Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: ATOD prevention, Chris Remele, Don Hooton, Eddie Slowikowski, IADDA, Illinois Teen Institute, ITI, Jim Dedera, Laura Kelly, leadership, Logan Wilde, MWAH!, Princeton High School, Tei Street, Tim White
On Sunday, July 17, over 300 youth participants, adult sponsors, and ITI volunteer staff joined together at Western Illinois University in Macomb, Illinois, to kick off the 38th annual Illinois Teen Institute (ITI). For five remarkable days youth and staff worked together to learn about Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug (ATOD) prevention. ITI 2011 staff and presenters took the theme ‘WrITIng Our Future’ and wove it throughout a week of general sessions, workshops, and discussion groups. As Natasha Bedingfield so eloquently sings in her song “Unwritten”, the youth were reminded, “…today is where your book begins”!
Kicking off the week, The Amazing Tei Street, a national motivational speaker, took the youth on a journey to discover the “amazing” that is within them. Tei had the youth and adults singing, dancing, and laughing! Everyone left Tei’s session feeling inspired and motivated– a perfect start to a phenomenal week! A very special thank you goes out to Tei for her generosity and dedication to the ITI program.
Other presenters included Don Hooton from the Taylor Hooton foundation, MWAH! Performing Arts Group (which included two ITI participants as cast members), Eddie Slowikowski, Tim White, and Jim Dedera just to name a few! Workshops ranged from ATOD prevention and social norms marketing, to understanding dating violence, leadership development, and the healthy benefit of laughing!
A key component of ITI is for youth participants to take what they learn and put it into action. Throughout the week youth meet in Community Action Teams (C.A.T.). These teams, made up of youth from the same school or geographical location, work to create an action plan for positive change in the community! IADDA will keep in touch with the youth throughout the year to hear about their successes and provide support and resources!
In addition to work shops and general sessions participants are engaged during small group discussions and other planned social bonding activities. Through these experiences, the youth share their beliefs, thoughts and perceptions surrounding ATOD prevention and other teen issues. The discussion groups allowed them to process and reflect on the speakers and events at ITI. Planned evening social activities are a tradition. Sparking the creative side, youth participated in the annual ITI “Tuesday Night Live” talent show. The performances were breathtaking to say the least. Amazing talent was among us! Finally, Wednesday evening rounded out the week with the celebration dance!
As Thursday came around, the youth and staff were surprised how quickly the week went by! Closing ceremonies focused on celebrating the work accomplished throughout the week and recognizing a few special people. The 2011 Community Action Team award went to Princeton High School. As a new Operation Snowball Chapter, the Princeton group has been extremely successful, implementing several events throughout the 2010-2011 school year that emphasized living a drug and alcohol free life. The “Unsung Hero” award went to Chris Remele. Chris was a former participant that now serves as a volunteer staff member at ITI. His upbeat and positive energy were felt throughout the week! Logan Wilde received the Roy Rogers the III Legacy Award and Laura Kelly received the Youth Staff award.
Another amazing ITI year goes down in history! Thank you to the staff, presenters, and participants for making the magic of ITI continue! You are greatly appreciated, and we look forward to ITI 2012!
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