Troy University Wins Campus PSA Contest

The winning video urged students to know the signs of addiction and get help. (Screenshot from the PSA)

(January 21, 2020) Congratulations to Troy University! Students at the Alabama school created the video that won first place in the 4th annual Red Ribbon Week Campus Video PSA Contest.

DEA and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration sponsored the contest as part of Red Ribbon Week activities last fall. Colleges and universities that entered produced a 30- to 60-second antidrug video PSA focusing on the dangers of alcohol and drug abuse among college students.

This school’s winning video was a team effort.  It featured members from the student-led organization Trojan Outreach, a group focused on promoting health, wellness, and safety among students at Troy.

During the PSA, they urged their peers struggling with addiction to get help.

“You can feel alone. But there is hope. You are not alone and you don't have to do this alone,” the PSA states.
 

An Opportunity to Help Other Students

Trojan Outreach leaders learned about the contest through a promotional email. They thought creating a video would be the perfect way to spread an antidrug message to fellow students.

During the NASPA Strategies Conference, representatives from Troy University were presented with the first place plaque. From left to right: Rich Lucey (DEA), Marion Pierce (SAMHSA/CSAP), Kimbrlei McCain (Troy University), Riley Jacks (Troy University), Sean Fearns (DEA).
 

“We wanted to highlight the message that there is no face of addiction and it can happen to anyone,” the group’s Outreach and Substance Intervention Coordinator Kimbrlei McCain told us.

“We know that students use substances to cope with a variety of issues, but our goal is to provide education, alterative activities, and resources to students as soon as they arrive at our campus so that they feel supported and empowered to make positive decisions.”

“We also wanted to highlight that a variety of factors can influence substance abuse, but there are also paths to treatment and recovery after reaching out for help,” she added.

Sean Fearns (Chief, Community Outreach and Prevention Support Section at DEA) and Rich Lucey (Senior Prevention Program Manager at DEA) announced the winning PSA during the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators’ 2020 Strategies Conference on January 17.

As the winning campus, Troy University received a first plaque and $3,000 to support their campus’s drug abuse prevention efforts.

This annual conference provides student affairs practitioners with the knowledge and skills to effectively address collegiate alcohol and drug abuse prevention through comprehensive approaches.  Watch the award-winning video below.