The Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation and EVERFI are partnering to support the FBI Pittsburgh Division and Citizens Academy on their Heroin Outreach Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative.

Focusing on the importance of prevention education, this initiative will teach students about opioid abuse and provide an understanding of how abuse can be prevented.

To kick off the new partnership with the FBI Pittsburgh and their Citizens Academy, the Penguins Foundation and EVERFI will partner to support a high school PSA (Public Service Announcement) video contest. Developed in conjunction with HOPE, the contest is designed to emphasize the dangers of heroin use, recreational fentanyl use, and prescription opioid misuse amongst teenagers. Teens from Southwestern PA high schools in grades 9-12 are invited to create a 1-3 minute video that focuses on the dangers and consequences of choosing to use/abuse opioids. Each team has six chances to win prizes in two categories, Judges’ Choice and People’s Choice. Prizes of this contest include the following:

1st: $5,000; 10 Tickets to a VIP Party Suite for a Pittsburgh Penguins Game on January 30, 2018 against San Jose; “FBI Agent for a Day” at the FBI Pittsburgh Field Office 2nd: $2,500; 5 Tickets to a VIP Party Suite for a Pittsburgh Penguins Game on January 30, 2018 3rd: $1,500; 5 Tickets to a VIP Party Suite for a Pittsburgh Penguins Game on January 30, 2018 Team Registration begins October 2, 2017! For more information on the contest, please visit the contest site: https://fbipghcaaa.org/hope/youth/.

The Penguins Foundation and EVERFI also will provide a first-of-its-kind educational program to high schools in Allegheny County. Designed by EVERFI, the program will present evidence-based curriculum to students and will work to educate students on the dangers of opioid abuse in today’s society. EVERFI’s Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention Course was developed with leading professionals and researchers in the field of prescription drug abuse. For more info on EVERFI’s program https://everfi.com/k-12/prescription-drug-abuse-prevention/

Sadly, 10 people die in Pennsylvania each day due to fatal drug overdoses. In 2016, Allegheny County saw a spike in overdoses, raising the number of fatalities to 613-a 44 percent jump from 2015. This increase in overdoses is largely due to opioids such as heroin and fentanyl. Our communities are being ravaged by opioid abuse, and the first step toward prevention is education.