learn how to connect in entirely new ways during the shelter-in-place orders. When we originally came up with the theme, it was about the idea that in an increasingly disconnected world there is power in connection. An e...

Today is Day 15 of the shelter-in-place order in the Bay Area, a policy implemented to slow the advance of the COVID-19 pandemic. It has been over two weeks now since I have physically been in the classroom; my workdays are now spent navigating virtual educational spaces and digital tools that will allow me to teach remotely. And after a long day of working from home, what does a cooped-up health educator do with her free time? Like m...

If you would have told me a year ago that I would be sheltering in place due to a COVID-19 pandemic and talking to you about how I really liked my sex ed class, I would have laughed. But, here we are. 

My name is George Eloïse Hosein. I’m a 15 year old Freshman living in Menlo Park, CA.  I was educated with Health Connected curricula in both 5th and 7th grades in my private school. Those classes were taught by my English teachers, and...

Dear friends of Health Connected,

As I write to you today, I am mindful that many of you are currently grappling with navigating life in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. As someone who has been part of the Health Connected community, I want to let you know how we are finding our way through these difficult times.

As you are probably aware, nonprofits across the United States and locally are being heavily affected by the curr...

What does “inclusive” mean when it comes to sex ed? 

For the last several years, Health Connected has put particular focus on LGBTQ-inclusivity to ensure that students of all sexual orientations and gender identities feel included, reflected, affirmed, and safe in our curricula. But LGBTQ-inclusivity is not the only set of identities that we want to be inclusive of. Every student arrives in the classrooms with identities informed by th...

Penis! Vagina! Sex! Oh my! The dominant discourse about sexual health education in the U.S. is often boiled down to giggly conversations, embarrassing anatomy lessons and condom-sheathed bananas. But at Health Connected, we understand the importance of treating sexual education like a living, breathing, ever-evolving creature in need of constant updates. This summer, I worked alongside two student interns– a high school senior and a u...

If you follow current affairs in the U.S., you have probably heard the phrase “unaccompanied immigrant minor” many times over the last few years. The Trump administration’s focus on the issue of immigration has intensified public discourse and left many immigrants feeling uncertain about their future prospects in the United States. At Health Connected, we serve a diverse cross-section of students across the Peninsula and San Francisco...

When I tell people that Health Connected has a sexual health curriculum for special education (SPED) students (Teen Talk: Adapted for All Abilities), I often get one of two responses. People either say, “This is great! I’m glad these students are getting the information,” or they say, “Why do you need a class for special education students on sex?” In response to the latter, I always ask, “Why not?” People often seem surprised that st...

Several months ago, I read an article in the San Francisco Chronicle about Facebook advertising. No, this wasn’t an article about privacy or data security, this was an article that illuminated the challenges of Facebook’s advertising artificial intelligence algorithm that interprets “explicit” images. Now, I will be frank. Normally I tune out as soon as someone says “artificial intelligence.” I know this is practically blasphemy here...