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Welcome to another issue of The SADDvocate!  It's chilly up here in Massachusetts, and we're digging out from under more than two feet of snow - we hope you're staying warm this winter!  We've got some big news this month with the relaunch of our 21 or Bust campaign - read on for all the details!

Our goal is to ensure that every SADD chapter has the latest information, so we're counting on you to help spread the word about The SADDvocate.  Please encourage all of your SADD chapter members to sign up on sadd.org, or send a list (spreadsheets preferred, with columns for first name, last name, and email address) to Chris Egan, SADD's Director of Field Services, at cegan@sadd.org. 

Sometimes school computer filters prevent students and advisors from seeing The SADDvocate properly, in full color with graphics.  You can view every issue in our online archive.  This issue will be posted to the archive later today.

A good source of regular SADD news is our Facebook page.  We recently passed 9,000 "likes" - please help us get to 10,000!  Links to all our social networking pages are on the bar at left.

We're thrilled to announce the relaunch of our 21 or Bust campaign, part of the SADD and the Law prevention education series.  In this campaign, you'll work with local law enforcement officers to reach out to stores that sell alcohol in your community.  If the store managers agree to participate, they'll sign a pledge to strictly enforce laws against selling alcohol to those under 21, and your chapter will hang campaign-branded posters and place static clings inside cooler doors to reinforce the message for customers: Don't provide alcohol to those under 21.  Your chapter will also help gather positive media attention for the retailers who participate in the campaign.

21 or Bust is a good example of what's called an "environmental strategy" of prevention.  SADD chapters are often trying to educate their peers to help them make good choices.  Environmental strategies take a different approach - instead of trying to change individual behavior, they work to change the environment to make the behavior less likely - in this case, making it harder for teens to obtain alcohol.

Now everything you need to run the campaign is available in an affordable and attractive kit from the SADD Store!  You'll receive the updated 30-page 21 or Bust manual with step-by-step instructions and useful templates, plus 10 branded pledge certificates, 25 posters, 25 pencils, and 50 static clings.  You get all this for just $75.  You can order right now by clicking here - purchase orders are accepted!

To see all the great SADD items available from the SADD Store, visit saddstore.org, call 1-888-608-6988, or email sadd@apisource.com.  Make sure to "like" the SADD Store Facebook page to get all the latest news and specials. 

SADD chapters are keeping busy across the country, with lots going on in recent months.

Before school let out for the holidays, Westbrook High School SADD in Westbrook, Connecticut, offered "The Promise."  Students pledged to do at least one good deed over the break and were rewarded with a candy cane.  SADD Advisor Lyn Connery reported that the chapter chose this activity to spread kindness in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary school tragedy.

Lots of SADD chapters participated in Do Something's annual Teens for Jeans drive, which ended February 10.  Our friends at Do Something partner with Aeropostale each year to collect used jeans for homeless teens - more than 2.5 million pairs over the last five years!  Holliston High School SADD in Holliston, Massachusetts, took part in the campaign, making school announcements to drive donations to their collection bin. 

Many SADD chapters participated in National Drug Facts Week, sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).  Oak Grove Lutheran School SADD in Fargo, North Dakota, brought in two student pharmacists from the North Dakota State University's School of Pharmacy to present the "GenerationRx" program on prescription drugs at a school assembly.  Tara High School SADD in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, hosted Dr. Amy Copeland of the Copeland Smoking and Substance Abuse Clinical Research Laboratory at Louisiana State University.

Arabia Mountain High School SADD in Lithonia, Georgia, was visited by eminent neuroscientist Dr. Michael J. Kuhar from Emory University and the Yerkes National Primate Research Center.  Battery Creek High School SADD in Beaufort, South Carolina, held an assembly with a presentation by Sylvia Rivers of the Center for Drug and Alcohol Programs at the Medical University of South Carolina, during which students got to handle an actual human brain (pictured)!

Is your chapter doing great things?  Please let us know - send news and a good photo to fieldservices@sadd.org.

Registration is open for the 2013 SADD National Conference: Decades of Change, which will be held June 22-25, 2013, in Orlando, Florida, at the beautiful Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista - just steps away from Downtown Disney.

We're now accepting proposals for workshops at the conference.  Submissions are welcomed from SADD chapters, individuals, and organizations.  Click here to download the proposal form.  Submissions are due by March 15.

Ready to register or want to learn more?  Click here.  Need help fundraising?  We've got a template letter you can download by clicking here.

February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month.  Your chapter can participate in a number of ways, including sharing the National Announcement on Valentine's Day during your school's morning announcements, wearing orange, or hosting an event.  Visit teendvmonth.org for more information.

February 24 - March 2 is National Eating Disorders Awareness Week (NEDAwareness). Are eating disorders an area of concern in your school or community?  If so, visit NEDAwareness.org to learn more about possible activities to run during the week.  

March 20 is Kick Butts Day.  Stand up, speak out, and seize control from Big Tobacco.  Make sure to register your event and check out all the resources available at kickbuttsday.org. 

It's not too soon to start planning for Global Youth Service Day (GYSD), which will take place April 26-28.  GYSD is the largest day of youth service in the world, with young people from more than 100 countries participating.  Your chapter can get involved - check out our SADD Serves: Youth Giving Back toolkit for service ideas, and visit gysd.org to register your event and download project toolkits.

We're happy to announce the winner of the #drivingskills101 PSA Contest, sponsored by the National Road Safety Foundation.  SADD students at Scotch Plains - Fanwood High School in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, were the winners with their storyboard for a PSA called "Share the Road."  Emmy-winning producer Alan Weiss will visit the school to develop their storyboard contest into a professionally-produced PSA that will air nationwide.  The winning students also receive a grant from the Foundation to pay their travel expenses to the SADD National Conference in Orlando, where their PSA will be shown to conference attendees.  Congrats to Scotch Plains - Fanwood SADD!

Nearly 70 SADD chapters nationwide have entered the Act Out Loud contest for 2013.  What are you waiting for?  Register by February 28 and complete the remaining steps in the contest, and your chapter can earn $700 - just for participating!  If your chapter has ever said "It's so hard to raise money" then you MUST enter Act Out Loud - it's free money!  Visit actoutloud.org to enter, and when you do, make sure to put "SADD" in the field marked "National Organization Your Team Represents."

The National Road Safety Foundation and Scholastic are back with the Drive2Life Student PSA Contest for another year!  Submit a script or storyboard for a 30-second video public service announcement (PSA) that demonstrates tips about avoiding distracted driving.  The grand prize winner receives $1,000, a trip to New York to watch the PSA be professionally produced, and a one-year subscription to a Scholastic magazine (with student copies and a teacher's guide) for your teacher.  The contest is open to students in grades 6-12.  Put your thinking caps on soon, as the deadline to enter is February 28.  Click here for more information.

Project Yellow Light is back again this year with a PSA contest.  Keep your friends safe on the roads by creating a 25- or 55-second video to urge them to avoid distracted driving.  The winner receives a $5,000 scholarship and the Ad Council will professionally produce a version of your video to use as a nationally-distributed PSA!  Visit projectyellowlight.com for all the details.  The deadline to enter is April 1.

The Great American NO-BULL Challenge returns as well.  Open to students ages 13-18, you are challenged to create a 30-60 second PSA or a more elaborate short film of between two and five minutes that speaks to the importance of standing up against bullying and creating a positive school climate.  Enter your video by April 30, and then help it go viral by collecting votes online to be named a finalist.  There are BIG prizes and an awards gala!  Click here to learn more.

We have exciting news to report - SADD SPEAKs is coming soon!  SPEAKs stands for "Students for Policy, Education, Advocacy, and Knowledge" and is our special advocacy training program.

 

This summer, thanks to generous sponsors, we'll be bringing 12-18 students from across the country to Washington, DC, for a few days of intense advocacy training.  These students will return home and take on advocacy projects in their home state.

Current sophomores and juniors will be eligible to apply.  Stay tuned for more information coming soon!

Remember that the SADD National Field Services department is here to provide help and support to chapters, especially those in states without state coordinators.  Just call 1-877-SADD-INC, ext. 223 or email fieldservices@sadd.org for help!

Thanks for reading this issue of The SADDvocate, and thanks for all the work you do in your SADD chapters!