Brattleboro area students are sending an important message to their peers this summer – stay Above the Influence – with the launch of the ATI 802 media campaign. ATI 802 features the faces and voices of Brattleboro area youth and showcases each individual student’s choice to rise above the influences of negative pressures to drink, do drugs or anything that goes against who you are in order to fit in.
The launch of this positive message media campaign is timed to reach youth during the summer break, when more free time and less adult supervision can increase the likelihood of exposure to dangers and substance use. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, more teens start drinking and smoking cigarettes and marijuana in June and July than any other months of the year.
Last week, ATI 802 campaign posters, featuring the faces of local youth, debuted in the store windows of downtown Brattleboro businesses and remained on display through Gallery Walk and the Fourth of July holiday weekend. The Shoe Tree, Mystery on Main, Zephyr Designs, Burrows Specialized Sports, Vermont Artisans Designs, Brattleboro Cheese Shop & Cafe, Flat Street Pub, Barrows & Fisher Oil Co., Robert H. GIbson River Garden and the Boys & Girls Club of Brattleboro stepped up to show their support for the students by donating valuable window display space to host the posters.
The posters will be displayed on rotation throughout the community this summer. This week students recorded PSA radio spots which will be played on WKNE 103.7 FM radio. ATI 802 summer activities and promotions will include activities at area swimming pools and other locations where youth will be enjoying their summer break to remind them about the importance of making positive choices. The media campaign will continue throughout the summer and re-launch as the students return for the 2013-2014 school year.
(students featured in the posters above from left to right: Nina Goodhue, Cheicknia Doucoure, PEAK Program students of BAMS, Nancy Young and Ian Cebek)
Above the Influence is a media campaign of the National Youth Anti-Drug Media campaign conducted by the Office of National Drug Control Policy in collaboration with The Partnership at drugfree.org teh prevent drug abuse among teens in the United States; increase awareness of adults of the impact of drug abuse in young people; and encourage parents and other interested adults to discuss with young people the dangers of illegal drug use. ATI 802 is a localized version of the national Above the Influence campaign, created by students in the Brattleboro community and supported by the Brattleboro Area Prevention Coalition, a non-profit oragnization with a mssion of substance abuse prevention. For more information visit the ATI 802 website or contact BAPC 802.257.2175
