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Johnson County to contract with Overflow Storytelling Lab for Phase 7 of ‘0 Reasons Why’ campaign
Summary
County mental-health staff requested an exception to competition to continue contracting with Overflow Storytelling Lab LLC to run the student-led 0 Reasons Why campaign (phase 7) at a cost not to exceed $154,000 plus $14,360 for swag; school districts contribute about $48,000 annually.
Johnson County mental-health officials on Feb. 20 asked commissioners to approve an exception to competitive procurement and authorize a service agreement with Overflow Storytelling Lab LLC to provide a story campaign and community mobilization for phase 7 of the 0 Reasons Why campaign.
Tanner Fortney summarized the history: the campaign began with school districts in 2017 and has grown to a county-consolidated effort. Fortney said school districts contribute roughly $48,000 per year toward the work. He told the board the contract amount is now proposed at $154,000 with an additional $14,360 budgeted for promotional materials ("swag"). "Predominantly look at this as an exception to competition is because, 1, we do partner with the school districts. They've expressed that they've been very satisfied with the services that overflow provides," Fortney said.
Jeff Short of Overflow described the campaign’s student-led model: a small countywide core team of teens selected by superintendents, school-based clubs, and 20–40 in-school events per academic year. Short said the campaign focuses on storytelling to reduce stigma and connect teens to Johnson County mental-health services (including 988 referral information on distributed materials). "We find that storytelling is really a great way of being able to remove some of the barriers," Short said.
Fortney and Short said the campaign has been run for several years with contract amounts around $140,000 in prior years; the current increase to $154,000 represents a roughly 2.5% rise. The campaign is trademarked by Overflow, which staff said complicates substituting another vendor without redesigning materials and pausing activities for procurement. Commissioners expressed broad support, saying the program is well known in schools and valuable for youth outreach. Staff proposed placing the item on the Feb. 27 consent agenda; no formal vote took place during agenda review.
Why it matters: The campaign is a long-running prevention and destigmatization effort aimed at teens; continuing the contract keeps a student-led outreach and referral pathway in schools and community events.
What’s next: Staff recommended an exception to competition and placement on the Feb. 27 consent agenda unless a commissioner requests the item be pulled.
