Tri-Town Community Action Agency is conducting a poster contest with a $500 grand prize to promote prevention of underage drinking. The goal of the contest is to engage youth in the process of building community awareness about the effects of underage drinking, and to elicit ideas from youth on effective messages to their peers.

Students from Smithfield, North Providence and Johnston in grades six through 12 are eligible. Students attending private schools are also encouraged to participate, and all students may submit one or more posters.

Poster paper will be supplied by Tri-Town Community Action Agency or entries may be submitted on student-supplied, horizontally oriented paper that measures 12 by 18 inches. Poster paper will be available at Smithfield, North Providence and Johnston middle and high schools and at Tri-Town Community Action Agency at 1126 Hartford Ave. in Johnston.

Posters will be judged on the basis of the effectiveness of the message through the visual presentation and copy. Posters will be hung in a high-traffic community site in each town, and the public will be invited to vote on the most effective poster. In addition to the grand prize winner, there will be several other winners from each town at different grade levels. Public vote will count for one-third of the total score. All posters will become property of the town substance abuse prevention coalitions and may be used in future underage drinking prevention initiatives.

Completed posters and an entry form signed by a parent or guardian must be submitted to the school coordinator or Tri-Town no later than Jan. 27, 2010. Tri-Town Community Action Agency and the Smithfield, North Providence and Johnston Substance Abuse Prevention Coalitions sponsor this public education project, with funding from the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) through the R.I. Executive Office of Health & Human Services and the Johnston Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition.

For details on themes or for more information, contact Tri-Town at 519-1937 or visit the agency at 1126 Hartford Ave. in Johnston.