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New Year's Activity
Get ready for 2023 with TRU's exciting offer! Join in on the fun with our "Dear Future Me" activity – it's like sending a message to your future self through a digital time capsule. Share why kicking the tobacco habit is your go-to New Year's resolution, and then get it emailed back to you in the future. All the details are in the instruction sheet linked below – don't miss out! 🎉
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Biannual Advisor Survey
Advisors, it is time for the first round of TRU surveys for the 2023 – 2024 school year! Please complete this 10-minute survey for the chance to win a $50 Amazon e-gift card. Your feedback is greatly appreciated and vital to continuing to grow and improve the Tobacco Resistance Unit program. We would love to hear about the types of activities your group participated in so far this school year, any challenges, and any suggestions you have for improving the program.
We want to hear from you even if your TRU group has been inactive so far this year! Please complete this survey by Saturday, December 30.
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Day at the Capitol:
Save the Date
Mark your calendar: The 2024 Day at the Capitol will return to Harrisburg on May 7! We are thrilled for this year's event and to give TRU members the opportunity to meet face to face with legislators and advocate for crucial tobacco control issues.
Additional information, including registration, will be provided after the New Year. Stay tuned!
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Calling All School Personnel!
The use of e-cigarettes is a significant issue facing Pennsylvania youth, with 19% of youth reporting using e-cigarettes. To address the youth vaping epidemic, the American Lung Association and the Pennsylvania Alliance to Control Tobacco are excited to partner with school personnel.
We invite teachers, school administrators, school counselors, and any other interested school personnel to participate in our comprehensive public health initiative. This initiative offers free trainings to become facilitators in youth vaping cessation, intervention, and prevention programs. These programs include:
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Not On Tobacco® (N-O-T) is the American Lung Association’s evidence-based teen vaping and smoking cessation program. Implemented in a small group format, this program provides the tools, information and support to teens to quit for good. The N-O-T facilitator training course is self-paced and on-demand.
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The American Lung Association’s Intervention for Nicotine Dependence: Education, Prevention, Tobacco and Health (INDEPTH®) is an alternative to suspension that helps schools address the teen vaping problem in a more supportive way. The INDEPTH ® facilitator training course is self-paced and on-demand.
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CATCH My Breath is an evidence-based vaping prevention program. This program empowers students with the knowledge and skills to resist social pressures to vape and make informed decisions about e-cigarettes. The CATCH Train-the-Trainer course is a live online training.
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For school personnel interested in participating in this initiative, all training fees are covered. Monetary incentives are available for completion of the facilitator training courses and implementation of these in-school programs.
Please email Annmarie Brady at Annmarie.Brady@lung.org for more information and to sign up.
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To view the online version of September TRU Report with clickable links, please click here. | |
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TRU Group Spotlight!
This year for Red Ribbon Week, a TRU Group called the Lung Savers, organized.
an amazing and impactful event. Display tables featured drunk goggles, field sobriety tests by an Emergency Response Instructor, fake drugs, and spirometry tests to check lung capacity (spoiler: smoking reduces it). Balloons, stickers, red ribbons, and a pledge banner made it a blast for 300+ students and adults. A memorable day that has everyone looking forward to next year! 🎈🚓🚭
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Our next spotlight is on a group from Lebanon Family Health Services. They created an awesome TikTok depicting the TRU Storm, "Flush Away Big Tobacco".
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Check out these snapshots from Holy Cross High School's recent TRU signup on the Great American Smoke Out day, November 16th! 174 students took the TRU pledge to stay tobacco/vape-free. | |
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Did your TRU group participate in GASO?
Share your stories now!
We love to hear how your group participated in the Great American Smoke Out! Whether you participated in the TRU storm, "Flush Big Tobacco" or put your own spin on an activity, email photos and descriptions to julia.mcafee@lung.org to be featured in an upcoming newsletter.
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Call for clearances!
Have you registered a TRU group, but haven't submitted your clearances yet? No worries, now is your chance!
TRU Advisor Clearances: The following clearances are required and must be valid through June 2024:
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Act 34 Criminal Record Check
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PA Child Abuse History Clearance
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PA Act 31 Mandated Reporter Training Online Certification
Learn more and upload your background checks by clicking the button below. If you have questions regarding the status of your clearances on file, please contact julia.mcafee@lung.org
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Registration is still open!
Register your TRU and TRU+ groups for the 2023-2024 school year! TRU and TRU+ groups must re-register at the start of each school year. Groups are not considered active until a membership roster has been submitted for the year. When registering, remember to use the FY24 Roster Template, click below to download it!
Need help recruiting members? Check out some of our Advisor Resources for assistance with recruiting members.
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TRU Health Promotion Resources
ALA Initiative for Hershey Park to become a tobacco-free facility.
Hershey Park is committed to providing a safe, clean, and enjoyable environment for all their visitors. The decision to go tobacco-free is aligned with this commitment, and we are enthusiastic about the benefits it will bring to all guests' experiences.
By creating a tobacco-free environment, Hershey Park can:
- Promote the health and well-being of all visitors, especially families with children and individuals with respiratory sensitivities.
- Enhance the overall atmosphere of the park, ensuring a cleaner and fresher experience for everyone.
- Set an example for other entertainment venues, encouraging them to consider similar policies that prioritize the health of their guests.
E-Cigarette Prevention and Quit Resources
For schools & community centers:
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Inquire about our NOT (Not On Tobacco) 10-session in-person and online training!
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For schools & community centers looking to implement a new alternative-to-suspension program, become an INDEPTH Facilitator! INDEPTH stands for Intervention for Nicotine Dependence: Education, Prevention, Tobacco and Health. Get trained today at lung.org/INDEPTH!
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Educate others about the dangers of e-cigarettes by sharing the Lung Association's e-cigarette resources
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Take part in the Lung Association's Vape-Free Schools Initiative
For teens:
Asthma Resources
Interested in combining asthma education resources into the work that you do? Know others who have a chronic lung condition such as asthma? Then check out the training course below:
Asthma Basics Online Education Course
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The American Lung Association's Asthma Basics course is a free 1-hour interactive online learning module designed to help you learn more about asthma. This course is ideal for frontline healthcare professionals, such as school nurses or community health workers, as well as individuals with asthma, parents of children with asthma, and co-workers, friends & family who want to learn more about asthma. Asthma Basics is available in English and Spanish.
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Taking Down Tobacco 101
Looking to get involved in the fight against Big Tobacco lies? The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids is offering a free, online training known as, "Taking Down Tobacco 101." This training covers the basics about tobacco products and their health effects, as well as strategies for the fight against tobacco.
To get started, just visit takingdowntobacco.org and create a user account. The training takes about one hour to complete and does not have to be finished in one sitting.
TRU Members and TRU Advisors - don't forget, you can earn TRU Swag for every person who completes the training! Just download your certificate of completion and e-mail it to Lauren at julia.mcafee@lung.org
Click here to take this training and #BeTheFirst Tobacco-Free Generation and #BeATruLeader!
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