Last April, Penn Manor High School (PMHS) students in all grades gathered together to participate in activities such as team-building exercises, board games, hallway handball, crafting friendship bracelets and making door decorations. The event, titled Friday Fun, was organized by members of the school's Aevidum Club for a competition held via a partnership between Invent2Prevent, EdVenture Partners and the Department of Homeland Security's Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3).

The team of PMHS students qualified as one of six finalists that traveled to Washington, D.C., at the end of June. The team, comprising students Fatuma Mussa, Kayla Shertzer, Paige Hoyt and Kaylie Brackbill, won first place in the high school category after presenting Friday Fun in front of a panel of judges. The first-place prize for the nation-wide contest included a cash stipend to enable the students to expand their program and sustain it for years to come.

Maria Vita, a psychology teacher at PMHS and one of Aevidum Club's advisers, said she never expected to make it to first place when she first applied to participate in the program. This was the school's first time participating, and Vita said she initially thought it would be a good way for PMHS students to discuss violence prevention and mental health issues, bringing the community closer together in the process. "I just thought it was a great way high school kids could do something and make a difference," Vita added.

After being accepted to the program, PMHS' Aevidum Club received $1,000 to fund a project of its own design. The goal of the program is to encourage schools to combat certain issues such as social isolation at a local level. CP3 categorizes these issues as significant risk factors that can contribute to acts of violence across the nation. The students on PMHS' team referenced several research-backed studies to design Friday Fun, which utilized bonding activities to help students feel closer to each other and encourage them to seek help from school staff members when experiencing a difficult situation.

"We did research to understand the risk factors of social isolation and to broaden and build our theory," Vita said. "It wasn't a random idea to have students do leisure activities and have fun together; when you're enjoying yourself, you're more likely to connect to other people." After conducting a survey at the end of the day, PMHS administrators noticed a 35% increase in the number of students who felt comfortable reaching out to an adult for help while struggling with a personal crisis. The project aligned with Aevidum Club's goals to raise awareness of mental health issues and to advocate for inclusion.

The PMHS Aevidum Club is currently in the process of redesigning Friday Fun to increase its scope, and it hopes to use the funds earned through the contest to support the program's expansion to schools throughout Pennsylvania.