Professional Development. 60 minutes
This documentary follows one mother's journey to the roof of the world in her efforts to raise awareness of the alarming rise in teen suicide and depression. Monica Kalozdi, who lives and trains below sea level in New Orleans, dedicates her attempt to reach the summit of Mt. Everest to "Teen Life Counts," a school based suicide prevention program.
The Prize retraces Monica Kalozdi's epic 60-day journey to "the roof of the world," and the parallel struggles teens face on a daily basis. Monica, a mother of three, dedicated her attempt to reach the summit of Mt. Everest to Teen Life Counts, a school based suicide and depression awareness and prevention program. In the aftermath of natural disasters like Katrina, our children' mental health deserves our full attention.

"Sometimes climbing out of depression can be as difficult as climbing the highest mountain," states Susan Daube, a Family Life Education Coordinator. Every day approximately eleven young people die by suicide according to the American Association of Suicidology. The Prize chronicles a three-day Teen Life Counts seminar where students learn that suicide is the third leading cause of death among teens.