In June 2001, Neil Cole, head of the Candie’s fashion brand, launched The Candie’s Foundation to educate America's youth about the devastating consequences of teenage pregnancy. The Foundation fuels a celebrity-driven public service announcement campaign that dramatically exposes the realities of teenage pregnancy, while educating and challenging America’s youth to make healthydecisions about sex.

Since its inception in 2001, Candie’s Foundation ads have been seen millions of times by teens across America

Mission
The mission of The Candie’s Foundation is to educate America's youth about the devastating consequences of teen pregnancy.

Celebrity Participants
Celebrities that have participated in the campaigns include Hayden Panettiere, Beyonce, Ciara, Jenny McCarthy, Vanessa Minnillo, Ashley Tisdale, Hilary Duff, Ashlee Simpson, Usher, Rachel Bilson, and Teddy Geiger.

In 2009, Bristol Palin became a teen ambassador for the Candie’s Foundation. Bristol plays an important role by sharing her first-hand experiences as a teen mom with other teens, and helping them understand the incredible challenges teen parents face. In 2009, she participated in our Town Hall meeting, along with actress Hayden Penettiere, Major League Baseball player Matt Garza, and others.

Celebrity Messages to teens have Include:
  • Be Sexy: It Doesn’t Mean You Have to Have Sex
  • Be Smart: Don’t Give Up Your Education
  • Be Smart: You Are Too Young to Start
  • Not Really the Way You Pictured Your First Crib
  • Not What You Had in Mind for Your First Set of Wheels
  • You Think Being in School Sucks

Campaign Reach
The Candie’s Foundation ads have made more than 500 million media impressions to the teenage audience. They have been featured in all major teen magazines, the major TV networks, and have been featured on several websites.

• Print: All the major teen magazines Seventeen, Vibe, The Source, Blender, Teen Vogue, Elle, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, etc.
• Broadcast: All the major networks including ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, MTV, etc.
• Online: AOL, MTV, The-N, Seventeen.com, Black Planet.com, and perezhilton.com.

The Event to Prevent
Each year The Candie’s Foundation hosts an event to honor individuals who have done exceptional work for the cause and helped advance the Foundation’s message. Past honorees have included Senator Hilary Clinton, Katie Couric, Paula Zahn, Governor Thomas Kean, Jane Fonda, and Kim Catrall. Past performers have included Jackson Browne, Jennifer Hudson, Lionel Richie, Teddy Geiger, Jewel, Ashlee Simpson, and Destiny’s Child.

In 2009, The Candie’s Foundation held an Event to Prevent Town Hall Meeting with Bristol Palin, Chris Cuomo, Hayden Panettiere, Ann Shoket, Matt Garza and Sarah Brown. The event generated more than 700 million media impressions and created a national dialogue about the teen pregnancy epidemic.