Project Relate

Project Relate is a public service campaign launched through the joint efforts of mental health service providers, advocacy groups, and non-profit organizations across Nebraska. The campaign strives to break down the stigma and stereotypes associated with mental illness and further help the public relate to those who cope with these issues.

In addition to speaking out against stigma and providing information about mental illness to the community, Project Relate also aims to provide a clearinghouse of mental health resources across the state, enabling those with mental illnesses, as well as their loved ones, to easily find the mental health services they need.

Since the campaign was launched in April 2004, Project Relate has made an extraordinary impact, through newspaper, television, and radio advertising, feature articles, public speaking engagements, and billboards.

In April 2005, the Theatre Department of the Papillion-La Vista South High School formed a partnership with Project Relate expanding the campaign to specifically target high school aged students. Through the partnership an original play addressing issues surrounding mental illness was produced.

The play, entitled A Bump In the Road, was written and staged by the school’s Play Production class. Through a series of vignettes and visual effects, the students address issues such as teen suicide, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia, and bi-polar disorder. The play emphasizes that mental illness affects everyday people such as themselves, their peers, and family members. In addition, it stresses that mental illness is not a personal or moral weakness, and that, with appropriate treatment, those suffering from mental illnesses may lead productive and normal lives.

This live performance approach aimed at personalizing the issue and engaging students in a way that posters and printed materials may not. Presented to schools in the Lincoln/Omaha area, A Bump In the Road production materials are now available online for schools across Nebraska and the United States to use.

For more information on Project Relate or A Bump In the Road please visit www.projectrelate.org.