Public Voting Begins for Fourth Annual Adolescent Immunization Awareness Contest

Creations from the Top 15 Middle and High School Finalists Showcased
at ProtectMeWith3.com

NEWARK, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The Partnership for Maternal and Child Health of Northern New Jersey, in
collaboration with the New Jersey Department of Health, today announced
the finalists for the annual Protect Me With 3+ immunization awareness
contest. The creative work of the finalists – 5 middle school posters, 5
high school posters and 5 videos – are now showcased at www.protectmewith3.com
where public voting will begin on February 29^th.

Public voting will take place for two weeks. The public can vote up to
once a day until the ballot is closed on March 13^th at 11:59
PM EST. Voting is open to both adults and students. The top three
posters and videos in each category will be presented at an awards
ceremony to be held on March 20^th (the snow date is April 3).

In its fourth year, the Protect Me With 3+ contest aims to raise
awareness about the importance of adolescent immunizations among
pre-teens, teenagers and their parents. The contest focuses on
increasing vaccination rates for four adolescent vaccines: tetanus,
diphtheria, pertussis (Tdap), human papillomavirus (HPV), meningococcal
conjugate and influenza (flu).

Entries this year represented middle schools and high schools from all
over New Jersey. “We are delighted with the volume and diversity of
entries this year,” stated Ilise Zimmerman, Executive Director of the
Partnership. “We’ve received over 200 entries, a new record for Protect
Me With 3+.”

Many teachers used the contest as an opportunity to teach their students
about the importance of adolescent vaccines. “It is excellent to see
teachers getting their students involved and to see New Jersey’s youth
excited about raising awareness of vaccination,” said Dr. Tina Tan,
State Epidemiologist and Assistant Commissioner for the New Jersey
Department of Health.

The contest offers prizes to the top three entries in the poster and
video categories and the chance for winning entries to be used in
statewide immunization awareness activities. The finalists for this
year’s contest include:

Middle School Poster Contest:

• Susannah Taylor, George Washington Middle School, Ridgewood, NJ
• Emily Phu, Churchill Junior High, East Brunswick, NJ
• Conor Feeney, Terrill Middle School, Scotch Plains, NJ
• Marin Kim, George Washington Middle School, Ridgewood, NJ
• Priyal Shah, John Adams Middle School, Edison, NJ

High School Poster Contest:

• Carmen Phu, East Brunswick High School, East Brunswick, NJ
• Nia Stewart, Academy of Allied Health & Science, Neptune, NJ
• Victoria Kiselevslaya, Academy of Allied Health & Science, Neptune, NJ
• Hannah Lee, Marlboro High School, Marlboro, NJ
• Aidan Moyer, Marlboro High School, Marlboro, NJ

Video Contest:

• Nikki Tirrell, Academy of Allied Health & Science, Neptune, NJ
• Katrina Gutierrez & Aaron Agustin, Academy of Allied Health & Science,
  Neptune, NJ
• Bret Silverstein, Academy of Allied Health & Science, Neptune, NJ
• Jessica Manzon & Jacqueline Karlin, Marlboro High School, Marlboro, NJ
• Christian Smith, Henry Hudson Regional School, Highlands, NJ

Prizes for the classrooms with the most eligible submissions in each
category will also be awarded at the ceremony. The winning teachers’
classrooms include:

• Venisha Jordan – Franklin Elementary School, Rahway, NJ, Middle School
  Poster category
• Laura Sargent – Academy of Allied Health & Science, Neptune, NJ, High
  School Poster category
• Joan Lynch – Academy of Allied Health & Science, Neptune, NJ, Video
  category

Previous winners can be viewed at http://protectmewith3.com/winners/.

About the Partnership

The Partnership for Maternal and Child Health of Northern New Jersey is
a non-profit, 501(c)(3) corporation, licensed by the New Jersey
Department of Health (NJDOH). Its mission is to improve the health of
women, children, and families. The Partnership has more than 20 years of
experience mounting community-based, consumer-friendly and culturally
competent educational programs to parents, caregivers, pregnant women
and individuals of child-bearing age. For more information, visit: http://partnershipmch.org/.

To learn more about vaccinations, please visit the New Jersey Department
of Health’s website: http://www.state.nj.us/health/cd/imm.shtml.

Contacts

Springboard PR
Ariel Kramer, 732-863-1900, ext. 204
akramer@springboardpr.com