Friday Night Live Programs are peer programs designed to build partnerships for positive and healthy youth development which engage youth as active leaders and resources in their communities. FNL Members encourage their peers to live healthy lifestyles by providing a safe and supportive environment where they are much less likely to engage in risky behaviors. Friday Night Live programs foster resiliency and protective factors in young people through the development of action-oriented chapters in which positive activities are planned and implemented by young people themselves.

The Four Components
1. Chapters
2. Recruitment
3. Skill Development
4. Opportunities

Chapters
Schools, community centers, recreation centers, juvenile halls, churches, and many other organizations are able to develop a chapter. A chapter consists of a group of young people along with an adult advisor, who work together to make a positive impact on their community. The real 'work' of the Friday Night Live program is done by young people themselves. Young people are the ones responsible for changing the attitudes of their peers. Chapter members focus on taking care of their peers by providing high-energy, positive activities and fun educational awareness campaigns. Promotional items such as T-shirts, stickers, buttons, and water bottles are available through the program to help youth promote the program and establish a sense of identity for their chapter. The chapter is the most important component since without it, no other component can be accomplished.

Recruitment
Assemblies, rallies, club days, bulletins, and other activities serve to stimulate interest in FNL. These activities provide a catalyst for chapter formation and enhancement and generate campaign-like enthusiasm. The assembly may start with a fast-paced, multi-image slide presentation, followed by the 'heart' of the program when youth speakers share experiences that have influenced and/or changed their lives. There is no lecturing; just teens using music, fun, activities, and a high-energy format to challenge their peers to change their attitudes and behaviors concerning alcohol, tobacco and other drug use as well as other related problems. Immediately following the presentation, young people get a chance to sign up to join a chapter.

Skill Development
Purposeful activities such as leadership training conferences, advisor trainings, skill mastery, education, and other activities that result in skill-building and mastery are all a part of skill development. Critical to the ongoing impact of the program, FNL programs develop leadership skills in youth and program knowledge and facilitation skills in adult advisors. Being exposed to such topics as fundraising, leadership, organization, activity development, publicity, and personal development; advisors are provided with the motivation and skills needed to successfully oversee a chapter into action.

Opportunities
Avenues through which young people are engaged in learning are opportunities. For example . . .
* Positive Activities: Provide a fun, safe, and supportive environment in which youth are role modeling to their peers how cool it is to make healthy decisions. Such activities may include: overnight lock-ins, dances, parties, SportsFest, movie nights, parades, carnivals, trips to Magic Mountain/Raging Waters, camping etc.
* Community Service/Social Action: Chapters are encouraged to adopt a cause or commit to efforts within their communities and neighborhoods that will provide a sense of belonging and value. Community Service or Social Action projects are also important to increase the community's awareness and involvement in the program and in the promotion of positive psychological, emotional, physical, and spiritual development of young people which will help move them towards competent adulthood. Such activities may include: business discounts for membership cards, feeding the homeless, cleaning a park, painting out graffiti, speaking at a city council meeting, cross-age education-mentoring, etc.
* Mentoring: Provides opportunities for young people to be in ongoing, mutually beneficial, caring relationships which strengthens a young person's resiliency to the challenges of life he or she faces today.