Brentwood High School Wins Tennessee Together Teen PSA Competition
Williamson County students’ entry tops finalists among viewer votingNASHVILLE—The Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services is proud to announce that the team from Brentwood High School won the viewer-voted Tennessee Together Teen public service announcement competition.
The video produced by Garrett Linney, Matthew King, Nicholas Walter, Ramesh Adabala, Taggart Nadasdi, Barrett Hall, Jacob Trauscht, and Bethany Foust features a striking presentation of the Pledge of Allegiance framed in the context of the opioid crisis.
“We knew we would get a lot of great submissions, but this one really blew us away, and it’s clear that the Brentwood High School entry connected with voters as well,” said TDMHSAS Commissioner Marie Williams. “We asked teens to learn more about the opioid crisis, talk about the issue with their friends, and create short videos. All seven finalists and everyone who submitted videos should be proud of their work.”
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Finalist school districts included:
- Williamson County Schools
- Rutherford County Schools
- Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools
- Roane County Schools
- Knox County Schools
- Hamilton County Schools
- Kingsport City Schools
“When we were creating this campaign, we quickly identified messaging for youth and young adults as an essential but complex component,” said Matthew Parriott, TDMHSAS Communications Director. “Not only are teens today connected in more ways than ever, they’re also savvier when it comes to messaging and marketing. That’s why the peer approach was so attractive, and we hope it will be effective in our campaign.”
The teen PSA competition is part of a year-long media awareness campaign surrounding the opioid crisis. Selected finalists from the PSA competition will be used in targeted ads on social media to speak directly to teenagers about substance misuse.