FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 8, 2023
Contacts: Lisa Batitto, news@drugfreenj.org
 

Join the Movement: Partnership for a
Drug-Free New Jersey Calls on
Middle Schoolers to Enter PSA Challenge
 

MILLBURN, NJ — The Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey (PDFNJ) is calling on New Jersey fifth- through eighth-grade students to enter its 2023-2024 Middle School PSA (MSPSA) Challenge. Participants can win $1,000, have their video shared across the tri-state area, and be featured in PDFNJ’s social media and peer-to-peer substance use messaging.

The MSPSA Challenge invites middle schoolers to create a 30-second television public service announcement focusing on substance use prevention. It emphasizes the effectiveness of peer-to-peer messages in helping youth make healthy decisions regarding substance use and misuse.

“Through the Middle School PSA Challenge, middle school students gain a unique opportunity to be at the forefront of promoting positive choices among their peers,” said Angelo Valente, executive director of PDFNJ. “By engaging in these conversations early, they become key players in shaping a drug-free future. We’re excited to see how this year’s participants use their creativity to make a difference.”

Entries for the Middle School PSA Challenge will be accepted through March 1, 2024. Judging will be based on the prevention message, peer-to-peer relatability, and the ability to produce a video. The winners will be announced in the spring of 2024. For more information, to view past winning PSAs, and to enter, visit www.drugfreenj.org/mspsa.

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Best known for its statewide substance use prevention advertising campaign, the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey is a private not-for-profit coalition of professionals from the communications, corporate and government communities whose collective mission is to reduce demand for illicit drugs in New Jersey through media communication. To date, more than $200 million in broadcast time and print space has been donated to the Partnership’s New Jersey campaign, making it the largest public service advertising campaign in New Jersey’s history. Since its inception, the Partnership has garnered 226 advertising and public relations awards from national, regional and statewide media organizations.