"the most important thing we can have in this lifetime, I fully believe, is human connection."
my storyHello! My name is Lauren Bradford, and I am a 23-year old graduate from Auburn University and a Master's in Finance graduate from Vanderbilt University. In June of 2021, I won the title of Miss Alabama and have had the distinct honor of representing the state that has molded me for the entirety of my life. I'm passionate about education and used that year in many capacities - most specifically, to travel 30,000+ miles across Alabama, educate 10,000+ students in school assemblies about the effects of the overuse of technology, and partner with the Alabama State Department of Education to create curriculum about technology overuse. |
I became passionate about this all because growing up, it was a family rule that myself and my siblings would not get a phone until going into high school. I was the very last one of my peers to get a phone, but during that time, I was able to take a step back and truly realize what was happening to those who did have constant access to technology at its most powerful.
As aware as we are of the need to protect our bodies, we have been caught off guard by the epidemic concerns of how the overuse of technology is effecting every aspect of our lives: physical health, emotional well-being, social relationships and overall productivity. From young children to senior citizens, the challenge of balancing our technological usage is a daily reality. I have seen the impacts of the overuse of technology all around, as I researched and found many startling statistics on this issue. Seeing the profound depth of harm to my generation was staggering. I decided to invest my energy in how I could possibly make a difference.
I created my awareness campaign, “UNPLUG: The Digital Diet Plan”, with the goal of using the actual medium itself to help educate teens and others as to the harmful consequences of overuse and offer practical steps to find a balance of use so that people can gain and maintain overall health and wellbeing.
As aware as we are of the need to protect our bodies, we have been caught off guard by the epidemic concerns of how the overuse of technology is effecting every aspect of our lives: physical health, emotional well-being, social relationships and overall productivity. From young children to senior citizens, the challenge of balancing our technological usage is a daily reality. I have seen the impacts of the overuse of technology all around, as I researched and found many startling statistics on this issue. Seeing the profound depth of harm to my generation was staggering. I decided to invest my energy in how I could possibly make a difference.
I created my awareness campaign, “UNPLUG: The Digital Diet Plan”, with the goal of using the actual medium itself to help educate teens and others as to the harmful consequences of overuse and offer practical steps to find a balance of use so that people can gain and maintain overall health and wellbeing.
phase 1: education
I began this campaign by getting in front of audiences of all ages, all ranges of viewers, and all demographics. I have primarily spoken to thousands of elementary, middle, and high school students, along with parent groups, youth groups, ministry settings, school administrators, and business executives.
phase 2: a bigger presence
As a freshman at Auburn University, I earned the title of Miss Auburn University and wanted to bring the heart of UNPLUG to the University as a whole. I held a campus-wide campaign-week called "UNPLUG with Miss AU". I led a team of students as a partnership with Student Government Association to spread information on how to find technological balance in our lives as college students.
phase 3: The Auburn Family Table
Amidst all these initiatives, I consider creating The Auburn Family Table to be the most rewarding. The Auburn Family Table is a partnership with Auburn University Campus Dining and is an initiative in dining halls on campus to reduce isolation among students. In Fall of 2019, I led a team to pilot the program with designated tables in dining halls with baskets to place phones in at mealtimes. Employees of Dining know to watch for students who utilize the table, and students who engage are rewarded with plates of hot cookies and Tiger Dining Dollars. This has impacted thousands of Auburn University students and the words that meant the most to me were students saying how it truly helped them feel "less alone".
Our mission statement is "We believe in the Auburn Family and a culture of belonging. We want to foster this by encouraging meaningful face to face connection through disconnecting from devices and engaging in conversation at mealtimes. Everyone deserves a seat at the table.”
I traveled to Washington, D.C. in February of 2020 with the Active Minds national organization to present The Auburn Family Table to representatives from over 550 universities from across the nation in all 50 states and internationally in Canada and Australia. As a result, they could implement The Auburn Family Table on their own campus through Active Minds. I have maintained communication with these schools to provide valuable resources for successful implementation of their own Family Tables.
phase 4: legislative supportAs a result of the work I have done the past six years to grow the mission of connectivity behind UNPLUG, I have been recognized by the United States House of Representatives with a Proclamation commending the purpose and growth from UNPLUG. I traveled to Washington, D.C. in March 2020 to receive this incredible honor from Congressman Mike Rogers. I have also been recognized by Alabama Governor Kay Ivey who declared February 17th as Unplug Day statewide in Alabama. |
September of 2021, I traveled to our Nation's Capitol for a fourth time to advocate among the entire Alabama Delegation for UNPLUG and how this can be accessible, first and foremost, in the public school system within Alabama. Along with each of our 7 Congressional delegates, I also met with both of Alabama's Senators. Over these two days of meetings, I gained full legislative support throughout my state and brought new ideas to light about how to grow UNPLUG both statewide and nationally.
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phase 5: partnership with Alabama State Department of Education
As Miss Alabama, I have cultivated a partnership with the Alabama State Department of Education to actually create curriculum made available for every single public school classroom across the state. This is through the Alabama Learning Exchange: the site where many educators go to maintain standards and find lesson plans. Below, find a screenshot of the initial zoom call with ALSDE officials and educators that helped to create the curriculum based on the standards I wanted to meet in the Alabama Public School system.
I have partnered with a curriculum developer and educator, Hannah Bradley, and together we have created several activities for students across the state to access on the Alabama Learning Exchange. In the Unplug: The Digital Diet Plan series, each part of the three-pronged lesson plan meets a variety of educational standards, all centered around UNPLUG. Access them by clicking the links below: |
In June of 2022, I presented this UNPLUG-centric curriculum at the Alabama Educational Technology Conference, an annual conference presented by the Alabama State Department of Education. I was a featured speaker to educators and administrators from across the state of Alabama and actually taught how to teach these lesson plans to students of all ages.
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phase 6: future development
After piloting a curriculum rollout throughout the state of Alabama in collaboration with the Alabama State Department of Education, my goal now is to develop a partnership with the United States Department of Education in order to make this type of curriculum available throughout the nation. This can be accomplished through research, attainment of grants for funding, and continued collaboration with educators and our legislative system.
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