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An Overview
Metro Council for Teen Potential, in association with ImageWordSound, introduces the new three-part television/video series, What’s Next, featuring teens coping with the complexity of intimate relationships and sexual decision making. This award-winning series addresses unintended pregnancy, relationship abuse, online sex lures, substance abuse, problems with parents and HIV/AIDS.
Featuring a multiracial company of young actors, What’s Next uses fast-paced original stories to tackle contemporary, and potentially life-altering, issues. What’s Next is youth-driven and youth-tested — featuring teens and caring adults in dramatic and engaging stories that "go to kids where they are" — with language, music, visual style and real-world settings.
As emphasized by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy in "The Media and the Message" (DeJong/Winsten, 1998), "the strongest media campaigns are those designed in conjunction with program activity in the community," and, "should work in sync with community-based program components that involve face to face education." The What’s Next Series is designed to be watched at home, or used in after school programs, in faith group settings, or in classrooms. A teacher’s guide assists the adult presenter to reinforce healthy norms and behaviors. Each episode in the What’s Next series includes multiple calls to action so that teens can gain access to local community resources if they need or desire to act on something they have seen in the series. Local communities can incorporate their own PSAs into the video series.
The strength of What’s Next is in using youth-to-youth messages to increase communication and self-advocacy skills, to evaluate options and consequences, and to encourage the use of available resources. Our goal is to influence individual decision making, foster better interpersonal relationships, and increase healthy life choices. Each episode is structured as a half-hour television show. The episodes can be shown in group settings, on local cable access systems or public television systems.
As a teaching tool, What’s Next, and the accompanying teachers’ guides, are appropriate for upper grade classroom use. The series conforms to the NYS Department of Education Health Education Communication Skills Matrix, and best practices for effective teen pregnancy prevention programs as defined by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. Additionally, What’s Next corresponds to the Stanford Communication/Behavior Change Model — (1) increase awareness of a problem, (2) increase knowledge in order to change beliefs that may impede progress towards change, (3) teach new behavioral skills, (4) promote self-efficacy, (5) provide supports for sustaining behavioral change.
What’s Next is overseen by an Advisory Board of health communication educators, reproductive health counselors, other health and human service professionals and youth development workers. Each script has gone through an extensive review process, including separate youth and health educator focus groups.
What’s Next is directed by Carvin Eison and produced by Chris Christopher. Together, they have more than 40 years of award winning video production and health communication experience.
For more information about the series and to learn more about incorporating local PSAs into the series, contact Sheila Driscoll, Director, Metro Council for Teen Potential, 585 Joseph Avenue, Rochester, NY 14605. (585) 325-8123 sheila_mctp@hotmail.com
The three stories are entitled:
Angel of Mine, A Story about Teen Pregnancy
Lookin’ Out 4 U, Three Stories about Abusive Teen Relationships
A Rose for Livvy, A Story about Internet Safety
Angel of Mine was awarded a Classic Telly Award in 2003-2004 (a national award made to cable, regional and local TV programs and video and film productions); a silver award from the 2004 World Fest Houston, and an honorable mention at the 2003 Columbus International Film and Video Festival.
Lookin’ Out 4 U received a 2004 Telly Award and a Gold Remi at the 2004 Houston World Fest.
A Rose for Livvy received a 2004 Telly Award.
A teaching curriculum accompanies each story. The teacher/leader guides were written with the help of the Rochester City School District and the Midwest NY Student Support Services Center.
Locally, we created a talk show with a panel of local experts to accompany each story on public access TV . Each talk show features a popular and knowledgeable host from a music video show.
Project Goals:
• To increase the knowledge of young people and parents, encourage communication about values and behaviors, influence attitudes, and connect youth and parents to local resources.
• To be a resource to teachers and youth workers, to help them inform young people, teach skills, and connect young people to other sources of help.
Why broadcast the stories on Public Access TV?
In a county-wide teen telephone survey conducted by MCTP in 1998 and 1999 , MCTP asked 57 young people who lived in the City of Rochester about their viewing habits with cable television. 47% of the young people said that they watched cable TV. 60% of those young people said that they had seen Rhythm and Business, on public access Channel 15. 71% of them had seen Gospel House on the same station.
--Public access TV is looking for affordable content.
--Most communities have three public access stations.
--Public access TV can be a valuable partner, They can assist organizations to create talk shows, news shows and public service announcements, and they can help train young people to do the same.
Other Potential Partners:
High school and middle school youth groups can create public service announcements, news shows, interview shows, can appear on or create talk shows. Local colleges and high schools are a good resource for help with technical assistance and equipment.
Why target this resource to youth workers, in addition to teachers?
Most City school students in Rochester, NY take a one-half year health course in eighth grade, and a one-half year health course in eleventh grade.
It is important to provide health curriculum in out of school settings, to supplement what health teachers can present in school. MCTP learned in a series of focus groups and observations conducted in 2001 that many youth workers employed by agencies that serve inner City youth want new curriculum and new resources. The leader’s guide that accompanies each video story sets out role plays, journal writing exercises, brainstorming activities and other skill building exercises.
Funding:
Major funding for this project was provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Additional funding was provided by the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention.
What’s Next Advisory Board
Sheila Driscoll, Director, MCTP
Rick Bartell, Regional Director of Outreach and Education, Planned Parenthood of
Rochester/Syracuse Region, Inc.
Andrea Jordan, Specialist, Midwest NY Student Support Services Center
David Kalish, Associate Director of Prevention, AIDS Rochester
Marge Lancer, Senior Planner, City of Rochester
Janine Lucas, Executive Director, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Sandy Pawlak, Health Specialist, Rochester City School District
LaMarr Powell, Project Supervisor, In-Control, Planned Parenthood of Rochester /
Syracuse Region
Chad Thomas, Community Youth Development Specialist, MCTP
Kate Washington, Director, Thalia Productions
Arlene Wilson, Coordinator, MCTP
Paula Sheinberg, E.W. Winship, representing Alternatives for Battered Women
Managing Director: Christine Christopher, ImageWordSound
Creative Director: Carvin Eison, ImageWordSound, Rochester Community Television, and Assistant Professor, SUNY Brockport
Need more information? Interested in broadcasting the stories on public access television? Contact Sheila Driscoll at sheila_mctp@hotmail.com
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[About the Metro Council for Teen Potential] [What We Do] [Member Agencies] [Case Statement]