Stand Up! is a school-based youth development Programme for young people whose lives are influenced by alcohol and other drugs use.
Initially developed through a partnership between Counties Manukau DHB, Odyssey House Auckland and six lower decile schools that came together in August 2006, the Stand Up! Programme has since grown to include eleven South Auckland schools with links to many community groups and service providers.
After the success of an independent evaluation, Counties Manukau District Health Board decided to further expand Stand Up!. Youthline Auckland Charitable Trust was the successful tendering organisation, and will be providing Stand Up! services from Term Two 2011. This will raise the total number of schools involved with Stand Up! to thirteen.
Our Values
We understood at the very beginning of our partnerships that we needed to develop a common understanding of the purpose of our work together and how we wanted to achieve this. This meant having a clear set of values to frame all of our discussions and decisions. So we began a process that lasted several months to establish our values framework. Really importantly, every young person who was involved in the Programme at the time played a pivotal role in developing this and made sure it was written in a youth-friendly way. As part of this process, young people came up with song lyrics that represented what each of our Stand Up! values meant for them. So, in the words of Stand Up!’s young people, our values are:
Respect for young people (more)
The time has come
for my dreams to be heard
Beyonce Knowles – 'Listen'
We was young, and we was dumb but we had heart
In the dark when we survived through the bad parts
Many dreams is what I had, and many wishes
2pac feat. Notorious B.I.G. – 'Runnin'
Young people are amazing! We need to respect young people, and listening to them is a big part of that. Another way that we can show respect is by making sure that everything that we do is to help young people and their communities grow and develop. So, we also need to look for potential in young people, in all areas of their life (their health, social life, how much they know about where they come from).
Together (more)
Wanna ride with us? You're more than welcome
Jay Z – 'Do you wanna ride'
Like a sports team, music band or acting crew, we help each other to reach our goals. Of course, this means that we all need to understand and agree on our goals. To work together, we will need to be straight up and supportive of each other.
Upbeat (more)
Sky is the limit and you know that you keep on
Just keep on pressin on
Sky is the limit and you know that you can have
what you want, be what you want, have what you want, be what you want
Notorious B.I.G. – 'Sky’s the limit'
I'm wishing on a dream.
To follow what it mean.
And I'm wishing on the rainbows that I see.
I'm wishing on the people who really dream.
Beyonce Knowles – 'Wishing on a star'
We look on the bright side, and we believe that there is always hope. We want the young people who are involved with Stand Up to feel like they are a part of it, and see hope for themselves. We believe that our young people are awesome, and help them to believe that too.
Get there (more)
And I'm young and I still got a lot to prove
I can't stop, won't stop, unstoppable
P Money and Scribe – 'Stop the music'
We keep our promises. That means that we all work together to do what it takes to reach our goals. Most importantly, we help other people to trust us. We have high goals, but in the end, together we will get there!
