HACP developed the Clean Slate Program in 1998 to provide a forum for youth to express their concerns regarding drug activity in their communities. This in turn created a vehicle for providing drug prevention information.
The program is titled "Clean Slate" to reflect the desire to give every attendee an opportunity for a new beginning. After six highly successfully events HACP earned local and national acclaim for its Clean Slate Program.
To further increase the effectiveness of the Clean Slate Program, in 2003, HACP expanded one of its core components, the Clean Slate Street Team. Making Clean Slate a year round program culminating in a weeklong celebration consisting of traditional Clean Slate events.
At each Clean Slate event, local and national celebrities are incorporated into the activities to help bolster attendance and reinforce the positive message we are conveying. Featured events typically include:
Pep Rally
The Pep Rally is held as the kick-off for Clean Slate, designed to generate interest and support for the program and its cause. The Pep Rally is held at Market Square and features presentations from local officials. During previous years the Mayor's Office has issued a proclamation declaring Clean Slate Week in the City of Pittsburgh.
Book Signing
The Book Signing is conducted as a partnership with a local bookstore. It allows Clean Slate guest artists to showcase their work, while providing an opportunity for fans to meet and interact with the artists. A Pittsburgh area author is typically featured as well, in order to better relate to the local community.
Public School Tours
The Public School Tours are outreach events designed to bring Clean Slate program participants directly to their audience. The event is made possible through a partnership between HACP and Pittsburgh Public Schools. National and local celebrities participate in an informal panel discussion and a question and answer session. The sessions are held in selected city schools, usually an elementary school and a high school. The School Tour has proven to be one of the more popular events, drawing 100 to 300 students at each school.
Town Hall Meeting
The Town Hall Meeting is the cornerstone Clean Slate event. In order to participate, youth are required to complete an essay and/or answer a panel's questions, consisting of celebrities and drug experts. The meeting is televised and features a candid discussion regarding drug activity from the youth perspective, including testimonials of overcoming obstacles. The panelists present solutions for the eradication of drugs; and offer options for leading a drug-free lifestyle. The program is taped for rebroadcast and aired on later dates on a local television station.
Concert
The entire audience at the Town Hall Meeting is provided with free tickets for the Clean Slate concert. The activity promotes family togetherness and breaks down the territorial issues of the city, providing an opportunity for youth from various public housing communities and city neighborhoods to unite in a safe environment. National recording artists are selected based on their positive public image and drug-free lifestyle.
Baseball Clinic
HACP partners with the Josh Gibson Foundation to provide an opportunity for city youth to become involved with organized athletics. During the clinic participants attend a workshop with former Negro League and Major League baseball players and are provided with fundamental baseball instruction. The clinic stresses the value of athletics as a deterrent to drug activity.
Adult Forum
This forum is the only event on the Clean Slate agenda geared toward adults. HACP believes that to have the greatest positive impact on youth and emphasize the importance of living a drug-free life, the message has to be consistently reinforced in the home. This forum focuses on the pressures of raising a child to be drug-free, and offers information on drug prevention services. Celebrities, community leaders and service providers are on hand to help promote the drug-free cause.
Celebrity Basketball Game
The Celebrity Basketball Game and related activities begin with a 2-on-2 game featuring local all-star high school basketball players. The main game includes HACP employees and local and national celebrities. The game is topped off by a mini-concert. Typically, this is the closing activity for Clean Slate.
Clean Slate Street Team
The Clean Slate Street Team was officially formed in 2000, however it has been part of the Clean Slate program since its inception, providing input from a teen perspective. The group was called the Street Team, because of its influence and connection to their peers and promotion of Clean Slate on the street. The Street Team is comprised of roughly 20 high school students who are provided with a safe environment, a sense of belonging, leadership skills, intellectual challenges, positive peer interaction and social support.
