On Friday, October 30th, I had the privilege of addressing the senior class of Tuckahoe High School in Eastchester. The presentation, It’s Not You Until It Is You, is a multimedia program that educates students about SUD.
I was introduced by Principal Chris Fiore and then went into my talk with the students. I use levity and a conversational tone, and I got a big laugh when I told them some of the nicknames my students and athletes gave me, like Lemonhead and Wienerhead. I told the story of how these nicknames came about. Then, I used some puns and wordplay, which also garnered some positive handclapping and chatter among them.
Next came something remarkable – I asked them what the acronym SUD meant, and not a single student knew! I was shocked, and this reinforced my mission to give them the real-life experience of the devastation of Substance Use Disorder.
With that, I shared the video, which consists of interviews with real-life people who lost their loved ones, mostly young adolescents under the age of 25. After this video, I told them my story of the loss of my son, Zach. After this, one could hear a pin drop!
The last part of the presentation consists of a PowerPoint filled with information from trusted scientific and medical sources regarding substances of all types and how to be careful about what they put into their bodies. As I spoke, I could see that most of the students were laser-focused on the material.
At the end of the PowerPoint, I left them with this: You are the one who defines yourself. Don’t let others define who you are! You do You!
When I got the results of the survey that I ask all students to complete, I was greatly rewarded by their responses! Many reacted to the video and were compassionate about my story of loss and the loss of others. Of the 34 responses, 32 were very positive and showed evidence of learning, 1 was neutral, and 1 was negative.
Indeed, as I was waiting for my ride home, many students thanked me and told me that I had “opened up their eyes about SUD.”
Reach out to us if you’d like to schedule a visit to your school or community at large. We’d be glad to bring the conversation to you.