Project You Decide Prepares for Pitch Competition

Overlooked in Appalachia Executive Director’s Hunter Mehaffey and Corey Ray will take the stage Monday for the annual ETSU Elevates pitch competition.

Mehaffey and Ray will present Project You Decide, an initiative aimed at improving media literacy among youth in Appalachia. The team received $2,000 in seed funding to launch the project, which has been operating for more than eight months.

Using a tactile approach, the team hopes to get people away from their screens, even briefly, while teaching them how to recognize flaws in media and misinformation.

Pitch night will give the team an opportunity to receive additional funding, with $7,000 on the table. Project You Decide is competing against six other teams, the largest group of finalists in ETSU Elevates history.

“This whole experience has been eye-opening,” Mehaffey said. “You think you enter a project knowing everything about a community issue, but then you uncover an entirely new layer. Media literacy is truly multifaceted and interconnected with nearly every social issue in this region and across the nation.”

In addition to a judges’ decision, the competition will include a People’s Choice Award, allowing audience members and viewers at home to vote.

The pitch will take place at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 5 at the Martin Center for the Arts. It will also be streamed on the ETSU YouTube channel.

“The beautiful thing about ETSU Elevates is that we are competing to improve the quality of life in this region,” Mehaffey said. “No matter who wins on pitch night, our communities benefit either way. We are fortunate to have opportunities to do this important work.”

Learn more about ETSU Elevates and Project You Decide here.