DeQuan O'Neal of Neighborhood Service Organization's Youth Initiatives Project Honored by Nickelodeon as February's HALO Effect Award Recipient
HALO Effect is a year-round initiative that recognizes one deserving teen each month for their work to help and lead others (HALO) in their community
DETROIT, MI, February 26, 2014
DeQuan O'Neal, a senior at Detroit's Osborn Evergreen Academy and a youth Leader of Neighborhood Service Organization's Youth Initiatives Project, is Nickelodeon's February HALO Effect award recipient. HALO Effect is a year-round initiative that recognizes one deserving teen each month for their work to help and lead others (HALO) in their community. Nick Cannon, creator, host and executive producer of the annual TeenNick HALO Awards, first announced the initiative in November 2013.Selected for his steadfast leadership with NSO's YIP and developing anti-violence campaigns directed at young men of color in Detroit, O'Neal is featured in an on-air spot on TeenNick and highlighted on TeenNick.com through the end of February 2014. Additionally, as part of the honor, Nickelodeon awarded O'Neal a $5,000 grant to the charity of his choice; he chose NSO's YIP, an adult-facilitated, youth-led leadership development program that focuses on violence and substance abuse prevention targeting youth ages 12 to 18.
A YIP peer educator and a graduate of its Leadership Institute, O'Neal has been appointed as a youth advisory board member to Detroit Police Chief James Craig, helped organize YIP's annual "Hugs, Not Bullets" press conferences that promotes anti-gun violence, and co-founded the "Grads Not Inmates" campaign, which introduces youth to educational opportunities while encouraging them to avoid situations that lead to incarceration.
O'Neal also was recognized by the White House in 2012 as a "Champion of Change" for his work to prevent youth violence within his community.
For more information on the HALO Effect, please visit http://www.teennick.com/shows/halo-awards/.
About Neighborhood Service Organization
Since 1955, Neighborhood Service Organization (NSO) has been reaching out to people across metropolitan Detroit by strengthening and empowering neighborhoods, supporting families and helping people in need. Over the years, the scope and variety of services offered have grown into a network of sophisticated, vertically integrated programs that have received local, statewide and national recognition. For more information about NSO, visit http://www.nso-mi.org.