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Excellence in Action – Learning About the Work of HATC

For this quarter’s partner spotlight, we want to highlight the excellent work being done at the Harborview Abuse & Trauma Center. The Harborview Abuse &Trauma Center, or HATC, provides comprehensive care for survivors of trauma, adopting a multifaceted approach that addresses both the physical and emotional aspects of trauma. In addition to supporting survivors, HATC champions several preventative measures to reduce the risk of harm in our communities. HATC serves a broad range of patients, including a great amount of work supporting youth and their communities.

To learn more about HATC, we had the pleasure of speaking with Rebecca Milliman and Cicily McNeal. Rebecca serves as the Prevention and Education Manager and has 15 years of experience working with HATC. The prevention and education team minimizes harm by raising awareness of the root causes of violence and trauma and working with communities on how to address them. While Rebecca focuses on prevention and education, Cicily works as a Clinical Social Worker providing support to those who have experienced trauma. As a newer member of HATC, Cicily brings a wealth of clinical social work, policy and advocacy experience to the HATC counseling team. Cicily works alongside 10 other clinical social workers providing therapeutic services to survivors of sexual assault and other crime victims. Cicily’s grant offers brief intervention services including therapy and other supports, focusing primarily on individuals identified by an “unmet needs” criteria. These are people identified as less likely to engage, or be offered services at HATC through a traditional pathway.  Cicily and Rebecca shared their experiences working with HATC, the work they do with youth, and how HATC’s efforts promote positive changes in local communities.

“Our mission is to prevent and treat the harmful effects of traumatic experiences on survivors, families, and communities.” This is the HATC mission Rebecca shared with us. Given the complexity of trauma, putting this mission into practice requires a multifaceted approach. HATC does a great job of implementing such an approach, addressing both the physical and emotional aspects of trauma. On the physical side, the Harborview Forensic Nursing Program is made up of specially trained forensic nurses who provide services at 6 emergency departments in King County.  These services include: sexual assault exams, domestic violence/ strangulation exams, and follow up support. The forensic team responds to the emergency departments 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. On the emotional side, HATC offers several modalities of therapy, as well as advocacy and support services for survivors of sexual assault, traumatic experiences, and other crimes. In addition to recovery services, HATC champions trauma prevention by prioritizing social and policy change, education and leadership training for communities. As Cicily highlighted, the broad range of services offered by HATC help meet the unique needs of each patient. “That’s one really great thing about HATC. Any kind of trauma, you can come here and we have something for you, to help you.”


Working with Youth

In the wide range of HATC services, there are several programs supporting the wellbeing of youth. HATC offers youth and family-centered therapy, including Parent Child Interaction Therapy and the Alternatives for Families program. These services help families to address behavioral concerns with youth of any age and support youth in developing coping skills and processing their emotions. “When  comes in, we’re able to work with them to address clinical symptoms related to trauma such as post traumatic stress, anxiety, depression. For example, the counseling team works with patients on coping skills, which could be helping with facing difficult memories, processesing feelings and emotions related to trauma and much more.” “We also work alongside parents and caregivers when a child or teen comes in,” shared Cicily. For older youth, these services provide the space and agency to pursue care on their own terms. “Often times kids do not feel comfortable that [trauma] to a parent,” shared Cicily, “so they have the privacy to come here and receive most  services if they’re 13 or older without parental consent, and so I think that that’s one of the things that we’re really proud of.” HATC’s counseling services provide important support for youth and their families to pursue happy, healthy lives following an experience of trauma, and HATC strives to make these services as accessible as possible. “We answer the phone 24 hours a day, so if folks do call us after hours and they’re in crisis, they will be routed to a trained social worker in the emergency department,” shared Rebecca. For patients whose care needs fall outside of the scope of HATC’s services, HATC makes provider referrals to ensure they receive the care they need.

The HATC prevention team also provides many programs aimed at supporting youth. HATC partners with K-12 schools to provide prevention education for kids, creating curriculum that advances the conversation on boundaries, consent, and preventing sexual assault. This curriculum has advanced the way youth talk about trauma, particularly when it comes to sexual assault. “I have, in my career, seen a shift in the way that young people talk about sexual assault. I think back in the day it was much more taboo,” Rebecca said. “The way many young people talk about consent is so advanced and so progressive and you kind of see how far the conversation has come, from just a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ when someone wants to have sex with someone, but really it’s like a lifestyle. It’s a culture. It’s like they want to infuse it into everything.” HATC’s prevention education plays an important role in healthy youth development, providing youth with the skills and knowledge necessary to promote safe environments in school and in larger communities. The impacts on safety are noticeable, with partner schools reporting decreased rates of harm after engaging in prevention work with HATC.

Building upon their prevention education, HATC offers leadership programs for school-age youth. “We offer a whole leadership program for high school athletes to help play a role in creating a more safe and welcoming environment for everyone,” shared Rebecca. Coaching Boys Into Men is a violence-prevention program for high school athletes on boys’ teams, focusing on developing healthy relationship skills and mental health practices. Athletes As Leaders serves a similar purpose for high school athletes on girls’ teams, encouraging athletes to be leaders in changing social norms to promote a culture of safety and respect.

HATC also partners with youth in policy work, participating and co-leading task forces to support youth voices and leadership in improving school policies. An example of this work involves a school dress code that was causing harm for youth. “I worked with a large group of youth at a local high school to help change their problematic dress code,” shared Rebecca. “It was being enforced in harmful ways, the students were being sexually harassed when they were enforcing this dress code. It was very concerning, the stories that I was hearing. And so the district was open to changing it and hearing from youth, and I helped organize, really just supporting the leadership of youth and getting their voices heard and what they wanted to see in this dress code.” Rebecca and HATC’s efforts led to the implementation of a more equitable dress code for youth and a safer school environment. Other policy victories include the establishment of Team Up Washington, an initiative that expands the efforts of Coaching Boys Into Men and Athletes As Leaders across the state, and the passing of state-level comprehensive sexual health education legislation, furthering the work of HATC’s prevention education. “Now we get to support school districts with how they can incorporate consent education from kindergarten through 12th grade,” said Rebecca. “It’s amazing!”

HATC’s work with youth is truly comprehensive. In addition to the programming outlined above, HATC also supports the Foster Care Assessment Program (a statewide program providing consultations and assessments for the most complex cases), engages in work on ending child sex trafficking, and is involved in many other endeavors. For more information on all of HATC’s services, we recommend reviewing the HATC website.

While HATC engages with youth in a variety of ways, the commonality across these programs is the centering of youth as leaders and changemakers in their communities. “I like to have youth involved not just as participants, but also as decision-makers and planners for what we are going to do to prevent this [trauma] in their communities,” Rebecca shared. “I’ve learned to challenge my own internalized biases that I have against them as an adult, that I know better, that I’m the expert… and I’ve really learned through meaningful partnership with them and striving to be an ally to them that I need to really intentionally challenge those beliefs that I have.” “Kids are highly dynamic and they’re very smart, and they have a sense of agency if you allow that to operate in the room,” added Cicily. “But if you come in the room and you just think that because they are only of a certain age that they only have this amount of knowledge or wisdom, then I think you’re at a deficit.” As Rebecca explained, this empowerment of youth is an important step in preventing harm. “We [adults] control their lives so much. Almost every little aspect of their life is controlled, and that can be taken advantage of, and that is how abuse happens.” As HATC advocates for continued empowerment of youth, there are still areas for growth. “Let’s put some of our students on the hiring committee for every [school] staff member,” suggested Rebecca, “because they should have a voice in deciding who’s going to be their new teacher at this school, for example. That is shared power. They know best what is going to work for them and their peers, much more than any adult.”

Working with youth creates numerous positive outcomes, but it also presents some unique challenges. For HATC, the greatest challenge of working with youth is mandatory reporting. Cicily described the balance between service and reporting responsibilities that providers need to be mindful of. “[I’m] trying to straddle that nuance between building rapport and engaging with youth, and then also at the same time we have to know that there are certain things youth may disclose to me that I do have to report.” “It is a problem, because they have absolutely no choice in the decision on whether or not we are going to report something,” Rebecca added. “They are just completely vulnerable to our decision. There’s so much bias that goes into that. In some cases making a report to Child Protective Services or the police can be helpful. In others, it can be very harmful and can make things worse.” To navigate the challenges of mandated reporting, it is important to be upfront with youth about your responsibilities as a mandated reporter, particularly for older youth who have a better understanding of these systems. “Hey, I’m a mandated reporter. If you share something with me like ABCD, I am going to have to report that to the police. I want you to be able to come to me and talk to me and share any struggles that you have because I’m here to help, but I also want you to be fully informed with the impact of that decision,” Rebecca demonstrated. Another suggestion is for youth to talk about a situation in the context of a friend’s experience. Additionally, youth can call HATC intake social workers and receive guidance without providing a name. Both of these methods allow youth to get the support they need without triggering a report.


Impact & Growth of HATC

After describing all of the ins and outs of HATC’s youth services, Cicily and Rebecca talked with us about their favorite parts of the work and how it has impacted them. One source of joy is the lasting community built through HATC. Some community members who have been impacted by the work come back to work with HATC. “I love when former students come back and intern or volunteer,” shared Rebecca. “We have our handout that’s designed for teenagers, and it was actually co-created with a group of students that I work with… It’s so good because it’s all really created by them about what they want their peers to know.” Other times, it is running into a former patient who is grateful for HATC’s support. “People have come up to me at meetings, this has happened several times over the years, where they’ll kind of whisper to me ‘I was a patient there. My child was a patient there, and I just can’t thank [the therapist] enough,” Rebecca shared. “Those comments demonstrate the impact, and it is amazing the recovery folks can find even after going through a horrific trauma or series of traumas.”

Another source of joy is getting to see the successes of HATC’s work, moving patients through the recovery process and into healthier lives. To highlight this, Cicily discussed the process of supporting a child who has experienced trauma within their home. “Building that rapport and that relationship with that kid and then helping them kind of spread their web and their network of other supports, whether that’s school, whether that’s other friends, friends’ parents, to be able to finally have a little family around them so when they do feel ready to do that [report], they do feel safe and supported if maybe they get placed out of the home, So I think just building that and having them call you and say ‘Hey, this is what’s going on with me now,’ just being like ‘Yes! I’m so glad, I’m so happy that it’s a different situation, although it’s not the ideal situation, it’s different and you’re doing better.”

The Future of HATC

So what’s next for HATC? With new changes to leadership at HATC, folks can anticipate new changes to the clinic as they continue to strengthen research, education, and practice elements at HATC in the community. Although the clinic has done so much for the community, Rebecca and Cicily share that there is still lots of growth within their field that they have to learn. Because HATC is seen as an expert, the clinic must continue to evolve with how conversation surrounds abuse and trauma in society.

Moving forward, Rebecca and Cicily are committed to continuing HATC’s growth to better support not just youth, but all people in need. One area of focus is continuing to develop the equity lens behind HATC’s work. “One of the critical pieces that we’re trying to be better at is having more equity in who we serve and how we serve,” shared Cicily. “For me, that’s one of the critical pieces that I really want to see improved upon and I want to make sure that all of the information we have on the website, being LGBTQ+, anti-racist, people with disabilities,  all of those things, I want to make sure that that’s coming through and actually being represented in the data, in the work that we do.” Another area of growth is finding new ways to connect with local communities and make HATC’s services more accessible. “I’m hoping that we move more towards meaningful partnerships and being more responsive to specific communities,” shared Rebecca. “I think the way to build some of those relationships and build that trust is getting out and showing up for communities and being able to meet people where they’re at.” From our conversation with Ciciliy and Rebecca, it is clear that HATC has the vision and personnel to continue growing in a positive direction.


The OYPC team thanks Rebecca and Cicily for taking the time out of their busy schedules to help our community learn more about the great work they do at HATC. If you are interested in learning more about HATC, visit their website. Below are additional resources for you to share and share with others.


Additional resources from HATC:

HATC services

Sexual Assault: A Resource for Young People

Sexual Assault: A Resource for Young People (Spanish)

Consent is Everything Seattle Public School short film

Staying Prepared with the Emergency Management Team

In times of crises, it’s important that the University and its departments are prepared, informed, and confident. Known as the smallest UW department with only two members, the UW Emergency Management (EM) team provides technical and consulting services for the Seattle Campus and acts as a liaison to other University locations (Bothell, Tacoma, Friday Harbor, and so on).

The OYPC team had the pleasure of talking with Barry Morgan, the Plans, Training and Exercise (PT&E) Manager, about his position and the department’s partnership and involvement in our Youth at UW community!

Department Beginnings – Getting to Know Barry

The department was established 20 years ago in 2003 after the Nisqually earthquake that shook Western Washington in 2001. Steve Charvat became UW’s first Emergency Management Director and has been a “guiding light for UW emergency management enterprise and [someone] who has grown this program from nothing to where it is today,” said Barry. Without the leadership, vision, and work that Steve had poured into this department, it’s hard to imagine what crisis management would look like at the University today.

Working alongside Steve is PT&E Manager, Barry who has been in his role for 4 years. Prior to his current role, Barry worked at the FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) headquarters in Washington D.C. in the National Exercise Division working on the state, local, territorial, and tribal level. In his previous position, Barry had the opportunity to help a variety of different communities with exercises and preparedness ranging from the Kentucky Derby to the Superbowl and even working in the National Response Coordination Center (NRCC) in D.C. during the 2017 hurricane season of Jose, Maria and Harvey, serving as response and recovery through hurricane disasters in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico and the Bahamas.

Barry’s diverse background in emergency management has allowed him to be able to take on a wide spectrum of responsibilities through the University including:

  • The University emergency management comprehension plan
  • Being a coordinator for the UW Weather Status Assessment group
  • Being a member of the UW Crisis Communications Team and the UW Advisory Committee on Communicable Diseases (ACCD)

Partnering with Youth Programs

With only a team of two handling such an important responsibility for the school, OYPC wondered how working with youth programs differed in challenges than programs with adults.

Most people think that during the summertime, the main UW population is gone which is not true, they are just supplemented by a more vulnerable population.

Barry Morgan

The UW has a general population of young adults who are able-bodied and independent – a population that comes first to mind for many of us. This population is very different from those in youth programming serving K-12 participants who require more supervision and support. Barry explained that “when we look at youth, we are looking at more populations that are dependent and more vulnerable to threats than young adults – they’re a little bit different to consider.” It’s important to take into consideration that this is a vulnerable population who need more guidance and supervision in the case of an emergency compared to adults who display more independent thinking and reactions in emergency situations. Youth are not going to be independently thinking during a disaster nor can they sustain themselves – with this information in mind, the EM team must remember to plan differently for youth concerns compared to the rest of the UW populations.

Although Barry and Steve are the experts, Barry emphasized how important it is to have youth programming voices involved in the planning processes to make sure unique concerns are being addressed. Barry explained that “[they] need to be more inclusive of K -12” and different populations that are on our campuses regardless of the time they are on our campus, whether they’re here for 24 hours or 2 weeks.” Because dependent individuals are so different from independent individuals, the emergency preparedness plans and procedures must be different as well. It can be difficult to transition for a big campus, but Emergency Management, along with program directors, do their best.

Emergency management has a strong relationship with OYPC that has allowed for great consideration in developing important policies that protect the safety of minors and how it relates to emergency planning, such as Administrative Policy Statement (APS) 10.13. Barry shared that being a part of the youth protection planning processes has moved these necessary conversations, regarding youth concerns, into other UW areas. Consulting and partnering with OYPC has helped the youth community have more of a voice in emergency planning decision making. Barry explained that inviting OYPC and partners into planning sessions and working groups makes sure the Emergency Management team doesn’t lose sight of the needs and concerns of youth at the University.

It is EM’s goal to continue updating and reviewing the APS that oversees youth programs with the OYPC team as well as reviewing planning requirements, guidance, and best practices annually. For example, making sure current plans are accounting for the vast range of emergencies that impact UW beyond just power outages or weather hazards.

With the air quality impacts increasing in recent years, in both a local and global context, it has been more crucial than ever to plan ahead with the right partners to update the actions UW will take during extreme heat and poor air quality. EM partners with the Weather Status Assessment Group and Strategic Working Group to strategize the appropriate plan of actions for the diverse populations on campus. Some questions that help guide these conversations include, “How do we include youth in that planning and decision making process? How can we better transmit what to do during that impact onto campus?”

Closing a chapter & starting new endeavors

This year will have a lot of new changes for the EM department. The year began with a new parent department, Campus Community Safety, and after serving the UW community for over 20 years, Steve Charvat is ready to retire, leaving his legacy for Barry and future EM members to continue. The EM department is actively looking for a new hire to join the team and continue the two person department.

The EM department recently reinvisioned how EM looks at the UW. Barry talked about how a potential change in governance of EM across the UW, taking more of an enterprise-wide approach to preparedness, can make the University more resilient in the face of disasters in how they prepare.

As a big picture goal, the EM department would like to strengthen and grow the new Preparedness Oversight Committee. Through the committee, they hope to create new plans, increase resiliency through continuity planning and in the emergency center and focus on both Administrative Policy Statement (APS) and youth programs.

As we are all still recovering from how the pandemic has changed our course of work, Barry hopes to move back to having in-person table-top exercises with youth programs and UW admin to test current safety plans and address what is working well. Barry wants to take that feedback into planning sessions to make improvements and adjust current plans. A crucial part of Barry’s work is to always plan ahead, for example, the best time to plan for heat and air quality is right now in the winter time.

How can we make it an annual thing to bring youth program leaders together to run table-top exercises like this? How can we come together to identify those gaps and improve on our planning?

Barry Morgan

With all the hard work and dedication Barry has poured into his work, we wondered what his favorite part of his position was! Barry’s favorite part of his role is being able to “work with really smart people in different focus and functional areas and responsibilities.” Barry gets to work with folks ranging from state earthquakes to climatologists regarding heat to weather service people regarding snow storms. A big part of his role is being able to learn from other people in different areas and getting to hear about their different perspectives.

Wrapping it up

It’s clear to say that as the PT&E manager, you get to be a jack of all trades as you are not always focused on one thing. Because it’s necessary to prepare for any type of emergency that can happen, no day is exactly the same, which makes the job even more exciting.

Barry’s most memorable moment in his role was the 2019 UW versus Cal football game where the power went out at Husky Stadium and Barry was there at the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) on campus.

You can visit Steve Charvat of the EM team at the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) located in UW tower in the C building in the basement. To stay up to date regarding new personal preparedness courses and new job openings, please visit their website to learn more!


Thank you to Barry for taking the time out of his busy schedule to give our community a better insight of his work in Emergency Management. We are so grateful for Barry and Steve’s partnership over the past few years since the creation of the OYPC.

Learn more about the Preparedness Oversight Committee here.

Lear more about the new Continuity and Resiliency Program Manager position here.

King County Metro – Free Youth ORCA Cards

If you’ve used public transportation in the past few months, you may have seen signs about youth riding free on King County Metro! The new free youth fare comes from the recently passed Move Ahead Washington transportation package, providing youth 18 and under access to free public transportation across the state. 

The OYPC team recently had the opportunity to talk with Jennifer Covert from King County Public Health’s Community Health Services Division and Dani Hurula from the King County Metro Mobility and Market Innovation Team. Dani and Jennifer discussed how free youth transit came to be, how youth can ride for free, what the impact has been, and future plans to promote transit accessibility.

Free Youth Fares – How it Started

Seeing the great benefits free youth fares provide to youth and their families across King County, we wanted to learn more about how this program came to be. It started with a vision of transit accessibility. “Providing reduced fares to priority populations has been something King County has really been investing in and trying to do for a long time,” said Dani. This investment is reflected in Metro’s ORCA Lift program and subsidized annual passes, which have already greatly expanded transportation access to low income individuals and families. Building upon this, the free youth fare removes financial barriers for the thousands of youth accessing Metro services. 

Prior to the statewide establishment of free youth fares, King County was already ahead of the game. Metro has implemented summer pass programs and programs aimed at creating easier access for low-income students in recent years. “We do small campaigns that are really focused on specific groups or customers or audiences and do really targeted interventions to address their barriers to mobility options,” said Dani. While these programs were well-received, scaling free youth fares to a countywide level presented a greater challenge. With more than 350,000 youth in King County, a great amount of funding was needed to implement free youth fares while still maintaining the quality of Metro services across the board. “Short of a ballot measure, there wasn’t a great way for us to offer that benefit countywide.” This is where Move Ahead Washington comes in.

The Move Ahead Washington transportation package was introduced to the state legislature in February. This policy package saw a great amount of support and received an expedited trip through the legislature, getting signed into law in late March. “We were pretty surprised when it passed, very pleasantly so,” said Dani. “We were like, ‘What, this is on the table?’” The quick run through legislative processes shows the overwhelming support for this policy package. “Pushing anything through the [county] council usually takes a long time, but the enthusiasm for this policy put it on the fast track because every single councilmember was like ‘I want to be a cosponsor. Let’s do this’” said Dani. 

Move Ahead Washington provided King County with the resources needed to fund free youth fares. It also set an October 2022 deadline for rolling out this massive change, meaning a tight turnaround window for Metro to overhaul its services. Despite the short timeframe, the people of King County Metro rose to the challenge. Coordinating with numerous school districts, working around supply shortages for ORCA cards, updating existing school ORCA cards that were set to expire, all while also managing a complete technology overhaul of the ORCA payment system, Metro was able to roll out the new youth fare program this past September. Dani described the quick turnaround as “a perfect storm that was a challenge for us.”        

Riding Free! – How to Access Free Youth Fares

Now that we know where the free youth fares came from, it’s important to know how youth can utilize these benefits. While there are many options, the best riding experience is obtained by using a youth ORCA card. “We think ORCA cards are the easiest way for young people to have a smooth and sort of seamless boarding process,” said Dani. ORCA cards allow youth to access their free ride with the simple tap of a card, and also allows Metro to gather ridership data to inform service decisions. 

ORCA cards also eliminate the need to verify age and the potential for fare disputes with Metro drivers. “Ideally, we don’t want to have any sort of fare disputes between operators and people getting on the bus,” said Dani, adding that “we do have messaging of like, even if you don’t have a card, just get on, and operators aren’t supposed to stop young people.” Metro has noticed some fare disputes, particularly with youth towards the end of the age range who may appear older. What should youth do in this situation? Dani suggests using Metro’s reporting system. “We encourage people to take detailed notes and go through our standard customer reporting system of the bus number, which bus it was, the time.” While not a widespread issue, avoiding fare disputes is another reason why it is recommended to have a youth ORCA card.

Fortunately, there are multiple ways to obtain a youth ORCA card. Metro has already partnered with several schools across the county to provide ORCA cards, allowing youth to sign up for a card at school. Another option is to sign up for a card online using the ORCA card website. More ORCA options are coming, with Apple Wallet and Google Pay compatibility preparing to launch in the coming years! 

Even if you don’t have an ORCA card, there are still ways to access free youth transit fare. Youth may show Metro drivers their school ID or other forms of ID to verify age. And again, King County has encouraged Metro drivers to allow youth to board even if they don’t have any ID, aiming to create a welcoming and safe experience for all youth.         

Benefits for Youth and Families – The Impact of Free Youth Fares

We interviewed Jennifer and Dani a couple of months after the roll out of free youth fares. They were happy to report that the reception has been overwhelmingly positive! “The response to this initiative has by and large been positive. It’s definitely one of the most popular things we’ve ever rolled out” said Dani. “Customers have been really excited,” added Jennifer. “Oftentimes when we are enrolling someone in [ORCA] Lift or in the subsidized pass they’re asking ‘Well what about my child?’, so it’s great that they don’t have to take that extra step.” Jennifer and Dani have seen enthusiasm for this program both in the legislature, which put these services on the policy fast track, as well as within the general public, who appreciate youth’s easier access to important transportation services. 

One of the largest positives to come from this new service is the financial relief it provides to families. Jennifer cited the previous youth fares, $1.50 per ride for ages 6-18 or $54 for a monthly pass, noting “It really helps the families’ budget, not having to be concerned about, you know, paying for that youth fare.” Eliminating these expenses means families that have been using Metro are saving money. Other families who may have been unable to afford to ride before are now starting to use Metro more, with youth ridership increasing in recent months. Reducing financial barriers has increased youth access to Metro services, meaning youth have safe ways to get to places and activities that may previously have been inaccessible. 

“This is also about getting youth access to other opportunities,” said Jennifer. “Just to be able to go wherever you want to go… just to have that extra freedom and not have to worry about the cost to get there and then to get home, we’ve heard that from some of our outreach that our team has done.”     

Moving Forward – Goals & Partnerships for the Future

The new youth fare program has opened the door for greater collaboration between King County Metro and local school districts. With free youth fares, districts that were previously unable to afford ORCA contracts have easier access to these partnerships. If more youth use Metro buses, there is an opportunity in the future for school district transportation to focus on younger students and those with the greatest transportation needs. “The biggest impact we’ve seen so far has just been school districts starting to see the possibility of how partnering with Metro and our various services can have a benefit for them, and is now more affordable and accessible” said Dani. “I think down the line, a few years from now, we’re going to start to see better partnerships between Metro and K-12 schools in order to better serve their needs and also to get youth to start becoming commuters on public transportation.” Going forward, King County hopes to partner with more schools and also partner with schools in new ways, such as creating educational materials on transit safety and community care. “[A] big issue we hear with young riders all the time is just information, knowledge, so really pivoting to sort of education-based curriculum in schools to teach students how to use transit.” Metro hopes to teach young riders how to use helpful tools like the King County trip planner to find nearby routes and stops to get where they need to be safely. “As we’re coming out of the pandemic, safety has been top of mind I think for every transit agency in the country as inequality is really visible and present in our systems.” Free youth fares serve as an important step in promoting youth safety and creating equitable access within our transit system. 

In terms of other goals, Dani hopes that increased youth access to Metro services will stir up excitement about public transportation. With job growth on the horizon as Metro shifts towards a fully electric fleet in the coming years, Dani said “There’s a lot of job types that trade industries really need to fill… so I think there’s a lot of opportunities for us to partner better with career programs and trade programs to get youth really excited about working a union, county job.” 

Another shared goal from Dani and Jennifer is to see increasing connections between social work and transit services. “A lot of the things, you know the issues we see on our buses, could be better served by social work solutions probably than other solutions” said Dani. “The social work perspective really brings a different lens to transportation,” said Jennifer in agreement, adding that “transportation connects to housing, it can connect to health, it can connect to resources, to jobs. It’s not just about getting from point A to point B.” Bringing in a social work lens and growing connections between Metro, Public Health, and other departments going forward will hopefully create a greater continuity of services and care for King County residents.

Moving forward, Jennifer and Dani will continue to engage King County in conversations on further increasing transit accessibility. “There’s a lot of conversations that are happening about fares and fare payment and how we can continue to make our system more equitable while still also making sure that transit and our services are having the revenue they need to be able to run really good, efficient, quality services” said Dani. The conversation is moving beyond just youth, as free youth fares have created increased interest in free fares for other groups. Jennifer has heard seniors asking “So when’s my free youth fare coming?”, building momentum for potential changes down the road.

Thankfully, engaging in these important conversations and finding creative solutions are Dani and Jennifer’s favorite parts of their work! While there are many positives to consider, Dani shared that their favorite part of their job is having “the ability to be creative and inventive… to dig into the weeds and pull a specific audience, like youth, and really look into their barriers and pilot different ways to help address those barriers and reduce those barriers to increase mobility options.” Jennifer shared similar sentiments, adding that she enjoys working with clients as a Healthcare Navigator and seeing the tangible impacts of connecting clients with benefits. Another favorite of Jennifer’s is taking ideas from the big picture level, and translating them into plans for ground-level implementation. With passionate people like Dani and Jennifer on board, it is safe to say that King County is in good hands as we strive for continued accessibility and equity growth!


The OYPC team wants to give a big shout out to Dani and Jennifer. We are very appreciative of the time they took to meet with us and share all of their insight on the new free youth fares! For our youth program readers, please help out by spreading the word on this program! Free youth fares are still pretty new, so there may be some youth and families who haven’t been introduced to these benefits yet. For more information on youth fares and ORCA cards, be sure to check out the Metro and ORCA websites.

Getting Hands on with Creativity at the MILL – an interview with Dei Caudle

The MILL and Dabble Lab are makerspaces that provide UW students, staff and faculty the tools and resources to build and prototype to bring their ideas to life. Each makerspace is a social, multidisciplinary and collaborative environment that connects the UW’s creative community. The OYPC team had the pleasure of talking with Dei Caudle to learn more about her role as the instructional technician and how the makerspaces have impacted the UW community.


The History and The Making

Since 2018, Dei has been supervising and maintaining the MILL, allowing for the UW community to continue to use the space to explore their own creativity. Dei graduated from the UW with a physics degree and began working as a resident advisor in UW’s housing program before she decided to transition to the MILL. The work, which blends working with people and science, felt like the right fit for her.

The MILL is located in McCarty Hall on North Campus and was opened in 2019 after the success of the Dabble Lab located in Maple Hall, a residence hall located on West Campus, which opened in 2014.

The idea of having a makerspace included in the on-campus housing residence was introduced by Brian Fabien, former Associate Dean of Academic Affairs for the College of Engineering. More than just a residence, Maple Hall is a fully immersive living-learning environment for UW engineering students to participate in a community with those of the same interests and majors. In 2014, the new Maple Hall plans included a community focused area which evolved the idea of having a makerspace for engineering students (and resident assistants) to gather, learn from one another and collaborate together. The goal of the makerspaces is for students to design and produce their very own work in an environment made to foster innovation through community learning.

“The numbers have shown how much students value the makerspace…we get 11,000 distinct people who come in…so people come in, they use [the space] for projects, the classes they take…the space is really to get people in and excited about learning new things.” – Dei Caudle


The Role & Impact of the Makerspace

As an instructional technician, Dei is responsible for overseeing the MILL. This means making sure the equipment is in good working condition, organizing repairs and supervising students during workshops.

Dei also helped develop a course curriculum used with college students during the school year and adapted for use over the summer through Continuum College’s Youth & Teen Programs in a hybrid model. The curriculum focuses on teaching students how to use the different equipment at the MILL and learning about the space and the engineering design process. The MILL chose to continue with a hybrid model program for the 2021-22 year after spending a lot of time developing a high quality online program for the 2020-21 year. The MILL has found a hybrid model that accommodates students outside of Seattle, allowing them to participate in the program virtually while also giving those closer to UW opportunities to come in.

Dei emphasized how the makerspace is a resource for learning: students can come in with no experience and leave knowing how to operate a new machine. She encourages and enjoys watching community members combine the different resources offered at the makerspace to pursue their passions in addition to their work. The MILL, specifically, features industry-standard equipment, unavailable to students in any other nonacademic campus venue. Some of the equipment featured include 3D printers, laser cutters, advanced art and design tools, a water jet cutter, embroidery machines and so much more! Dei and her team are currently working on building out the process to teach students how to use more advanced machines that require more credentials to use.

When asked about her favorite part of the role, Dei expressed her enthusiasm and pride towards her students and their work. It’s clear that the makerspace becomes a home for many on campus who want to be a part of a greater creative community:

“We see students come in as freshmen and stay all four years of their college experience and that’s wonderful to watch them grow…you watch them go through the college process and you get to build that relationship over 4 years. It’s always sad when they graduate, but it’s great knowing we’ve given them a place to be in a community. A lot of our staff are friends with each other and we’ve created a community which, to me, is very meaningful.” – Dei Caudle

The success of the makerspaces has made a huge impact on the UW community, allowing for creative collaboration and individual passion pursuits. Dei shares that she hopes the community only grows and becomes even more publicized to those outside of engineering who want to learn more about the different machines and technology available.

“The things we are working on as a team are really making sure we are advertising ourselves and making sure people know we exist outside of the STEM area. I can’t tell you the number of times someone has stumbled in and they go ‘Oh my gosh, I didn’t know this was here!’….Making sure people know we are here and letting them know what we can do to help them is really important to us.” – Dei Caudle

Although there is a set budget to provide the makerspaces with machine replacement and repairs, the MILL is currently working on an STF proposal to get even more equipment! This aligns with the goal of makerspaces to expose and equip students with the newest and latest technology that they might encounter after graduating from UW.


Upcoming Events

Every year in the beginning of April, UW hosts the annual Maker Summit for students to showcase their projects within different categories such as photography, software, 3D printing and beyond. It’s a competition for students to show off their work while also getting the chance to win within their category. While only UW students can enter the Maker Summit, faculty, staff and the public are encouraged to come and view the projects. The Maker Summit also runs workshops and activities, a great opportunity for the public to get a chance to experience and try-out the machines offered at the MILL.

For more information about the event and to view past submissions, please visit their website.


A BIG THANK YOU to Dei for taking the time out of her busy life to share her stories with all of us as a part of Youth at UW!

Access to the MILL is free for all UW students!

Beginning Saturday, September 24, 2022, the makerspace will be open 8:30 AM – Midnight, Monday – Friday and 1 PM – Midnight, Saturday and Sundays.

Location: McCarty Hall, 2100 NE Whitman Ct., Seattle, WA 98195

Contact: 206-616-1162 and themill@uw.edu

Strengthening the Safety & Well-being of youth in the UW Community – SafeCampus Interview

An important resource and partner to the entire UW community, SafeCampuss mission is to foster a safe and supportive UW community. The department strives to help faculty, staff and students prevent violence and be prepared to respond when it occurs. SafeCampus is a  great partner to youth programs for consultations and violence prevention education.

The OYPC team interviewed SafeCampus Senior Violence Prevention & Response Specialist, Natalie Dolci, LICSW, who has been a part of the department for 2 years now.


Stronger Together – the SafeCampus team

Natalie is a licensed clinical social worker, and her background is working in survivor advocacy which is a large portion of the folks they serve. Natalie values the opportunities she has to to be trusted with disclosures and make sure survivors are getting connected to the right resources for their situation.

Although Natalie plays a crucial role on the SafeCampus team, she reminds us that it takes a village to make sure all needs are met. The SafeCampus team includes: Gillian Wickwire, Laura Fay, Paige Sechrest & three practicum students from the School of Social Work. Each person is crucial to ensuring that SafeCampus is able to support every individual in the UW community. Dr. Sechrest leads Prevention and Education work and Gillian, Natalie, and Laura are involved with direct services and consultations. Natalies shares that:

“It’s great to have a training and prevention arm in addition to a direct services arm because we can have an interplay between both sides of the program- people will be more inclined to talk to SafeCampus about concerns.”

When asked about SafeCampus’ greatest success, Natalie explains that in violence prevention work, it’s hard to measure success, because it is hard to prove the lack of something; how can we prove that violence didn’t happen? Although difficult, Natalie shares with us “something that can be measured is when SafeCampus has repeat callers and when they have people feel like they got something out of a consultation. I consider that to be a success story.”


Working with OYPC and the Youth at UW Network

As a campus resource, SafeCampus is available to work directly with youth programs as a consultation and thought partner. One area of particular collaboration is preventing, identifying and responding to behaviors of concern, actions which may endanger youth or otherwise merit supervisory intervention. At our February Summer Programs Planning meeting, SafeCampus helped youth programs process scenarios that might arise in youth programs and formulate responses. This is just one example of how partnership with SafeCampus can strengthen youth programs’ practices. 

OYPC hopes to help bring more visibility to the full suite of services SafeCampus provides for our community. SafeCampus is more than a response mechanism – they are an integral part of the community and are an “always available” resource to all youth programs. Natalie describes how her team might support a youth program:

“A person might call us if someone is handling a sensitive and urgent case or if a roommate is in danger, or someone might call us about the safety of a minor situation – we might do consultation with callers if they are calling about a mandatory reporting situation and talking them through the “whether” and the “how” – how do we mitigate unintended consequences? And how do we engage in harm reduction to the best of our ability?

In addition to partnering with youth programs, partnering with OYPC directly allows SafeCampus to close the loop or debrief in situations facilitated in Violence Prevention Assessment Team (VPAT) meetings. SafeCampus convenes VPAT meetings, attended by relevant campus partners, in situations where multidisciplinary coordination is needed, for example among SafeCampus, OYPC, Title IX, Emergency Management, and other entities. 

Natalie shares that because community members want to learn about new policies on campus and keep each other up to date on new situations, SafeCampus always looks forward to multidisciplinary collaboration with new partners in order to make the most of everyone’s expertise.


The Future of SafeCampus and Identifying Gaps

SafeCampus is an accomplished department that has been serving and supporting the UW community since 2007, yet they continue to strengthen their involvement to be a greater resource for community members. Looking onward, SafeCampus, alongside OYPC, wants to identify policy gaps and the need to have a more coordinated university response in response to violence prevention. 

Additionally, SafeCampus wants to hear from YOU! SafeCampus appreciates and enjoys the opportunities to hear from community members to understand potential scenarios and solutions, and what SafeCampus’ role would be in these scenarios. As Natalie says, “it’s fun for us to meet partners that we don’t get the chance to talk to often and to hear from everyone’s perspective.”

SafeCampus recognizes establishing healthy workplaces through actions such as formulating group agreements is a form of violence prevention that can be promoted university-wide. SafeCampus is always looking to intervene sooner when it comes to prevention work; therefore, it’s important for the university to expand the promotion of healthier work environments to prevent bullying and discrimination in the workplace. SafeCampus has resources for survivors of both violence and discrimination. In response to addressing workplace discrimination and violence, SafeCampus is committed to assessing who on their team can best help the survivor, and how they can best support them through their process and their options.


SafeCampus is a Resource to all

It can feel overwhelming to know when to call SafeCampus. However, Natalie and the SafeCampus team want to emphasize that anyone can call SafeCampus anonymously to consult about their current situation or hypothetical situations. SafeCampus is here to help in any way possible and to overcome barriers to our community getting the services they need.

The Office of the Title IX Coordinator has produced a training video that simulates a SafeCampus call. This resource will soon be available to our community so folks can get a sense of what a real call would look like — so stay tuned for updates!


A BIG THANK YOU to Natalie for taking the time out of her busy and important work to share her stories with all of us as a part of Youth at UW!

SafeCampus Number: 206-685-7233, Available 24 hours / 7 days a week

Email (safecampus@uw.edu) monitored weekdays 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Housing Arrangements Made Possible by Jason Sharp with Conference Services

As we approach the 2022 summer season, our Youth at UW community looks forward to working closely with the Conference Services department to help plan on-campus housing arrangements for youth programs. Conference Services offers planning expertise and support to organizers of professional conferences, workshops, and meetings. The UW hosts conferences of all shapes and sizes, from academic conferences to both UW- and Third Party-led youth camps to large scale poster sessions. Conference Services have decades of experience coordinating conferences, and they work with their clients every step of the way to ensure their conference is an unforgettable success!

The OYPC team interviewed Jason Sharp, the Conference Coordinator for Conference Services. Jason has been a great partner to the Youth at UW community, helping to provide housing and dining options and support logistics for our network.


Getting Started & Working with OYPC

Jason joined the Conference Services team in May 2019 and although Jason has been on board for about 3 years now, the department has been at the UW for over 50 years! Jason’s busiest season comes in June – September when the bulk of residence halls empty out for the summer. As a conference coordinator, Jason works closely with internal and external affiliated programs to provide services and housing. Since COVID, the Conference Services team has changed significantly. The current team consists of 2 conference coordinators, 1 operations manager and housing occupancy manager, 1 assistant director and 2 student employees – a total of 6 employees compared to the previous team of 15 full time staff and about 25 resident conference assistants in the summer. 

Some of the Conference Services include providing intern housing on the UW campus, offering academic guest housing for prospective students, families, and lecturers, as well as working with EH&S to provide isolation housing during COVID-19. Jason shares with us that while their “bread and butter” is conferences, as a department they also offer other programs, such as registration services, where they take care of the payment and processes for attendees on behalf of the conferences. 

Conference Services has worked closely with UW and third party led youth programs to house their participants in on-campus facilities. From football camps to FIUTS Youth Ambassadors (https://www.fiuts.org/visiting-programs), many youth have called UW home for a short time, thanks to Conference Services. Additionally, Jason expressed his gratitude for the Youth at UW network, saying,

“We are so appreciative of all these programs and to even be on the radar with UW youth programs feels wonderful. We are always looking to connect with new and old clients and I’m happy to offer consultations with as much information I have on hand.”


Overcoming Challenges & Raising New Questions

Like for so many departments, COVID has also drastically changed how Conference Services communicates with their clients and operates their services. Jason shares with us how his team was able to adapt to the pandemic and the different types of challenges they encountered and were able to overcome. 

One big challenge was communication – Jason and his team needed to make sure they were able to still communicate all vital information to not only their clients, but their guests.

“One thing I found that was a shift in operations during the pandemic was that, now, we communicate so much more frequently and more directly with our guests whereas in years past, more of our communication was filtered to our conference organizers who would then filter that communication to their guests, so we stepped in and became more direct to the guests because the nature of keeping people up to date during COVID 

Another challenge, which Jason expressed is “universal right now,” is limited staffing. Conference Services had to find alternative ways to continue providing excellent customer service despite their staffing shortage. Prior to COVID, conference services operated 24/7 conference desk hubs in Willow Hall and Lander Hall to accommodate all guests who check-in or had needs after hours. The 24-hour conference desk was a way for Conference Services to ensure all guests have a positive check in and check out experience. As a result of no longer having a conference assistant onsite at all times, for the last 2 summers, guests who come in after hours are routed to an on-call Resident Assistant to help guests check in. 

The last challenge Jason shared is the “level of uncertainty as an ingredient in planning.” Jason shares with us the complexities of maintaining relationships with clients, but not having all the answers to their questions. For example, Jason and his team ask themselves,

“What are our housing and dining rates going to be? Are we able to provide legacy housing (housing with community bathrooms) or stick to new residence construction with private bathrooms? What rate do you steer clients towards when you know you may not have all the buildings in your inventory?”

Jason and his team recognize the importance of providing programs with the most affordable option possible, especially for youth programs. The team strives to make their services both affordable and convenient, even given the ever-changing nature of the pandemic.


Looking Forward

As we march on into unprecedented new times, Jason and his team have found new permanent solutions to problems raised during the pandemic. Prior to being housed on campus, all guests must attend a 15-minute safety orientation within 24 hours of checking in. This was a particular concern to youth groups where safety is an especially high priority. With limited staffing, what do you do when you don’t have a lot of onsite conference services assistants that can deliver a safety orientation to the guests? And how do you still get this information to the guests without that staff available?

The team answered their own questions by creating a video orientation alongside the internal Marketing and Communications department to create and finetune a script. Guests are now able to watch and review the safety orientation video prior to checking in, a great example of maintaining effective communication and adaptability to adopting digital platforms to share information. Anecdotally, Jason noticed fewer questions and concerns coming from guests because of the accessibility and convenience of the video. 

Jason describes the pandemic as “painful” for this department, but as a silver lining because it afforded his team opportunities to improve their operations to meet a new demographic of guests who prefer service in a more visual and digitized format.

“A lot of paper processes have become digitized, which is major. I think my department has been wanting to shift towards that for a while but haven’t been able to make grand steps towards that. The pandemic has forced us to move forward more digitally, we found a reason to evolve, a lot of our billings and processes are digital that were not before, we’re saving trees which feels good!”


You can find Jason and the Conference Services department on the UW Seattle campus at Terry Hall. A BIG THANK YOU to Jason for taking the time out of his busy life to share his stories with all of us as a part of Youth at UW!

To learn more about and to contact Conference Services and to initiate a quote, visit https://hfs.uw.edu/Summer-Conference-Center

Check out a video for Conference Services here: UW HFS | Conference Services

Staying safe with Ellie at EH&S

Helping us stay safe and protected is the Environmental Health & Safety Department, a UW administrative department that assists organizational units in meeting their responsibility to protect the environment and to provide a safe and healthful place for employment and learning. EH&S supports all three UW campuses, all UW medical centers, and all university affiliated operations. To get to know this important partner better, OYPC team had the pleasure of interviewing Ellie Wade, an EH&S Occupational Health and Safety Manager at OYPC works with regularly.


Getting Started & Working with the OYPC

An industrial hygienist by trade, Ellie joined EH&S’s Recreational and Occupational Safety (ROS) group in February 2016. There are six different sections in EH&S   that help UW create a safe and healthy environment – Ellie sits in Research Safety, which includes biosafety officers, lab safety services, diving and boating safety and more. 

EHS consists of science-minded professionals who, with a consulting mindset, help our campus stay on the right side of health and safety regulations. We aid the UW community to minimize exposures and accidents that may happen to our workers, students, and volunteers.

Ellie and her colleague, Judy Cashman, work together to provide health and safety guidance  in biological research and animal care and use settings as part of their primary objectives.

Before partnering with OYPC, EH&S held individual consultations with lab groups that wanted high school students to come in for shadowing or research requirements. There are specific legal requirements for youth working in STEM environments, particularly in dealing with hazardous chemicals and equipment, and depending on their age. Ellie shares that navigating this area of youth safety as a non-subject matter expert can be difficult, so EH&S advises UW personnel on what activities youth are allowed to do in those spaces. When met with the task, an outline was created for minors in STEM which was then brought to Caroline here at OYPC to proofread, approve and make sure everything stays up to date and current. The resulting document, Safety Considerations for Youth in STEM Environments, has been an important resource for youth programs. 

EH&S staff are often guest speakers or presenters at OYPC-hosted forums – this allows EH&S to create connections with other partners to provide health and safety consultations to our Youth at UW network! 


COVID-19 & Youth Safety

Ellie Wade and many others on the EH&S team work hard behind the scenes to stay up to date with the University to help outline all COVID-19 regulations. Thanks to Ellie, Katia Harb, EH&S Senior Director, and the EH&S department, we are able to mitigate challenges with restrictions in order to continue programming and engaging safely with one another.   

With the pandemic changing the course of how we view university health and safety protocols at such short notice – how did EH&S respond as efficiently and effectively as they did? Ellie explained that “controlling exposure to infections can be similar to controlling exposure to other hazardous materials”, allowing her and her colleagues to understand and interpret the public health measures needed to keep COVID controlled despite never having experienced a pandemic before. 

Prior to the pandemic, the UW’s Advisory Committee on Communicable Disease  (facilitated by EH&S) consisted of 10-20 members that met every quarter. It has now turned into a committee of 30-40 members that meets weekly. Since then, the EH&S COVID Response team have worked with ACCD and written extensive guidance and regulatory frameworks for groups that want to come back to the office on UW campuses. Ellie has been the primary EH&S point of contact for OYPC- helping apply these frameworks for youth settings.

Ellie continues to work closely with OYPC to understand and outline the logistics for keeping youth, faculty and volunteers safe.

How do we provide a safe learning environment for kids on our campus spaces with the Department of Health and COVID safety guidelines in mind? And how do we help programs navigate that independently – each program creating their own COVID-19 Prevention Plans well as implementing them?


Challenges and Goals

As we navigate the “new normal”, EH&S continues to confidently guide the UW community on the best practices to keep each other healthy. As seamless as the protocol roll-out process may seem, there is still adversity faced by EH&S when taking into account the UW community as a whole. Ellie was clear about what she felt was one of the greatest challenges of her department – increasing visibility of the EH&S department so more people are aware what the requirements and expectations are on health and safety at the UW. Additionally, having to include all pieces of information and detail to reach a broad spectrum of people is challenging. Ellie wants to share with the community that, “we are not the safety police, we are here to help people navigate [these times] and provide consultations to guide you with the right tools throughout the entire process”.

EH&S spends a lot of time improving their outreach and engagement, making sure they reach the right people. EH&S’s strategic goals and objectives are:

Safety Culture: We foster a healthy and safe culture at UW.
Compliance: We provide a pathway for compliance with regulatory requirements.
Learning and Growth: We promote training, development, and continuous improvement for EH&S staff.
Resources: We align resources with strategic priorities.(Source)


You can find Ellie and most of the EH&S department on campus in the T-Wing of the Health Sciences Building, and in Hall Health Center. A BIG THANK YOU to Ellie for taking the time out of her busy life to share her stories with all of us as a part of Youth at UW!. 

To learn more about and contact EH&S, visit https://www.ehs.washington.edu/