Diboll Freshman Selected as Teen Ambassador for Statewide Program

Jaydn Burns, a freshman at Diboll High School, has been selected as a Teen Ambassador by the Texas SayWhat! program. SayWhat! stands for Students, Adults, and Youth Working Hard Against Tobacco. This year there are thirteen “TAs” from across Texas, but each year that number varies.

A SayWhat! Teen Ambassador is instrumental in spreading e-cigarette prevention and tobacco-free messages to youth across the state. In the spring Burns will travel throughout Texas to lead activities and teach about the harms of tobacco and e-cigarettes at different summits.

“We are very excited to have Jaydn on board as a Say What! Teen Ambassador. She brings much needed excitement and optimism to the Teen Ambassador program as well as the Say What! program,” said Kathleen Bates with the Texas School Safety Center at Texas State University. “Jaydn is incredibly passionate about informing her peers and community about the dangers of all tobacco products and the deceitful tactics the industry likes to use to hook so many innocent people. Her personality and passion for creating healthy, tobacco-free communities will be incredibly helpful as she discovers how much of an impact her voice will make in the year to come.”

Burns joins Kadie Beth Wisener, Kellen Kruk and Rozalinn Runnels as the only youth from The Coalition’s service area to serve complete terms as a Teen Ambassador since 2014. Burns began her term as a Teen Ambassador on September 1, 2021 and will end her term on August 31, 2022.

Since 1988, The Coalition has focused on eliminating the use of harmful substances by affecting public policy, laws, attitudes, and behaviors, all in an effort to foster healthy life-long choices for the local community.

For more information about local youth tobacco prevention programs and how you can get involved, contact The Coalition at 936-634-9308.