Resource for Tobacco Prevention: The ATTACK Toolkit

The ATTACK website (www.ATTACKtobacco.org) serves as a resource for organizations, agencies, college campuses, etc. wanting to create an ATTACK plan to counter tobacco industry targeting tactics aimed at young adults. The toolkit offers latest information about the tobacco industry marketing tactics; best intervention strategies in policy, lifestyle branding, community education and cessation. In addition, it provides tools to create research and evaluation plans. The toolkit also hosts a password protected networking feature so that tobacco control professionals can share tools and collaborate with each other.

ATTACK Toolkit Training Webinar
Date: Thursday, July 1st, 2010
Time: 10:00 am - 11:30 am (PST)
RSVP: email Alex Tyannikov atyannikov@sacbreathe.org
This interactive training is designed for tobacco control advocates and enthusiasts working with youth and young adults. In the training, we will review content and navigation of the ATTACK Toolkit. After the training you will be comfortable with utilizing tools in the toolkit, connecting with other tobacco control advocates and updating your profile.

Five Peer Educator Recruiting Blunders to Avoid

Now is the time to plan your recruitment strategies for the 2010-11 academic year. Here are five major mistakes to avoid. Planning ahead will increase your recruiting success.

1. Waiting until September to start recruiting.

First year and transfer students are attending summer orientation, checking your school’s website for information, and receiving emails from other groups on your campus throughout the summer months. Begin recruiting now by having a presence at summer orientation events, collecting new student emails, and sending emails or e-newsletters throughout the summer. Be sure your web page is up-to-date and clearly explains how to get involved. Invite new students to join your Facebook group and post your recruitment meetings as events.

2. Only recruiting first year students.

The National Peer Educator Study (NPES) conducted by Michigan State University has found that the majority of peer educators became involved after their freshman year. Juniors and seniors are looking for opportunities to apply what they are learning in their majors and to build career skills. Decide from what academic subjects you would like to attract students and talk with faculty about how being a peer educator provides practical, career-relevant experience (i.e., leadership, delegation, time and management planning).

3. Not answering the “W” questions.

Before a student commits to becoming a peer educator, he or she wants to know four things: Why me? Why now? What for? and Who says? Some students do not see themselves as peer educators. If you see in a student the qualities necessary to be a peer educator, tell him or her. When recruiting, talk about the issues students on your campus are facing now and how peer educators can help. Highlight your peer education group’s past successes. Your current peer educators are the best spokespersons for your group. Encourage them to speak about what they have received from being a peer educator.

4. Making it hard to be a peer educator.

It is okay to be selective in choosing peer educators (click here for sample peer educator applications and interview questions: http://www.bacchusnetwork.org/peeredapps.asp). We also need to recognize that peer educators are students first and have busy schedules. Think about how you can make being a peer educator work in a student’s schedule. Develop position descriptions for peer educators that clearly define what they are to do and the time it takes. Find the day and time when the fewest classes take place and schedule your meetings during that time. Plan your trainings and events with the academic calendar in mind. Having large, intensive events during midterms will create frustration and burn out. Finally, offer a safety net to students who become overwhelmed by allowing them take a break from being a peer educator to attend to other issues.

5. Not making recruitment everyone’s responsibility.

Recruitment is an ongoing, year round process. Every program, event, web posting, or flyer is a potential recruitment tool. As mentioned earlier, your peer educators are your best spokespersons for your group and your best recruiters. If they speak positively of their peer education experience and share their enthusiasm for what they are doing, others will want to join. Encourage them to invite students to the meeting and teach them how to welcome new people to the group.

Do you have a recruiting tip? Share it with others by commenting on this article.

posted by: Ann Quinn-Zobeck, BACCHUS Director of Education and Training

Student Award for Mental Health Education

BACCHUS encourages peer educators to apply for the following award honoring excellence in reducing stigma around mental health.


The 2010 Jerry Greenspan
Student "Voice of Mental Health" Award

The Jerry Greenspan Student "Voice of Mental Health" Award was established to honor a student who is reducing stigma around mental illness, raising awareness of mental health problems on campus, or encouraging help-seeking among his or her peers.

The student selected for this honor will receive:
* a $2,000 cash award
* recognition through The Jed Foundation's website and events
* assistance with composing a video of the student's work
* a trip to New York to attend The Jed Foundation's annual gala on June 10, 2010
* video highlighting the student's award-winning work, which will be showcased during The Jed Foundation's gala
* an opportunity to appear on MTVU**

This award is designed to encourage dialogue about mental health on campuses and reduction of stigma around emotional disorders, and to raise visibility of the amazing people who are tackling these issues at schools across the country.

Applications must be completed online at http://jedfoundation.org/programs/student-voice-of-mental-health-award, and will consist of one essay.

The essay should demonstrate how the applicant is:

* Creating and/or leading campus programs or events that decrease stigma or encourage help-seeking
or

* Sharing a personal story about dealing with a mental health issue or helping a friend with an emotional problem
or

* Working to improve campus policies, programs and services

Entries will be judged by a panel that includes a mental health expert, a television/film professional, a campus professional and individuals with a personal connection to mental health or suicide.

Deadline for submissions is March 15, 2010. Only full- or part-time undergraduate or graduate students who are currently enrolled at an accredited 2- or 4-year college or university in the United States are eligible to apply.

Please direct any questions to studentaward@jedfoundation.org.


** The mtvU appearance is dependent on the focus and content of the winner's submission. This appearance is not guaranteed to the scholarship winner.

Cracking Down on Spam

Just a quick note: we are freely deleting comments to blog posts that are clearly spam. We continue to encourage constructive discussion about the issues presented here. However, if you are pushing a product or website, you should reconsider before posting here.

Thank you!

Enforcement for Tobacco Policies

We have worked with many campuses developing and implementing tobacco-free and smoke-free policies. Every campus is unique and their readiness for policy change varies. Many campuses have had a smooth transition to and high compliance with the new policies when they have built in an education/awareness period prior to the policy start date. This period is used to inform faculty, staff, students, and guests of the upcoming change, to highlight the health benefits of the new policy, and to promote cessation services and resources.

Campuses have also found it helpful to include a grace period after the policy begins. During this time, violators receive educational information about the policy including the reasons for the policy, the consequences at the end of the grace period, and cessation resources.

The policy does need to have some teeth in that after a certain grace period, violators need to be issued citations. Ideally this would be handled by those who currently enforce other campus policies. The smoke/tobacco-free policy needs to be treated with the same respect as other policies. If Resident Advisors cite students for resident hall violations (alcohol, noise, etc.), they should also cite students smoking near their dorms. Although the campus/community police may not like it, try to build a partnership where they are willing to enforce the smoke/tobacco-free policy on just a one random day each week. Nobody wants to be the tobacco police 24/7, but random days of enforcement where citations are issued will help curb the problems.

Sample Citation Progression...

• First offense: written warning
• Second offense: written citation, $25 fine
• Third offense: written citation, $50 fine and meeting with Dean of Students (for student violators) or Campus President/Director of HR (faculty/staff violators)
• Fourth offense: written citation, $75 fine – academic probation (students), one week suspension (faculty/staff)
• Fifth offense: expulsion from school (students), termination from employment (faculty/staff)
• While the enforcement/citation measures are needed to ensure the policy is followed, continue to emphasize the purpose of the policy is to respect the health of everyone on campus – not to “catch” smokers in the act. Research shows that SHS kills approx. 50,000 nonsmoking U.S. adults per year, and smokers need to respect everyone’s right to breathe clean air.
• Emphasize to smokers that the policy isn’t anti-smoker, it’s anti-smoke. Recognize that tobacco use is an addiction and adjusting to the policy could be difficult, but similar to smoke-free restaurants and airplanes – they need to make the adjustment to respect the health of others.
• Make cessation resources widely available for those who want to quit.
  

Certification for Tobacco-Free Campus Policy

NEW! Does your campus have a strong tobacco-free or smoke-free policy? Get certified by BACCHUS!

The BACCHUS Network™ is currently accepting applications for a new Tobacco-Free Campus Policy Certification. This certification recognizes college and university campuses that have implemented strong tobacco policies, demonstrating excellence in their commitment to the health and safety of students, staff, faculty, and visitors.

The Tobacco-Free Campus Policy Certification honors campuses at three different levels. A full description of each level is included in the announcement brochure, though a summary is listed here:

Silver Award: No smoking is allowed on campus grounds or in campus-owned vehicles. Tobacco is not sold, marketed, or distributed on campus grounds. Sponsorships and promotions from tobacco companies are not allowed.

Gold Award: No tobacco (smoking or smokeless) is allowed on campus grounds or in campus-owned vehicles. Tobacco is not sold, marketed, or distributed on campus grounds. Sponsorships and promotions from tobacco companies are not allowed.

Diamond Award: All conditions of the 'Gold Level' are fulfilled. The campus divests all holdings in tobacco companies and does not accept any direct funding from tobacco companies for any purpose. Sponsorships and promotions from tobacco companies are not allowed.

This award will provide campuses with recognition that can be helpful in recruiting students, community learners, as well as grant opportunities from prominent health-related organizations and agencies. BACCHUS will provide campuses with an award logo that can be displayed on websites and in printed materials. Applications are due by January 31, 2010.

For more information and an application, please visit: www.tobaccofreeU.org and click on the links under Certification for Tobacco-Free Campus Policy.

Tobacco Position Deadline Extended

We have extended the application deadline for the tobacco position in Denver, CO. (See the post under the "e-cigarette" post, located below.) Applications will be accepted through August 14, 2009.

Please click here to view the position announcement.