20TH ANNUAL SMOKEOUT AIMED AT TEEN-AGERS.

Byline: Christopher Noxon Daily News Staff Writer

Thursday will be the 20th anniversary of the Great American Smokeout, an event that organizers say has contributed to an 11 percent drop in the number of people who smoke.

Statistics may have changed over the years, but don't look for the evidence outside neighborhood high schools. On sidewalks and in parking lots, teen-agers still light up in large numbers, sneaking a cigarette before the bell or sharing a smoke with a friend.

``It hasn't changed much - there's always been a lot of teens who smoke,'' said Bonnie Counseller, a nurse at Ventura High School. ``I see them every morning outside the shops across the street.''

County health officials are unsure how many of the estimated 17.5 percent of Ventura residents who smoke are underage. But nationwide figures indicate more and more teen-agers are lighting up. Tobacco use by minors rose from 9.1 percent in 1990 to 11.9 percent five years later, said Jean Scott, program administrator for the county Tobacco Education program.

``Adults are quitting, but teen-agers just keep smoking,'' she said. ``They don't think they're susceptible to addiction. They feel they can quit any time.''

Sponsored by the American Cancer Society, the Smokeout encourages smokers to quit for at least one day. The event will be marked at county high schools with posters, displays, contests and counseling at some campuses.

Cancer Society officials say they are putting special emphasis on youths for their 20th year.

``Adult smoking is on the decline and smoking among youths is on the rise,'' said Maddy Sattler, field services manager for the Thousand Oaks branch of the American Cancer Society. ``We really want to get the message to the students when they're young so they don't start.''

The Smokeout is especially important to teen-agers, said Simi Valley School District Superintendent Bob Purvis. The program acts as a balance to cigarette advertising that subtly encourages young people to smoke, he said.

``I think the most significant problem is the marketing strategy of the tobacco industry,'' Purvis said. ``We need to provide information to teens to compete with information they get from ads.''

The American Cancer Society provides lesson plans for teachers, along with pamphlets, buttons and pledge cards for students. But the event is just a small part of continuing tobacco education programs offered at public schools, Purvis said.

A state tobacco tax of 25 cents per pack funds yearlong tobacco education programs. The Simi Valley school district will spend $35,000 this year on cessation classes and health information for students in grades 4-7, Purvis said.

But students say social pressures often can outweigh information in pamphlets, posters or classes.

Rebellion was the reason Kendal Manning took her first drag at the age of 13. It was a way of defining herself as independent from her parents, both nonsmokers, she said.

``I smoked because I wanted to go against my parents,'' she said. ``All my friends smoked, so it was easy to get started.''

If it was the image of rebelliousness that led her to start, it was the image of responsibility that led her to quit. Manning stopped smoking in her first year of college.

``I didn't want to be known as a smoker,'' she said. ``I didn't want to be a teen-ager anymore - this was something I associated with being a teen-ager.''

Manning now works for the California Smokers Helpline in San Diego, which recently started a special hotline for teen-agers hoping to quit - 1-800-7NOBUTS. Manning talks to 10 to 15 kids across the state every week about their habit.

``Teen-agers who decide to quit either do it because they're starting a sports program like a football team or because they've got a girlfriend or boyfriend who won't kiss them,'' she said. ``The health information isn't as immediate as it can be for adults.''

Kids often are lighter smokers, but it can be harder for them to quit because of close friendships with friends who smoke, said Counseller.

``They don't have the life experiences that could help them quit,'' she said. ``When you're grown up you have more confidence in your ability.''

But events like the Smokeout might be especially effective with kids, many of whom are not yet physically addicted.

``Hopefully it makes them stop and think about smoking,'' she said. ``Some kids just need to stop and realize this is not really what they want for their lives.''

While organizers say they don't expect to drastically change the trends, they hope the day serves as a motivator for individual kids.

``It's a little like New Year's Eve,'' Scott said. ``It's a time smokers might take stock and decide if they want to change their lives. It helps people make a new start. Whether or not they succeed depends on how much support they get.''