DECEMBER 2012

You are receiving this message because you signed up for updates from the Teen Zone. If you no longer wish to receive these messages please utilize the "Manage Your Subscription" link at the bottom of this email.

Mayor's Teen Advisory Council
Thursday, Dec. 6 @ 7pm

Every 1st Thursday of the month

Skype Session with ASFLC Fort Lewis government Dinner Snack @ MTAC & Special December Surprise!

MTAC will host a Skype session with the Associated Students of Fort Lewis College (ASFLC). ASFLC is Fort Lewis' student government with 15 members of students who hold leadership roles on campus. ASFLC members would like to share their experiences with the youth of MTAC and offer any support or guidance for college preparation. ASFLC will provide all MTAC members with informational items and a couple of goodies. Farmington youth are fortunate to have the unique opportunity to study out of state yet remain close to home. Fort Lewis offers New Mexico residents the New Mexico Reciprocal allowing students to pay in-state tuition as well as the Native American Tuition Waiver for Native American Students. This is a great opportunity to learn about your college options and get any questions you have answered.

Discuss teen issues and find solutions to reach out, speak out and help out your community. Not limited to Farmington youth… Aztec, Bloomfield, Kirtland and Shiprock, too!

Record your volunteer and service learning hours online! There are currently 410.5 volunteer hours recorded online. The recording will provide you with all the hours you have done when it comes to filling out job applications, college applications, etc.

"Youth Voice" with the NM Adolescent Health Action Council from the New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community

Saturday, December 15, 1pm-4pm

Join us and share your voice, San Juan County Youth (middle and high school aged youth) in promoting health and resilience across the lifespan and increasing access for communities of color to opportunities for promoting health. Preconception health is defined as "a set of interventions that identify and modify biomedical, behavioral, and social risks to a youth's health and future pregnancies.

Youth participating will receive information in the development and implementation of school or community impact projects funding.

Youth VOICE primarily focuses on four core preconception health areas – sexual risk taking behaviors; alcohol, tobacco, and drug use; healthier weight; and violence. Long-term outcomes of the project are to actualize a statistically significant reduction of three to five percent in prevalence of four focal preconception health risk areas, a change in youth and community knowledge of preconception health factors, and a change in attitudes and beliefs regarding preconception health. Youth VOICE works to design culturally-relevant preconception health messages, recruit youth of color as participants in training and recipients of support in conducting community impact projects, and providing referrals to school based health centers or other public health resources.

Youth VOICE is actively partnered with the following organizations:

• NM Youth Alliance
• NM Teen Pregnancy Coalition
• NM Department of Health Office of School and Adolescent Health
• Adolescent Health Action Council
• Coalition for Healthy and Resilient Youth
• NM Children Youth and Families Department

Youth VOICE is actively engaging with partners in the four primary counties of Bernalillo, San Juan, McKinley, Dona Ana.

Blended Zine meets every Wednesday @ 4:30pm at the library!

Visit blendedzine.com for a copy of the release form and submission guidelines for the next Blended Zine in May 2012 or find us on facebook. The deadline for submissions is February 1, 2013.

Interested in showing and selling your art?

Blended Zine artists can participate in the High Desert Fine Art Show and sell original art on February 22-24, 2013 at the Henderson Fine Art Festival. If you are interested, please email teenzone@infoway.org for instructions.

Play PS3, Xbox 360, Wii or PS2 games in the Teen Zone! Video Games are available to Teens (13-19) who have a valid library card in good standing and meet the qualifications listed in the Teen Zone Gaming System Policy.

NEW Video Games!

• Call of Duty:Black Ops II
• Halo 4

Gaming is available in the Teen Zone daily when the TZ is staffed. Games may not be available during Teen Zone or Youth Services programs.

Letters About Literature, sponsored by the New Mexico State Library in cooperation with The Center for the Book and the Library of Congress. Letters About Literature is a writing contest designed to promote reading and thoughtful writing by encouraging young readers to read a book and then write a letter to the author explaining how his or her work shaped their perspective on the world or themselves. This is the first year New Mexico State Library has sponsored the competition.

Readers in grades 4-10 write a personal letter to an author describing their personal reaction to a book, story, or poem. Students may write about works of fiction or nonfiction. Entries in Spanish will be accepted and translated for the New Mexico judges. State judges will select the top letter writers in New Mexico, who then advance to the national competition.

Letter writers compete at three levels: Level I is grades 4-6; Level II is grades 7-8; and Level III is grades 9-10. The one winning letter from each level from each state is entered into the final national competition. There will be cash prizes for the three state winners and also for the national winners.

All entries must be postmarked by January 11, 2013.

Please visit Letters About Literature to learn more about the contest.

Library Closures
The Farmington Public Library will be closed December 22-25 for the Christmas holiday.