The Healthy Young People Empowerment (HYPE) Project is an evidence- and theory-based curriculum to enhance the capacity of adolescents (12-17 years; especially from low-income and minority backgrounds) to plan and implement policy, systems, and environmental change projects centered around healthy eating and active living in their communities. In 2012-2013, through the support of funding from the USC Office of the Vice President for Research, researchers at the Arnold School of Public Health partnered with Wholespire and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) to create the HYPE Project and conduct a preliminary evaluation with both youth participants and adult advisors. Since then, the HYPE Project has expanded to numerous counties across South Carolina under the leadership and guidance of ESMMSC’s youth engagement committee, on which Dr. Kaczynski continues to serve.
For more information regarding the HYPE Project, please see the following website: http://eatsmartmovemoresc.org/