Applications are now open for the Fall 2026 cohort of the Public Health Youth Ambassador Program (PHYAP), offering high school age students across Fairfax County a flexible and meaningful way to build real-world skills and connections in health care and community health.

The program’s Evening and Weekend option, held at the Fairfax County Government Center, is open to all 10th–12th grade students who live in Fairfax County—whether they attend public, private, faith-based, or home schools. This flexible schedule is ideal for teens with full daytime calendars, extracurricular activities, or part-time jobs, and gives families multiple ways to make the program work. Evening sessions run Monday through Thursday, and a weekend class meets each Saturday morning. Students can choose between two hands-on tracks: the High School & Young Adult Opioid Reduction Training Program or the Young Adult Mental Health Worker Program. Both options help students develop practical skills they can use right away in their schools and communities while strengthening college and career readiness.

PHYAP also continues to offer daytime programs through its long-standing partnerships with John R. Lewis High School, Justice High School, and Mount Vernon High School. At these schools, eligible students participate in Community Health Worker training during their advisory periods three days a week, gaining experience through lessons and hands-on activities led by trained facilitators.