WeARE Health Fair at CLC Provides Education, Resources to Students

Central Lakes College students had the opportunity to check out vendors, take home prizes, and receive free STI testing during CLC’s 7th annual WeARE Health Fair last week.

For the WeARE (Advocates for Reproductive Education) Clinic in Brainerd, the event at CLC is all about education.

“This health fair is all about empowering students and young people,” said Chloe Baker, WeARE Health Community Education and Outreach Manager. “To take care of their health and their overall well-being, and educate them on the services that this wonderful community has for them.”

“Getting educational resources to our students,” added WeARE Health Volunteer and Communications Coordinating Intern Gracie Johnson about the health fair’s purpose, “whether that be about sexual reproductive health, physical health, mental well-being.”

The clinic understands the need for reproductive education all too well, as according to the CDC, 2.4 million STIs were reported in the US in 2023. Youth between the ages of 15 to 24 made up 48.2% of those cases.

“As someone who’s a part of that age group, it is because a lot of schools, especially middle schools and high schools that are teaching their sex ed, are focused on ‘reproduction equals pregnancy, sex equals pregnancy,” said Johnson. “Beyond that, there isn’t a lot of talk about sexually transmitted infections, ways to prevent them, what birth control looks like.”

And Central Lakes College understands that there is a lack of overall reproductive education in the Brainerd Lakes Area.

“CLC is the only community college to our knowledge that is working with a sexual and reproductive health non-profit to provide free services to their students,” explained Johnson.

“To have a community college have sexual health services on campus is such a big deal,” Baker emphasized. “It is so helpful for these students to have a place that they can go for questions, for education.”

But the WeARE Health Fair is not held to chastise those who do not know about reproductive education—it’s intended to embody WeARE’s values of excellent service, integrity, and community through empowering those who seek to know more.

“It is so relieving to be a part of an organization that no matter what race, gender, sexuality, income, socioeconomic status you are, we’re here for you,” said Johnson. “We are going to take care of you. We care about you, we will support you.”

The WeARE Health Clinic is located in downtown Brainerd at 615 Oak Street, within walking distance of Brainerd High School, the Relationship Safety Alliance, the Brainerd Family YMCA, and all Crow Wing County service buildings.