This public service ad campaign distributed 20 video cameras to 20 teens and captured a telling portrait of their struggles to graduate from high school. These at-risk students had the license to film and speak freely; what they came back with reminds us how hard it is to be young, and how critical it is to have someone to give you a "boost" of support. From Travis in New Orleans to JR in Seattle; from Hannah in Milton, Vermont to Cindy in Chicago, each of these 11th and 12th graders faces some obstacle to seeing his or her name on a diploma—and all have someone who's egging them on. We particularly recommend the clips from Roderick. The senior from South Central L.A. speaks eloquently of how tough reading can be, what a "Rock 'n Roll freak" he is, how creepy it is to be checked out by a gang-banger, and how his grandma motivates him.
