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TO:
SADD Advisors/Sponsors
FROM: Felicity DeBacco-Erni
State SADD Coordinator
DATE: November 2007
RE:
2008-2009 SADD Student of the Year
Each year SADD National selects a SADD National Student of the
Year and members for the Student Leadership Council. At the link
below you will find the information for submitting SADD students
for these high honors. This year the Pennsylvania SADD student
of the year will be chosen from applications received for the
SADD National Student of the Year and the Student Leadership
Council. Enclosed is the information including the criteria,
guidelines and nomination form for the 2008-2009 PA SADD Student
of the Year, SADD National Student of the Year and the Student
Leadership Council.
All
nominees should thoroughly read the requirements and
responsibilities of the Student of the Year and Student
Leadership Council. A few of the responsibilities include:
Members of the SLC,
including the Student of the Year, must be able to travel
unattended by airplane. They must be prepared to meet all of the
obligations set out in the SADD Student Leadership Council Roles
and Responsibilities, including specifically, attendance at both
the 2008 and 2009 SADD National Conferences, and Pennsylvania
State Conferences, and other state responsibilities as
designated.
When you submit an application, please mail the SADD Student of
the Year nominations back to 2413 North Front Street,
Harrisburg, PA 17110. All nominations must be received at the PA
SADD Office no later than
January 7, 2008.
A
committee has been designed by the PA SADD office to choose the
official PA SADD student of the year, and nominees for Student
Leadership Council. Applications will be submitted to the SADD
National office on the selected student’s behalf.
The
Pennsylvania SADD Student of the Year will receive recognition
of their accomplishments, as well as representing the state in
the National SADD Student Leadership Council competition.
Please
be sure to review the checklist to make sure that all components
are in the nomination, so that the applicant is not
disqualified.
If
you have any questions or concerns, please contact me at (717)
238-4354 or 1-800-627-2384.
2008 PA SADD CONFERENCES
18th ANNUAL PA
STATE SADD REGIONAL CONFERENCES
WEST
November 18, 2008
Seven Springs Resort, Champion, PA
EAST
November 19, 2008
Lancaster Host Resort, Lancaster, PA
To be part
of the 2008 planning please contact
fdebacco@padui.org
8th
Annual Youth Rally Day & Training
Fall 2008
2007-2008
Katelyn Pontore
General McClane High School
Erie, PA
My
name is Katelyn Pontore and I'm currently a senior at General
Mclane High School in Erie County. I'm a people person with a
strong positive, kind, energetic personality. Being selected as
SADD student of the year for the state of Pennsylvania is a
tremendous honor. Empowering the youth of Pennsylvania against
destructive influences serves as such a constructive outlet and
brings me extreme joy! Throughout the past two years I have
been the president of our school's Youth Leadership Council,
which encompasses SADD, BUSTED, PAUD, and CADCA, the only
student member of the General Mclane Safe and Drug Free Advisory
Committee, Erie County BOYA representative and Erie County
BUSTED representative for Pennsylvania and the anti tobacco
coalition, and trainer for compliance checks with the Erie
County district attorneys office. Compliance checks were one of
my favorite things to do! I have attended countless SADD,
BUSTED, and BOYA conferences and love sharing the information
gathered and my experience with my school and community!
Other activities I participate in and outside of school
include student council as the service chair member, Students
For Academic Excellence, National Honor Society, Principle's
Honor Roll, Prom committee, ski club, pep club, Broadway dinner,
golf, cheerleading, ballet, jazz dance, FootSteps, TEC, and RYLA!
Currently I am employed at a mexican restaurant in Edinboro
called Jack Rabbit Flats. I have become very skilled with time
management in balancing everything I'm involved in. Spending
time with friends and family means the most to me and I cherish
every second!
Throughout these past two years I've realized there is a
great need to educate the youth on the dangers of destructive
influences and provide a friendly encouraging environment where
students can develop confidence in making positive choices and
attain personal growth. I'm determined that with the help of
SADD we can make a difference and succeed in achieving this goal
and many others! The support I have received from my community
and school has been extremely motivating! Everyone is beginning
to understand that we hold the power to stimulate change. Being
recognized as a leader in my community allows my voice to be
heard and more importantly assure that the voices of others are
heard just as loud. In my opinion a good leader should
constantly step forward to guide others in finding solutions to
problems. One should also understand the importance of being an
equally good follower. Not everyone can be a leader all the
time. It takes cooperation and team work. If everyone tried to
lead we would have no direction or followers to support us. The
ability to truly listen to others also plays a huge part in
leadership! Whether someone is giving you advice, specific
directions, or voicing a compliant there is always a proper way
to listen and respond. As a leader I am continually striving to
embrace and constantly improve in all of these qualities and
several others. SADD has helped succeed in cultivating a strong
sense of leadership among my community and school as well as
myself! I feel an immeasurable sense of accomplishment from
joining SADD! It's wonderful to share a common vision of a "no
use" lifestyle and way of life with so many others.
In my school SADD has been a valuable tool in uniting the
students and the community, forming lasting friendships with
positive people, and becoming more confident in making healthy
decisions. SADD allows students to find fun alternatives to
destructive decisions while demonstrating the benefits of making
healthy positive choices. The number one reason why SADD is a
precious part of my life is the incredible time you have with
friends, while striving to make an important change in the world
by encouraging healthy decisions in life. The life lessons
learned and memorable moments created by SADD will last
forever. SADD is not only about promoting healthy lifestyles.
It also instills a sense of worth, leadership, responsibility,
and real world experience shaping someone into the type of
person hey aspire to become.
On behalf of the youth of
Pennsylvania
I gladly accept the role and responsibility of being SADD
student of the year. I'm overwhelmingly grateful for this
extraordinary opportunity that the state has bestowed upon me.
I look forward to working effectively with SADD and believe we
will accomplish amazing things and make prestigious progress.
We have the power to make a positive change. The future is in
our hands, we must act wisely. Thank you!
Katelyn Pontore
2006-2007
Andrew
Karasik
Lower Merion High School
Ardmore, Montgomery County
My name is Andrew Karasik,
and I am ecstatic to have been appointed as SADD Student of
the Year of the State of Pennsylvania for the coming term.
I have been involved with SADD and similar organizations for
some time now. I am very involved with my community,
serving as president of the Junior Class at Lower Merion
High School, in Ardmore, Montgomery County, serving on the
Executive Board for the Pennsylvania Youth Led Anti-Tobacco
Movement, called BUSTED! I am the president of the SADD
chapter at my high school, and the student coordinator of
prevention programs for my school district. I also am one
of the student coordinators for the Montgomery County Youth
Advisory Panel, a subsidiary of BUSTED! I love working in
prevention, and love helping my peers steer away from
destructive decisions.
I am often asked,
“What does SADD mean to me?” Well, to me, SADD
is not just an organization of which I am proud to be a member
and local leader. It helps give meaning to a core set of
values that define who I am—the values of honesty, strong
leadership, and respect (both for myself and those around me). SADD has helped me to find a lifestyle that not only suits me
and my personality, but keeps me safe. It has taught me the
necessity of a “No Use” lifestyle. SADD has also come to be a
part of me and to strengthen me emotionally. It has made me
more confident about myself, and my surroundings. It has led me
to trust in my decisions, and my own beliefs. In addition, SADD
and the “No Use” lifestyle have become the basis for my morals,
and how I live my life.
I originally joined SADD for a few reasons. One is that my
Mother coordinates the SADD chapter at her school in the
Philadelphia school district. Another is that I felt my school
lacking in prevention programs and the other ideals that SADD
embodies. I wanted to assist in creating a safer and healthier
environment for myself and all of my peers. I believe that true
positive change in schools and the lives of teens cannot come
from the environment around them, but rather from the students
among them. SADD is unique in that it is an organization that
truly does good all the time. Good deeds are what humanity is
based upon and the knowledge of this is the key to the
effectiveness of SADD. What we are doing in SADD will benefit
not only those who are members of the organization, but everyone
in our communities. This is the real basis and purpose of SADD;
to be an intricate part of the community, and to promote the
safety of our respective communities, and the World as a whole.
I would like to thank the entire
state for giving me the opportunity to lead the SADD Movement
through the coming term. I really believe in the power and the
effectiveness of SADD. I know we can be extremely effective,
and we can achieve great things. Together, we are going to
inflict our communities with positive change. This change in
return will ensure the safety and well being of ourselves, our
children, and our communities. And that in my opinion is the
true magic of SADD. Thank you again!
2004-2005
Jacqueline Hackett
Souderton
Area High School
Harleysville, Pennsylvania
Jacqueline is a senior at Souderton Area High School where she
participates in numerous school, community and statewide
activities. Jacqueline has served as vice president of her
school’s student government for the past two years and works as
an editor of the school newspaper.
Jacqueline has been actively involved in the Souderton Youth
Advisory Board, Souderton Youth to Youth, and Pennsylvanians
Against Underage Drinking. For the past two years, Jacqueline
was invited to participate in the National Youth Advocacy
Assembly - first as a participant and then as a youth staff
member.
Jacqueline is a D.A.R.E. role model and a member of the "Just
Say No" traveling show. Through these initiatives and the
Character Counts! Program, a partnership between her SADD
chapter and the local YMCA, Jacqueline is helping elementary
school age youth understand the importance of responsibility and
citizenship. In addition, Jacqueline recently wrote a public
service announcement that aired statewide on the Fox and UPN
affiliates.
Recognized in "Who’s Who Among High School Students," Jacqueline
has received many national accolades. She is a member of the
National Honor Roll and National Honor Society and received her
Girl Scout Silver Award (2001) and Leadership Award (2002).
Jacqueline is currently working towards her Girl Scout Gold
Award.
2002-2003
Jessica Sabol
Wyoming Area Secondary School
What Does SADD Mean to Me?
SADD is comprised of talented, respectful, and
young youths who are willing to fight for what you believe
in. To me, being a member of this important organization means
progressing the road less traveled by - the road that is not
the easy way out - and sharing stories of that path with others
who trod its breadth.
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