Students Taking a New Direction, better known as STAND, is Arizona’s statewide anti-tobacco youth coalition effort. The coalition began in mid-2009 in an effort to mobilize Arizona’s youth to make a positive impact in their community.

STAND membership includes approximately 300 youth ranging in ages from 13-18. Coalitions can be found in nearly every county in Arizona as well as on tribal lands. STAND coalitions focus primarily on direct change to improve the health and well-being of their local communities. The coalitions are primarily student run with the help of an adult coordinator.

Many of the STAND groups are working with city/town/tribal councils to create smoke free park ordinances. Some of the members also engage in cigarette butt clean-ups at parks. Their work extends to the younger students as well as they provide peer-to-peer tobacco 101 education informing and educating younger youth on the dangers of tobacco use.

Older STAND members who are 15-17 years of age take part in a program called Counter Strike. This program works in partnership with the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) and local law enforcement to conduct underage tobacco stings. Minors with valid ID will attempt to buy a tobacco product under the supervision of an undercover AGO Officer. If a minor is successful in attempting to buy tobacco the store and clerk are cited by local law enforcement. Counter Strike stings occur throughout the year in every county.

In addition to the efforts of the STAND coalition members, there are featured ‘Slice of Life’ initiatives that promote and further highlight the dangerous impact of tobacco use and the deceptive practices of the tobacco industry.

• ‘Art of Resistance’ — This annual contest invites an Arizona artist to give a master class to art students in high schools across the state. The theme centers on anti-tobacco pop-art. In 2013, anti-tobacco artist Albert Ortiz conducted classes in Peoria, Kingman and Yuma. Students from the classes and from other art classes statewide were invited to participate in the art contest.

• ‘Fast Forward as a 40-Year Old Smoker’ — This initiative utilized special effects make-up to transform two teenagers from Laveen into 40 year-old smokers. The teens underwent the physical transformation that included the yellowing of their teeth, adding of wrinkles and aged hair. They attended their regularly scheduled classes at Betty Fairfax High School and surprised their peers. The two teens then read a proclamation challenging their peers to remain smoke free as they did not want to end up like the older versions they depicted.

• ‘Stories of Deception’ — Student interns in Rio Salado Community College’s Spot 127 program partnered with STAND to create two Public Service Announcements (PSAs) and one feature story bringing attention to the tobacco industry’s deceptive practices. The student interns wrote, produced and recorded the radio spots themselves. The two PSAs focus on how youth highlighting how ‘smoking kills your social life’ in one spot and telling teens to ‘not become replacement smokers’ in the other. The feature story focuses on the higher than average tobacco prevalence rate among behavioral health workers.

To prepare for the upcoming year’s work, both the adult coordinators and STAND members attend trainings in the fall and spring to help plan events and hone their skills. Additionally, a planning summit is held annually in early January to help STAND leadership come together to plan for upcoming tobacco awareness days. Awareness days include the Great American Smokeout (GASO) in November, Kick Butts Day (KBD) in March and World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) in May. Recent events include coordinated flash mobs, community pledge walls and stop-and-drop demonstrations.

A year end conference is held every June where all active STAND members are invited to celebrate the previous year’s success via a showcase of their work and through year-end awards. Awards include individual Coalition MVPs, the Coalition of the Year and the Youth Advocate of the Year.

STAND members also go to sessions designed to help equip them with the tools they need to be successful in their community. Past sessions have centered on social media literacy, point-of-sale issues, tobacco enforcement, public speaking, other tobacco product awareness and tobacco industry deception. The conference also highlights key note speakers. Past speakers include Gabe Glissmeyer, the 2012 Coalition for Tobacco Free Kids Youth Advocate of the Year; Yahya Bakaar, a nationally renowned motivational speaker; and Dr. Victor DeNoble, the tobacco industry’s first whistleblower.

Photos and video from events can be found StandAZ.com.

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