September 18, 2025
Healthy Teen Network has presented awards for decades as part of our mission to uplift bold, innovative, and inclusive leadership in the field of adolescent health. These awards are more than recognition—they’re a celebration of people and organizations who inspire us all to think bigger, do better, and build a world where every young person can be who they are and love who they love.
The awards ceremony is always one of the most energizing moments of the conference and we can’t wait for you to meet this year’s awardees. Learn more about our awards and previous awardees.
Changemaker Awardee: Alyssa Gale, MPH (she/her)
The Healthy Teen Network Changemaker Award celebrates individuals or organizations who are unapologetically creating a world where every young person can be who they are and love who they love.
In a time of continued and escalating attacks on sexual and reproductive health rights, driven by ideology and partisan agendas, it is the changemakers who are making it happen. Through their dedication and hard work, changemakers are actualizing the vision of a world where every young person realizes their right, without limits, to be who they are and love who they love. To live in a world that affirms and celebrates them for who they are. Ensuring they have the agency, opportunity, and access to make decisions about their bodies, relationships, and futures (and feel good doing it!). That includes decisions about if, when, and how to parent—or not.
The Healthy Teen Network Changemaker Award recognizes those who champion young people’s access to inclusive, affirming, and honest sexual and reproductive health education and care. A seeker of joy and justice, changemakers uphold our right to control our bodies and shape our own destinies, settling for nothing less than true liberation.
We are pleased to present the Mount Sinai Department of Health Education with the 2025 Changemaker Award.
The Mount Sinai Department of Health Education is being recognized for its transformative approach to youth programming in New York City. Their holistic, affirming, and strengths-based model celebrates the potential of all young people while equipping them with the tools to lead change in their communities.
Mount Sinai’s summer programs give teens the chance to explore the intersections of public health, civic engagement, and health justice. Health Educators guide participants through original lessons on pressing issues such as mental health, reproductive health, gun violence, and maternal health—always connecting these topics to advocacy and activism.
Interactive workshops, guest speakers, and skill-building activities help young people analyze cultural messages, clarify personal values, and discover pathways to community health leadership. The Department believes that every young person deserves the opportunity to see themselves as a powerful agent of change, regardless of where their path leads.
Join Us in Atlanta!
We are counting down the days until October 6–8, when we’ll gather at In Solidarity for the #HealthyTeen25 national conference to honor these awardees and their incredible accomplishments. From inspiring keynotes to interactive breakout sessions, from networking opportunities to the excitement of our awards ceremony—this conference is a chance to connect, celebrate, and recharge.
We hope you’ll join us to applaud the Mount Sinai Department of Health Education and to be inspired by their leadership and vision.
