The Teen Town Hall was a forum to reach out to teens and hear their perspectives on tobacco use. The goal was to bring together teens representing all middle and high schools in the city of Modesto to learn from them what they think should be done to prevent tobacco use.

The town hall provided an exchange of ideas between teens and a panel of elected leaders from Stanislaus County and the city of Modesto.

"The town hall greatly exceeded our expectations," commented Heather Gruenig Duvall, Tobacco Education Program Coordinator. "We wanted teens to give the straight scoop on what they thought we should be doing. And that is exactly what we got."

The panel participating in the forum was overwhelmingly impressed with the logical thought and insight of the teens. Topics discussed during the town hall included making tobacco products illegal, easy access to cigarettes, slick tobacco marketing, individual choice, and revising standard tobacco prevention school curricula.

"We had hoped this forum would be a launching pad for additional tobacco prevention efforts," Duvall added. "The good news is that's right where we are headed."

The Stanislaus County Health Services Agency (HSA) is an outpatient medical system with 9 medical offices located throughout Stanislaus County. The HSA operates the Public Health Department, an Urgent Care Center and multiple programs serving over 400,000 patients and clients each year in Stanislaus County. The HSA also is in local partnerships for the MOMobile project and the Stanislaus Family Practice Residency Program. The HSA has extensive community health information available at its web site www.schsa.org