Video Public Service Announcement:
Underage Drinking

Students from Eastern, Central and Southern Connecticut State universities were among more than 90 college students participating in a video public service announcement competition for college students sponsored by the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of Connecticut, Inc. (WSWC) in conjunction with organizations including The Governor's Prevention Partnership.

The competition, which challenged college students to write, direct and produce a 30-second public service announcement on the topic: "Renewing the Spirit of Connecticut: Tackling Underage Drinking," was judged by a distinguished panel of experts including state legislative leaders and representatives of the Connecticut State Police, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection.

The first place winner of the PSA Contest was the Red Team from Eastern Connecticut State University, comprised of Jeffrey Cullen, Edyta Orzel, Laura Kolar, Tiana Garcia and Steven Reyes.

The third place winner of the PSA Contest 2008 was team Old School Productions from Eastern Connecticut State University, comprised of Matthew Fletcher and Jessica Barbieri.

The top three PSA submissions received prizes of $2,500 for first place, $1,500 for second place, and $1,000 for third place.  Two student teams from Quinnipiac University tied for second place.

The contest was announced in January 2008 and was open to any Connecticut college student. The contest required students to create a thirty-second television public service announcement (PSA) regarding underage drinking, to encouraging parents to talk to their 8 to 14 year-old children about making good decisions regarding not drinking alcohol.

Eastern students Atanu Ahmed, Patrick Bushnell, Josh Judson, Jaime Fitzgerald, Matt Weston, Daniel McCue, Jake Williams, Michael Merritt, Bradley O'Connor, Keith Trossell, Kerin Jaros-Dressler and Tyler Griffin also submitted videos to the competition.

Among the students from Central Connecticut State University submitting entries were Michael Palmer, Marcella Pardo, Amber Perkins, Peter Fox, and Rashad Frett. Also entering were teams including Ryan Farrenkopt, Mike Kravontka, Gary Mazrek, Ben Hoyt, James Irving, and Kyle Balfore, as well as Martin Zelasko, Tim Chalmers, Matt Giannini, Heather Maloney, Bruno Alatrista, Daniel Dean, Nneka Reliford, Chante Prawl, Kurt Rivera, Laura Altieri, Jessica Nieves, Maria Garcia, Brad Little and Jaime Paakkonen.
View Entries from CCSU

Southern Connecticut State University students John Armitage, Ronald DeLucia, Anthony Mannetti, John Randell, Rob Sabol, Monica Yepes, Maurice Edwards also participated on a team that submitted a video PSA.

The awards were presented by Jill Spineti, President of The Governor's Prevention Partnership; Lieutenant J. Paul Vance of Connecticut State Police and members of the WSWC. A total of 33 teams consisting of 95 students from the following universities participated: Eastern, Central, Southern, UConn and Quinnipiac.

"Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Connecticut supports the initiatives of the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of Connecticut to educate parents of the serious consequences of underage drinking," said Janice Heggie Margolis, Executive Director of MADD in Connecticut. "The winning submitted PSA will serve as a catalyst for parents to engage in honest and serious communication with their young children."

"The goal of the WSWC was to develop a PSA Campaign which encourages parents to talk to their children about choosing not to drink," said Peter Berdon, Executive Director of the WSWC. "We are very impressed by the students' submissions, and hope parents take action by talking to their children about the dangers of alcohol."

The WSWC is working in collaboration with The Governor's Prevention Partnership and other community stakeholders to achieve the common goal of reducing underage drinking.

For additional information, contact
Kathryn Glendon, Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of Connecticut, Inc., Kate@wswc.org, 203-624-9900

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