Weekly Media Roundup - March 26, 2014

Highland Kids, Activists Make Mural of Love (Shreveport Times, Louisiana)

A Highland alley got a colorful upgrade thanks to a group of afterschool students who through art were proudly expressing love for their neighborhood.  The students painted the mural to illustrate the values— friendship, trust and respect between residents—that they learned at Friendship House, part of a larger effort from Shreveport’s Community Renewal program to engage at-risk neighborhoods.  As one student told the Shreveport Times, “the mural shows we love our neighbors and we want to take care of people.”

Ithaca Area Students Campaign Against Tobacco at GIAC Assembly (Ithaca Journal, New York)

Students from the Greater Ithaca Activities Center and Southside Community Center afterschool programs taught adults about the health risks of tobacco and the marketing tactics used by tobacco companies at the third annual Kick Butts assembly in Ithaca.  In addition to displaying collages and posters about the dangers of smoking, students are also drafting a policy that would raise the minimum age for buying tobacco to 19, the Ithaca Journal reports. 

Anti-Bullying Program Gains More Momentum (The Free Lance-Star, Virginia)

Successful women who overcame their own adversities shared their experiences at the Girl Smarts annual leadership panel in Stafford.  The anti-bullying afterschool program was founded in 2009 to help prepare young women for adolescence.  Dianna Flett, founder of the program, told The Free Lance-Star that “our teachers have so much on their plates, so many critical skills that they need to deliver during the day, that having this sort of opportunity as an after-school program rounds out the total approach in supporting the growth of our girls into middle and high school.” 

First Lady Crissy Haslam Establishes New Field Trip Program for Tennessee Students (Cleveland Daily Banner, Tennessee)

Tennessee First Lady Crissy Haslam welcomed students from the Bransford Pride Afterschool Program into the governor’s residence last week to kick off a new field trip program, reports the Cleveland Daily Banner.  The program, which aims to get kids excited to learn about Tennessee history, offers students an opportunity to tour the Tennessee Residence grounds and tend its garden.