2006
SADD National Conference Press Release
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Jennifer Baylis
877-SADD-INC
jbaylis@sadd.org
YOUTH
LEADERS COME TOGETHER IN BOSTON TO
COMMEMORATE SADD’S 25TH ANNIVERSARY
Students
Honor the Past, Celebrate the Present, and
Chart the Course for the Future at 2006 SADD National Conference
BOSTON
(July 14, 2006) – For 25 years, SADD (Students Against Destructive
Decisions) has been committed to empowering America’s youth to
make safe, positive choices. Through peer-to-peer youth education and
prevention initiatives in their schools and communities, SADD students
have been serving as role models and making a difference. Now hundreds
of people have come together in Massachusetts to celebrate that success
right where it all began.
"This is a particularly exciting year for us because we have the
chance to kick off the celebration of our 25th anniversary at our biggest
conference ever, here in Boston, just down the road from Wayland High
School where SADD started in 1981," said Penny Wells, president
and executive director of SADD National. "We are thrilled to be
able to introduce Boston to conference participants and to share with
New England and the rest of the country our well-rounded, enthusiastic,
and accomplished SADD students, who are committed to improving the lives
of their peers."
"The SADD Revolution Continues … 25 Years of Empowering
Youth" will be held July 14-17 at the Boston Marriott Cambridge
Hotel. Students from SADD chapters across the country will get the chance
to hear motivational speakers and participate in seminars and activities
to develop leadership skills, share ideas, and learn prevention strategies
to help their peers make safe, positive choices. Conference sponsors
include 121 Direct Response, Liberty Mutual Group, Comcast, Pepsi, and
the National Safety Council. Here are the highlights.
- SADD
Birthday Bash – Friday, July 14, 3:00 – 7:00 p.m. at
Boston Marriott Cambridge Hotel: SADD’s Vermont students are
throwing a birthday bash to celebrate SADD’s Silver Anniversary
with exhibits, games, and music.
- Opening
Ceremonies – Friday, July 14, 7:30 – 9:00 p.m. at Boston
Marriott Cambridge Hotel: More than 600 students and advisors will
gather to officially kick off the conference.
- The
SADD Awards Banquet –
Sunday, July 16, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. at Boston Marriott Cambridge
Hotel: SADD is honored to present this year’s SADD National Outstanding
Contribution Award to City Year. Founded in Boston in 1988 by two
Harvard Law School students, Michael Brown and Alan Khazei, City Year
calls on young people to dedicate one year of full-time community
service to their community or country. SADD will also recognize the
stellar work of its most dedicated students and advisors by presenting
awards for the Activity of the Year, Chapter of the Year, and Advisor
of the Year. SADD will also officially induct its 2006-2007 National
Student Leadership Council, a group of 10 youth leaders who help shape
SADD’s policies and programs, plan and implement the annual conference,
and represent SADD on regional and national levels.
- "Putting
SAFETY Into DRIVE
for Another 25" Safety Fair – Monday, July 17, 10:00
a.m. – 12:00 p.m. at Boston’s City Hall Plaza: A press conference
is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. with guest speakers Mayor Thomas Menino
and Ethan Zohn, winner of CBS’s Survivor: Africa, co-founder
of Grassroot Soccer and director of Kick AIDS. SADD National Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer Stephen Wallace will be honored by the
White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). Deputy
Director Mary Ann Solberg will present him with a certificate of recognition
for the work he has done for ONDCP and his tireless efforts in fighting
teen substance abuse. This public event will feature SIDNE (simulated
impaired driving experience), the "Quick Click Seat Belt Challenge,"
the New England Revolution’s "street team" and mascot,
and music from MIX 98.5.
-
Service-Learning Project –
Monday, July 17, 12:45 – 4:00 p.m. at the Greater Boston Food
Bank: A group of SADD students will be volunteering at the Greater
Boston Food Bank, sorting and packing thousands of pounds of food
donated by local grocery stores for distribution to 600 agencies.
They’ll learn how hunger affects teens and the greater society
and will be able to use this experience and the tools provided to
conduct similar service-learning projects in their own communities.
Founded
as Students Against Driving Drunk in 1981 in Wayland, Massachusetts,
SADD has grown to become the nation’s premier peer-led youth education
and prevention organization with 10,000 chapters in middle schools,
high schools, and colleges. In 1997, in response to requests from SADD
students themselves, SADD expanded its mission and now sponsors chapters
called Students Against Destructive Decisions. SADD is dedicated to
preventing behaviors and attitudes that are harmful to young people,
including underage drinking, substance abuse, impaired driving, and
teen violence and suicide. More information about SADD is available
at www.sadd.org.
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