Jax State CERI

Dean White, Dr. Peel, and Dr. Calhoun served at the Cleburne County Back2School Bash today at the Heflin Rec Center. The HEARTS of Cleburne Family Resource Center provided backpacks, school supplies, shoes, and even haircuts for children who came through. There were bounce houses, popcorn, cotton candy, hotdogs, music, an awesome emcee, and lots of laughter and excitement.

When the families came to our table, they were able to test how strong their lungs were by blowing up balloons with various sizes of straws, including coffee stirrers. Children discovered it is much more difficult to blow up a balloon through any size straw. We then taught them this is what it is like to breathe with weakened lungs. And your lungs can be weakened by ni****ne use. So don’t ever start smoking!

Then, we had them discover what may be sticking around in their lungs after they v**e. They held their hand out while we sprayed it with hairspray. The sticky, yucky residue left behind on their hands, even after the hairspray dries, is much like the reside left behind in lungs by ni****ne and chemicals after you v**e. So don’t ever start va**ng!

Children learned valuable lessons in fun ways. Maybe even a few parents too. 😉

Jax State Center for Evaluation, Research, and Innovation would like to extend heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Talton. We look forward to her leadership and a continued partnership between Etowah County Schools and Jax State College of Education and Professional Studies.

Hey, there!

🎥 Call/Response Reel Challenge: Stay Creative. Stay Strong.
School may be out, but your creativity doesn’t take a break!
This summer, we’re inviting middle school students across our area to join the Call/Response Reel Challenge as part of the Youth To***co & E-Cigarette Prevention Program.
🔊 What’s a Call/Response Reel?
It’s your chance to respond to a message with your own voice, style, and creativity! We’ll post a “Call”—and YOU create the “Response.”

🎯 Your Challenge
Create a short video (Reel/TikTok-style) responding to our prompt by showing:

Why you choose to stay to***co- and v**e-free
How you encourage friends to make healthy choices
Creative ways to say “no” to peer pressure
Your talents (music, art, acting, sports, humor—be YOU!)

🎬 Details

⏱ Length: 15–60 seconds
📱 Format: Vertical video (phone-friendly)
🎵 Style: Music, spoken word, skit, dance, or storytelling
✅ Keep it positive, respectful, and school-appropriate

🏆 Why Participate?

Showcase your creativity to your community
Help spread a powerful message about healthy choices
Be featured on our program’s social media

📅 How to Enter

Watch the Call Prompt posted on our page
Create your Response video
Submit using the submission form

💡 Remember
Your voice matters. Your choices matter. Your creativity can inspire others.
Let’s see how YOU respond.

Be on the lookout for our Call Prompt to hit the page SOON!
***coPrevention

On Wednesday, the Breathe Free Youth To***co Prevention team held our first-ever retreat. We hosted approximately 140 local 8th graders from White Plains Middle School, Pleasant Valley, and Spring Garden.

Students rotated through 4 sessions with professors and EngageEd Ambassadors and learned more about the impact smoking and va**ng have on the body; how long it takes a cigarette to break down; the history of to***co marketing and why it's important today; and how to cope with stress in ways that are less harmful on the body.

Students made predictions of how long they thought items such as ci******es, v**es, and other to***co or ni****ne-related products remained in the environment after being thrown away. They were given opportunities to practice blowing up 'lungs' (balloons) with different size straws to show the difficulties of breathing with damaged lungs. They became Marketing Detectives to investigate ads and locate the tactics marketing companies use to grab their attention and target their age group. They explored healthy coping skills

The day was packed full of activities and learning, but most importantly, of the message that Jax State cares about the future of our youth. We want them to be healthy and to avoid smoking and va**ng!