Shorter third person bio:

Christopher Pepper writes the Teen Health Today newsletter and is the co-author of the forthcoming book Talk To Your Boys. He is an award-winning health educator in the San Francisco Unified School District, where he has taught thousands of students about topics like sleep, mental health, and sexuality. Christopher also helps coordinate the district's Young Men’s Health Project, which brings middle and high school boys together to talk about relationships, emotions, and healthy masculinity. His work has been featured in the New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, USA Today, Edutopia, and on National Public Radio. 

Longer first person bio:

I build on my experience as a teacher, a journalist, and a father to do creative work that makes a meaningful impact on the world,

I’ve been teaching in the San Francisco Unified School District since 2002, and have taught thousands of students during that time. I have a passionate belief that all young people deserve high-quality, fact-based information about their bodies and their health.

I'm currently a Teacher on Special Assignment for SFUSD, where I help lead our efforts to provide comprehensive health education to all of our students. I coach new teachers, write curriculum, design and lead professional development, and advocate for high-quality health programs.

I helped create SFUSD’s innovative, inclusive sexuality curriculum, Be Real. Be Ready. and regularly train teachers on how to effectively use those lessons. I also help lead the district's Young Men’s Health Project, which brings teen boys together in small groups to discuss healthy masculinity and build positive, supportive relationships

I was thrilled to serve California as part of the state’s Health Education Com​munity of Practice, where I helped support the development and rollout of California’s Health Education Framework and the robust website that accompanies it, CaliforniaHealthEducation.org.

In addition to teaching, I often work with journalists to help them understand the current state of health education in the world. My work has been featured in distinguished outlets like the San Francisco Chronicle, National Public Radio and Edutopia, and I helped create the New York Times guide to teaching about the #MeToo movement. I’ve been honored to have my work recognized by my peers, who selected me to receive California’s 2019 Health Education Leadership Award and the 2010 “Thank a Teacher for Social Justice” Award.

Before teaching, I worked for several years as a full-time journalist, and was one of the producers who helped ThriveOnline win the “Health and Wellness” Webby Award in 2000.

I volunteered for several years as a Peer Rape Educator while at the University of Missouri-Columbia, giving presentations about consent and healthy relationships in classrooms, dorms, and fraternity houses. In also spent multiple years answering calls on the San Francisco Sex Information hotline, and my experiences there answering questions from teens contributed to my desire to become a teacher.