Building a Healthy New Generation!

Health Teacher David Mickola (standing on the left) rates one team’s output during a “Make a Kidney” lesson at De La Salle North Catholic High School.

MIKE Program in the Classroom

MIKE Program impacts the lives of young people by offering them guidance and support in establishing healthier lifestyles.Young people can participate in a hands-on lesson about the functions of kidneys as part of MIKE Program’s comprehensive health curriculum. Through mentorship and experiential educational activities, MIKE Program empowers youth to be health leaders. The program culminates in a Health Leadership Project which youth present to their peers, families and local community.

At De La Salle North Catholic High School, MIKE Program is part of the high school’s freshman health class. Health teacher David Mickola says “MIKE Program is an integral part of my health classes.”

MIKE Program empowered 160 diverse youth in the Portland Metro Area to be ambassadors of health during the 2011-2012 academic year. MIKE Program looks to mentor up to 200 youth during the 2012-2013 academic year. MIKE Program recruits and trains caring adults to match with the youth on a 1:4 ratio, supporting them in the teens’ educational and experiential environments. The customized curriculum meets national health promotion and career related learning standards, as the teens develop individualized health promotion projects for their communities. MIKE Program provides critical interventions to the dire health consequences of poor nutrition, physical inactivity, risky behaviors, and poor access to health care.

MIKE Program is currently active at De La Salle North Catholic High School and Rosemary Anderson High School/POIC, both located in Portland, Ore.; and at Miller Education Center in Hillsboro, Ore.