TARRYTOWN, N.Y. (Map) - TARRYTOWN, N.Y., May 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Crystal Light, the drink mix category leader that has changed the way women drink water, is proud to announce two new education initiatives for the at-risk teenage girls of the Step Up Women's Network. To celebrate its second year partnering with Step Up Women's Network, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening community resources for girls and women, Crystal Light has created two innovative programs designed to promote self-esteem, well-being and confidence. In New York City, Crystal Light conceived a unique educational mentoring program for Step Up teen girls and Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) college students. For Step Up students in Los Angeles, Crystal Light sponsored a statewide College Tour to expose the young women to higher educational opportunities.

Designing their future

Beginning in March, Step Up female high school students from an underprivileged Manhattan neighborhood were invited to be part of a unique educational design program at FIT. Step Up students teamed up with FIT college students and were challenged to create a design concept for Crystal Light, giving both sets of students the exciting opportunity to step into the role of professional designer. The teams were required to choose from a group of design disciplines, including accessories, clothing or brand packaging design. On May 13, teams will present their final creations to the Crystal Light brand team, which will then consider the designs for production branding purposes. Footage from the program can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UqqcFMtcTc

"We wanted to give the Step Up students a chance to experience working in an industry in which many of them have expressed interest," said

Marianne Klimchuk, Associate Chairperson of Packaging Design, FIT and the professor leading the FIT students, believes the program offers FIT students benefits far beyond design skills. "Not only does the program offer a chance for our students to apply their skills on a professional level, but it allows them to share what they've learned with younger students who are just realizing their interest in this field. Our students can further prepare themselves for their chosen field, while at the same time, play the role of mentor."

Looking at colleges

In Los Angeles, Crystal Light sponsored a weekend-long College Tour for Step Up students, inviting them to explore and consider higher education opportunities at six different colleges and universities across the state. The goals of the College Tour - education and mentoring - were closely aligned with those of the FIT design course and with the goals of uPumpItUp.com, a groundbreaking social networking Web site for women recently launched by Crystal Light that encourages women to challenge themselves by pursuing interests and community involvement as a means to achieving life balance.

"Crystal Light has created unique and innovative programs that allow our girls to explore and develop burgeoning talents and interests that may have otherwise gone unrecognized," said Janelle Lin, Managing Director, Step Up Women's Network - New York. "We are delighted to be in our second year of partnership with the brand and are thrilled that they have provided our students with new opportunities to influence what they might like to pursue in life."

About Crystal Light

With just five calories per serving, Crystal Light is a great tasting, sugar-free beverage, which provides the benefits of hydration. Crystal Light is available in 28 refreshing flavors and comes in a variety of forms including convenient On The Go packets and individual tubs as well as 16 fluid ounce ready-to-drink bottles. Crystal Light is also an excellent beverage option for people with diabetes, because it contains <1 g of carbohydrate per serving and is considered a FREE exchange. For more information about Crystal Light, please visit www.CrystalLight.com

About uPumpItUp.com

uPumpItUp is the definitive new online social network for women. Sponsored by Kraft brand Crystal Light, uPumpItUp is chaired by actress and musician Mandy Moore, who challenges women to pursue interests and talents to achieve balance in their lives. Moore is supported by a panel of Wellness Experts including fashion guide Bobbie Thomas, entertainment guru Erika Lenkert, celebrity yoga instructor Mandy Ingber and award-winning journalist Cynne Simpson, each of whom encourage women to reach their goals by supporting and interacting with one another through a series of carefully-crafted interactive challenges and the accompanying online community forum. www.upumpitup.com

About Kraft Foods

Kraft Foods (NYSE: KFT) is one of the world's largest food and beverage companies, with 2007 revenues of more than $37 billion. For more than 100 years, Kraft has offered consumers delicious and wholesome foods that fit the way they live. Kraft markets a broad portfolio of iconic brands in more than 150 countries, including nine brands with revenues exceeding $1 billion: Kraft cheeses, dinners and dressings; Oscar Mayer meats; Philadelphia cream cheese; Maxwell House coffee; Nabisco cookies and crackers and its Oreo brand; Jacobs coffees, Milka chocolates and LU biscuits. Kraft is listed in the Standard & Poor's 100 and 500 indexes. The company is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and the Ethibel Sustainability Index. For more information, visit the company's web site at www.kraft.com

About Fashion Institute of Technology

The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a college of art and design, business and technology of the State University of New York (SUNY), with more than 40 majors leading to the AAS, BFA, BS, MA, and MPS degrees. FIT's Packaging Design program prepares students for a vast array of opportunities available in the global, multi-disciplinary, multi-industry profession of brand design for consumer products. This BFA program, the only one of its kind in the country, covers all aspects of brand and packaging design through coursework in research, product and design development, materials, structural design, production, sustainability, marketing, psychology, culture and business. Graduates from the program are employed by brand strategy firms and consumer products companies around the globe as brand packaging design professionals in diverse fields from cosmetics, health, beauty, personal care, food and beverage, technology and toys.

About Step Up Women's Network

Step Up Women's Network is a national nonprofit membership organization dedicated to strengthening community resources for women and girls. Step Up's philosophy is "philanthropy for women by women." Step Up programs are designed to engage women in a way that inspires a life-long commitment to responsible, philanthropic involvement encompassing hands-on volunteer work, leadership and financial contributions. Through direct service teen programming, professional mentorship and development, women's health and social networking, Step Up educates and activates its membership to ensure that women and girls have the tools they need to create a better future.