Sasha Simon, MPH

Sasha Simon currently manages the development and evaluation of the U.S.’s first harm reduction-based drug education curriculum for 9th and 10th grade students –Safety First: Real Drug Education for Teens–at the Drug Policy Alliance. Simon has had an extensive career delivering innovative health education models at a variety of institutions, including Columbia University, City University of New York (CUNY), Gay Mens’ Health Crisis, and Health, Education & Research Occupations (HERO) High School, a 9-14 Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) created in partnership with Montefiore Medical Center, Hostos Community College and NYC Department of Education that seeks to increase the number of graduates entering careers in healthcare by offering students Associate’s degrees in Community Health and Nursing free-of-cost. An avid youth development specialist, Simon delivers youth-adult capacity building trainings to clinicians, parents and youth-serving organizations to help increase their capacity for youth participation in organizational decision-making processes. From 2012-2017, Simon served as Co-Founder and Marketing Director of the Fierce Leadership for Youth Academy, a college prep non-profit aiming to remove financial barriers to higher learning for first-gen college students of color. Through the support offered by mentors in the college admissions process, over 400 students were served and $6 million raised in scholarships and grants.