Wednesday, April 06, 2011

Three University of North Carolina Wilmington students recently won prizes in the "Tweets for your Sweet" statewide competition held by the N.C. Tobacco-Free College Initiative. The campaign was created to promote quitting tobacco for college students and their loved ones. The winning slogans will be used in the statewide campaign.

"18-24 is the only age group that is increasing in tobacco use," said Geoff Zuckerman, Tobacco Free Colleges Initiative coordinator. "This campaign is attempting to decrease this statistic, especially on university campuses."

The competition asked students to submit a simple and creative tweet or text message that they would send to someone they cared about explaining why it is important to not use tobacco or ways to help them quit smoking. Of the participating colleges and universities throughout North Carolina, UNCW had the highest student response rate.

The overall contest winner and two runner-ups are all from UNCW. Alyssa Hall, junior at UNCW, was the first place winner with her slogan, "Plz stop smoking, I'm not joking! 1-800-QUIT NOW is the # u need 2 dial, they'll help u quit, it'll b worthwhile! =)"

"My father is a smoker, and I have tried to get him to quit but it is difficult," said Hall. "I wanted to create a slogan that was fun and catchy, so I thought of what I would say to my dad, and then I rearranged the words to make it rhyme."

Runners up were seniors Larren Kluttz and Amanda Higgins. Kluttz's winning text stated, "U r smoking hot…without a cigarette, call 1-800-QUIT NOW." Higgins' text stated, "Me + U= =), U + tobacco (toxic chemicals x a lot) =Death, Me - U= =(, let's grow old 2gether<3, 1-800-QUIT NOW."

Tobacco-free policies and competitions such as Tweets for your Sweet create smoking cessation momentum on college campuses by challenging students to think creatively using the communication tools they use every day with their friends, such as texting and social media. Campaign coordinator Zuckerman noted that students are the most effective advocates with other students and can encourage them to stop smoking or not to start, when older adults might not be as successful.

The N.C. Tobacco-Free Colleges Initiative is funded by the NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund (HWTF) to prevent tobacco use and promote cessation among college students. Regional coordinators partner with campuses in coalition building, policy advocacy and grassroots activities to create change. To date, more than half of all community college campuses and a growing number of universities and colleges are 100 percent tobacco-free, making North Carolina a national leader in policy adoption.

Media contact: Emily Jones, media relations, 910.962.3171 or jonesel@uncw.edu