In southern West Virginia, the times seem simpler – the food, the atmosphere, the “everyone knows their neighbor” vibe. But, for West Virginia University faculty and students, time is of the essence to positively impact the next generation through the Southern West Virginia Lifestyle project.

Focusing on recruiting high school-aged youths in Logan, Mingo and Wyoming counties, University faculty and students are teaching these teens to make better-educated health and lifestyle choices.

In a rural region that’s isolated from 24-hour fitness centers and affordable, healthy foods, it seemed like an uphill battle. But, SWVL project co-lead Geah Pressgrove knew that her capstone students in the Reed College of Media could make a difference.

“For teenagers, being ‘structured’ or making drastic lifestyle changes takes time, it takes discipline,” said Pressgrove. “What teenager is excited to get on board with that? Our research helped us think out of the box and figure out strategies that were tailored for these teens.”

Thinking outside of the box turned out to be more like thinking outside of the borders.

“We had to imagine ourselves beyond Morgantown and beyond our college to reach these students. Our power at WVU lies in our access and ability to pool our resources to bring the most impact and good to people through our outreach divisions.”

Enter the School of Public Health and the WVU Extension Service. Public Health faculty provide health resources for use in the project. Extension faculty, already based in these counties for their permanent assignments, help form local connections and partnerships in participating areas.

For WVU Extension agents, the community already serves as their classroom. They were able to help faculty and students in Morgantown target and refine their approach to working in these southern W. Va. communities.

“We knew that a plan that would work in Wheeling or Martinsburg wouldn’t necessarily work in southern W.Va.,” said Dana Wright, WVU Extension Service Families and Health agent for Mingo and Logan counties. “The key was helping the Reed College of Media student organizers to come up with a campaign that was tailored for our area.”

The approach was simple: meet the teens where they are. The result: a social media based competition that uses the rivalry among high schools to fuel participation in making healthy lifestyle choices in a fun and competitive way. Up for grabs: bragging rights, a school celebration and fun fitness equipment.

“My school was really excited about the entire project,” said Allie Lusk, a high school student and SWVL ambassador from Wyoming East High School. “As a whole, we all get really involved in anything that shows our school spirit. I’m proud of the initiative everyone took.”

The campaign, created by 10 College of Media strategic communications majors, included challenges to earn points through activities the participants identified as being meaningful to them. For example, those who hunt could earn points for dragging a deer or walking to a tree stand. Other challenges focused on simple food swaps that reduce calories without jeopardizing flavor. Information on free, downloadable fitness apps for students to track at-home workouts was also provided.

“The schools had a great time participating. I could really see some enthusiasm from my peers,” said Trevor Hensley the high school student ambassador from Logan County High School. “That’s something our school has been lacking for some time.”

“The impact on these coal country youths is easy to see, they’re making healthier choices,” said Pressgrove. “It’s the impact on our WVU college students, that is hard to put that into words. They’ve taken a lot of pride in being a part of what WVU gives back to the state.”

To learn more about the SWVL project, visit swvlproject.com, or contact Pressgrove at geah.pressgrove@mail.wvu.edu.

For more information on outreach programs offered by WVU in local communities, contact the local office of the WVU Extension Service, or visit ext.wvu.edu.

-WVU-

cat/12/02/15

CONTACT: Cassie Thomas, WVU Extension Service
304.293.4221, Cassie.Thomas@mail.wvu.edu

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