Writings and Publications:


  • Teens Talk About Sexual Decision Making.  Co-wrote and co-produced educational video for classroom discussion. (1998)


  • Let’s Get Real: A curriculum for teaching teens about sexual & reproductive health, relationships, decision-making and personal Empowerment. Co-authored curriculum. (1998)



  • Family Planning Services Used by Substance Users. Co-authored study on high-risk substance using youth’s barriers to accessing family planning services. Study was funded by Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). (2004)

“Jacqueline Ambrosini is that rare behavioral health professional who can truly meet teens where they are, no matter where that is, and who can offer the right kinds of support so that teens feel safe to take the steps they need to take to empower themselves. During her tenure at the Youth Health Empowerment Project, she created innovative and effective youth programs and was a remarkable source of trust, empathy and guidance for hundreds of young adults.”

 

-Jeff Maskovsky, Ph.D.

Co-Founder, Youth Health Empowerment Project (Y-HEP)

Associate Professor, Queens College and The Graduate
Center, CUNY  

“Jacqui has a gift for working with youth and connecting in a way that is so natural and so powerful. She and her work at Y-HEP was a true turning point in my life. For the first time, I was able to understand how to change my own actions and my own life. These are huge powerful realizations, to tap into who you are.”      
-Patience, former Y-HEP youth participant

I have worked with teenagers, young adults and their families for over 20 years. My adolescent work began as the founding director of a youth development organization that grew into a successful multi service drop-in center for youth. It was a place that nurtured and challenged young people to grow and thrive.


My openness and willingness to learn about a young person’s world and how they experience it has provided me with ways to support and help young people navigate this often challenging time of life.  

I work with young people in an interactive process to help them sort through and untangle the growing up challenges so common during adolescence. This is a crucial period of development when young people are separating from family and discovering who they are and what they believe in.  Many adolescents have increasingly pressurized high school and middle school lives to navigate. I provide a safe and trusting space to explore one’s own story and struggles, without judgment and away from family and social dynamics. This kind of supported exploration can be a transformative and empowering experience for young people.


My specific expertise with adolescents includes working with low self-esteem, bullying, depression, anxiety, anger, family dynamics, peer pressure, sexual issues, eating disorders and experimentation with drugs and alcohol.  

 



Adolescents