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Gratiot County Substance Abuse Coalition is submitting for the Drug Free Communities Grant to increase youth prevention efforts for Tobacco, Prescription Drugs and Alcohol. Funding for the DFC grant proposes to target prevention efforts concerning youth alcohol, tobacco and prescription drug use. The coalition feels strongly that each substance presents a problem to the community and needs to be addressed. With extra support, the Coalition feels that it will be able to build off of the foundation it has built. Though this project we will: Expand the coalition’s leadership skills and education by providing opportunities for coalition members to attend training, provide assistance in data dissemination to community members and the organization, Assess and plan with law enforcement and local owners on the best way to increase the best practices for the sales, promotion and store placement, and increase the support and awareness in schools and within the community surrounding the severity of substance abuse among youth with a particular focus on alcohol, tobacco and prescription drugs.

The youth substance abuse problems Community in Crisis intends to address are prescription opioids and heroin. The explosion of heroin overdoses represents an urgent and deadly problem. We know the gateway to heroin addiction is often prescription pain medications. This epidemic has not been addressed in a comprehensive way, and there is mandate in the community to bring together resources to address the issue. One path to heroin use begins with experimentation with prescription painkillers. It begins in later high school (12th grade: 4% ever used), but attitudes of acceptance begin forming earlier, underscoring the importance of beginning opioid education at a much earlier age. Data shows 6th graders have a lower perception of risk than 12th graders. We will implement awareness and education programs in both middle schools and high schools to reach students, parents, school staff and coaches. We will recommend that schools begin teaching about opioid risks and general respect for medications in elementary school. We will also look to youth sports organizations and scouts to help deliver this message. We will educate parents about signs and symptoms and addiction as a disease to reduce the stigma and encourage early intervention. Heroin use is occurring as early as 8th grade. This suggests the beginnings of a shift where heroin experimentation is no longer outside the boundaries of acceptability. The low cost relative to prescription opioids and the easy access also explain this possible shift. The high risk of death underscores the need to prevent even one child from using. With the recent warnings from the DMI Report about the arrival in NJ of fentanyl and the deadly carfentanil, 1000 times stronger than heroin, the risks are greatly heightened. Our prevention efforts will include powerful ways to deliver the message of the deadly risk of heroin experimentation beginning in middle school. We will address the ease of access to opioids by promoting and facilitating proper safeguarding and disposal procedures via public outreach and through community organizations, in collaboration with law enforcement. We will work to educate prescribers about the risks and new CDC guidelines and encouraging parents to be active participants in the decision. For those struggling with opioid substance use disorder, we will make sure there is easy access to information on resources, treatment options and Narcan via our website and printed materials. It is extremely difficult to reach post-high school youth with prevention efforts. It is therefore critical to get the message to teens while they are a captive, in-school audience and still under the direct supervision of parents. Our Action Plan will focus on both high school and middle school, with introduction to the opioid issue to younger children. Parents, coaches and prescribers will also be targeted with the prevention message.

The Healthy Chelsea Coalition serves Chelsea, MA, a community of 35,000 residents. The goals of the coalition are to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth substance use. The coalition will achieve its goals by implementing these strategies: Strengthening and expanding the coalition’s collaborations with community partners. Creating and expanding opportunities to implement prevention education and skills training for youth in schools and youth serving organizations to include: awareness on the effects of substance use on the developing teen brain, relevant local YRBS data; teaching stress management/healthy coping; resistance skills, handling peer pressure. Helping to change community norms about teen substance use through a local campaign developed and led by Chelsea youth. Offering youth substance use and youth development trainings to the community, school faculty and local youth-serving organization staff: detecting signs/symptoms of alcohol abuse, local YRBS data; trauma informed care; availability of local resources Reducing youth access to alcohol through alcohol compliance checks, retailer/server trainings, and alcohol license density reviews Promoting the availability of a 24/7 medication drop box in police department; Holding community-wide events for national take back days in conjunction with Chelsea Police Dept and the DEA. Conducting presentations at Senior Center/senior housing buildings on prescription drug abuse; follow up with a take back event at those buildings

Old Colony Y through through the Easton Wings of Hope Coalition is proposing to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth substance use. The coalition has developed a comprehensive 12 month action plan to impact specifically marijuana and alcohol use in 7th through 12th graders with strategies that include: increasing coalition capacity through training and development, yearly assessment and analysis of youth substance use in Easton, education through community programming, youth leadership development, implementing a marketing campaign around positive social norms, community environmental strategies to decrease marijuana and alcohol strategies, and Shoulder Tap Strategies to prevent alcohol sales to minors.

Chambersburg Cares will be continue bringing together key area stakeholders to address substance use and abuse issues among youth. Chambersburg Cares will use results of their recent Data Assessment and Resource Assessment to strategically plan and offer a variety of environmental strategies aimed at altering attitudes towards substance use among both parents and youth. The primary substances targeted will be alcohol, tobacco, and prescription drugs. Chambersburg Cares will offer parent education nights at schools and supplement the work of the coalition members by providing support and guidance on youth activities. Chambersburg Cares will continue working with its Youth Advisory Board, formed by students at the two Chambersburg high schools, to address access and youth and parental attitudes and norms surrounding substance use by youth. Chambersburg Cares will utilize public education campaigns to education area residents on underage drinking, prescription drug abuse and the availability of tobacco to minors.

The Boys & Girls Club of Chester is applying for $125,000 to create a Drug Free Communities coalition in the Chester Upland School District communities of the city of Chester, the Borough of Upland, and Chester Township (a community of 41,352). The goals of the coalition are to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth substance use and abuse. The coalition will implement the strategies associated with SAMSHA’s Strategic Prevention Framework, Assessment, Capacity, Planning, Implementation and Evaluations. In addition, the coalition will achieve its goals by implementing the following seven strategies for community change: 1.) Providing Information, 2.) Enhancing Skills, 3.) Providing Support, 4.) Enhancing Access/Reducing Barriers, 5.) Changing Consequences, 6.) Physical Design, and 7.) Modifying/Changing Policies regarding youth substance use and abuse.

The Cincinnati for HOPE (Healthy Outcomes through Prevention Efforts) Coalition, the applicant coalition

The Oologah Community Connection serves the Oologah-Talala School District in Oklahoma, a community of 9,700. The goals of the coalition are to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth substance use. The coalition will achieve its goals by implementing environmental strategies that will change societal norms, increase protective factors, reduce youth access, and provide support for prevention, treatment, and drug free lifestyles.

The Safe Harbor Cohasset Coalition was established in May, 2014. Its mission is to provide substance use prevention education to students, parents and the community at large. We are looking to make the largest impact through environmental and policy changes (outlined in our strategic action plan). The Coalition serves Cohasset, Massachusetts, a community of 8065 people. The goals of the coalition are to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth substance abuse. The strategies we have chosen seek to promote wide and deep involvement throughout town by building a strong and varied coalition whose members and programs measurably decrease the prevalence, frequency, and attitudes regarding the use of alcohol, marijuana, and prescription drug usage. We will call on our 12 community sector members in an ongoing and appropriate manner to assist in using the following seven strategies put forth by the DFC. 1. Regularly provide and review evidenced based programs to schools, parents, students, religious groups, businesses, law enforcement and others. 2. Enhance skill sets of coalition members and community sector representatives to insure a cogent and informed prevention message is delivered. Develop skills to build coalition capacity and increase inclusion. 3. Encourage community support by creating activities for youth and families within the town. Other than athletics, our small town currently does not provide many youth outlets for entertainment after school and on weekends. The following activities are in the works: Teen Coffee House, Saturday Night Zumba and Friday Night Movies at the Beach. 4. New barriers will be established to discourage drug, alcohol, and tobacco usage. Age restrictions on tobacco products, sober driving stops, Sticker Shock Programs, enhanced police patrols of gathering places and others will be initiated. 5. Consequences for students will be changed to highlight policies and recognize youth for achievement and example; to include both incentive and disincentive. The Community Heroes Award is will recognize the positive efforts of students and community members. 6. Policies in town will be modified to reflect new attitudes on alcohol, drug and tobacco use. The coalition has advocated for a limit the sale of E-cigarettes and tobacco products by increasing increase the minimum age to 21. Additional alcohol and marijuana monitoring will be instituted at recreational and sporting events. 7. Change physical settings as able; which will foster decreased use and activity/availability of target substances.

The Love Detroit Prevention Coalition has a simple goal as part of our Drug Free Communities grant efforts – to reduce substance abuse amongst youth in our targeted zip codes. Our needs assessment data clearly indicate the top contenders for attention in our targeted zip codes are marijuana, alcohol and the non-medical use of prescription drugs. Based on data from our coalition member substance abuse prevention efforts, it appears that marijuana and alcohol past 30 day use increases with youth ages 14 and 15. Therefore, our goal is to target middle and high school students 12 -20 years of age in our identified zip codes as well as freshman college students attending local community colleges and Wayne State University with our anti-alcohol messages. The concerns and problems our coalition see with marijuana include educating our youth and parents and helping them to understand that any use (including medicinal) of marijuana has serious consequences – including hurting their chances of employment. The youth in the communities we serve are bombarded by hundreds of signs and medical marijuana dispensaries as the walk to and from school and other places. Adjusting their attitudes to focus their attention on the dangers associated with its indiscriminate medical use and alerting them to how its use can impact their education, employment and ability to maintain employment is a serious undertaking. We plan to utilize the most effective champions who can articulate the issues and utilize social media and word of mouth to help move the needle on marijuana use prevention – our youth. We plan to train our youth to take the lead in their schools and in the community to effectively address the concerns and personally represent the issues to the city council, law enforcement, school administrators, parents, and peers. Additionally, our Coalition is working to increase the protective factors available to our youth and parents to help strengthen our families and communities so they can help us address alcohol, marijuana and the non-medical use of prescription drugs. Training our members to provide Strengthening Families sessions and substance use screenings and referrals for youth will contribute to the protective factors to garner a substance free lifestyle. Increasing awareness and dangers of unused prescription medications requires us to provide information to our communities regarding the proper disposal of unused drugs. Through our partnerships with the Detroit Wayne Mental Health Authority, the DEA and local law enforcement we hope to provide an avenue to advocate for placement of prescription drug take-back boxes in our local police precincts. Our Coalition still plans to keep the adults busy by continuing to work with our Prescription Drug and Opioid Abuse key leader round table members to address this concern with our local hospitals, pharmacists, and medical schools. Our pharmacy work group has facilitated trainings and some even implemented procedures to address diversion and over-prescribing. They have asked for and received referral cards they can provide to their patients regarding substance use. The Great Lakes Water Authority is currently working with us to increase awareness of proper disposal of unused medication by placing information in the water bills. It is imperative that we build a strong youth led campaign to spread the word through the mediums they access, utilize and understand. We will continue to work with our Generation Rx pharmacy students to conduct peer to peer focus groups and peer education trainings in an innovative and creative way to help generate the momentum we need to keep our messages in the forefront among high school and college students. It is in these strategies that we hope to reduce and ultimately prevent youth use of alcohol, marijuana and non-medical prescription drugs use in zip codes 48203, 48205, and 48234.

The ACTION (Active Coalition That Influences Outcomes in This Neighborhood) Drug Free Community Coalition serves youth and families in the City of Detroit's 48219 zip code, an urban community in Detroit MI with a population of 48,759. The goals of the ACTION Coalition are to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth from abusing marijuana and alcohol. The Coalition will achieve its goals by implementing strategies that provide information and protective factors,such as the “Because I Care” story telling campaign and Media Aware, KIDS TV where youth create drug prevention messaging. These strategies will provide support, reduce barriers and enhance skills needed to strengthen the coalition and reduce youth substance abuse. The ACTION Coalition's efforts have helped define the drug problem and build increased awareness of its root causes. ACTION now provides a common coalition table to discuss the issues, make specific recommendations and carry out an action plan. The diverse ACTION Coalition has created a 12 month action plan to tackle youth drug use in the community. The ACTION Coalition includes representation from all of the 12 required sectors. Sector representatives were selected due to their expertise, commitment to the community and willingness to identify needs and participate in ongoing planning and evaluation. CLASS (Changing Lives and Staying Sober) serves the ACTION Coalition's Fiscal Agent. CLASS is a 501(c)(3)with significant experience as a fiduciary agent. CLASS has Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) prevention accreditation, technical expertise in drug abuse prevention and long-standing, close relationships within the 48219 community.

Webster County represents a constituency which is typical in nature to many rural, primarily agricultural, communities with the exceptions of its high poverty rate (70% overall above 200% poverty index), high drug related incidences by youth(as reported by the 2016 KIP Student Survey for 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th graders)and community members (as reported by law enforcement statistics and community member interviews,a 17% increase in the Hispanic demographic over the past seven years, and limited drug prevention programs or resources within the community at large. Webster County would be a first-time recipient of a Drug Free Communities Grant. With the growing needs as identified above, the Webster County communities would utilize these funds to create new and innovative approaches to substance abuse prevention. Students and community members have identified alcohol, tobacco and marijuana as the ""drugs of choice"" and the most prevalent abused substances in the community. The Webster County Kentucky Agency for Substance Abuse Policy Coalition (WC KY-ASAP) in collaboration with the Webster County Board of Education have outlined a detailed 12 month Action Plan to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth and community substance abuse. The plan includes the creation of the Webster County ""True Blue"" Crew which will include representation from all twelve community sectors. The ""True Blue"" Crew will be committed to working together to promote a drug free Webster County. The Coalition's ""True Blue"" Drug Free Community Action Plan proposal will achieve its goals by implementing the following strategies: *Provide Information: The Coalition will utilize a newly created ""True Blue"" website, county proclamations, town hall meetings, brochures and other media outlets to promote the Coalition and the Webster County ""True Blue"" Drug Free Community mission. *Enhance Skills: The Coalition will provide training workshops and activities designed to increase the skills of community members, students and staff through Character Counts and Life Skills Curriculum as well as ATOD training. *Provide Support: The Coalition will create opportunities for participation in activities such as Fifth Quarter, Truth and Consequences, Supt2Kids Advisory Councils, teen leadership conferences, and town hall meetings and forums. *Enhance Access/Reduce Barriers: The Coalition will provide opportunities for all residents to participate in ""True Blue"" activities by hosting events in all four major townships in the county. *Change Consequences: The Coalition will support law enforcement's efforts to curb substance abuse by providing incentives to law enforcement to reward positive student and community member behaviors. *Change Physical Design: The Coalition will collaborate with Webster County Schools to provide a ""True Blue"" School/Community Resource Liaison on the middle and high school campus. *Modify/Change Policies: The Coalition will advocate for a ""smoke free"" Webster County and reward local businesses for adopting smoke-free policies. Additionally, the Coalition's ""True Blue"" Drug Free Community Action Plan will address risk and protective factors through the utilization of a community-wide ""Character Counts"" campaign. The ""True Blue"" Drug Free Community will establish a new and creative approach toward drug prevention that will positively change the Webster County community behavior and environment.

The communities of Lawrence Park Township and Wesleyville Borough, under the leadership of Iroquois School District, formed a community coalition (#PYDONEFAMILY) in 2014 to reduce youth substance abuse in the community. The coalition, in an effort to strengthen its capacity and sustainability, applied for the Drug Free Communities (DFC) Grant. Funding from the DFC Grant will support the coalition in its implementation and evaluation of individual and environmental interventions to reduce alcohol, marijuana, and prescription drug use through evidence-based practices. This will be supported through collaborative efforts with drug prevention resources and training/technical assistance. #PYDONEFAMILY will provide information, enhance skills, provide support, reduce access/enhancing barriers, and promote changes in consequences, physical design, and policies to reduce youth substance abuse.

The Alachua County Health Promotion and Wellness Coalition, Inc.(HPW) is prepared to engage with the award of SP-17-001 SAMHSA grant. HPW has sufficient infrastructure to manage and implement the grant objectives, strategies and produce measurable outcomes. HPW has broad networking and collaborative agreements to help facilitate the indicated structure of the DFC grant submission and guarantee described outcome measures. It is the purpose of HPW to establish and strengthen collaboration among communities, public and private non-profit agencies, as well as federal, state, local governments to support efforts of HPW to prevent and reduce substance abuse among youth 18 years of age or younger. Further, efforts will reduce substance abuse among youth and over time, reduce substance abuse among adults by addressing the factors in our community that increase the risk of substance abuse and we will promote the factors that minimize the risk of substance abuse. HPW will support established effective community level change. HPW currently has cooperative and collaborative sector agreements to work together toward a common goal of building a safe, healthy, and drug-free community. HPW will conduct the day-today operations of this grant. HPW will work with leaders in this community to identify and address local youth substance use problems and create sustainable community-level change. HPW will not serve as a conduit for funds to passing through to HPW or to another agency. HPW's narrative describes three major areas of concern within Alachua County. These specific zip code areas have years of data collection and research surrounding and supporting their need for attention and resources directed toward prevention of youth substance use and abuse. These areas were selected from the analysis of data indicating areas of high concentration of youth drug use, youth drug sells, school drop-outs, gang involvement and other related crimes. These three areas also present as under-served and poverty laden. It is with this funding that HPW seeks to focus on community education, enlist participation excite the community, and empower members with alternative outcomes for their youth to become more successful with obtaining their goals in life. HPW's broad base of volunteers serve with passion and determination to personally impact youth in our area and work feverishly to help youth who respond to be resources providing from the award of this grant. HPW believes that within each child lies the potential to be a leader. It is with opportunities provided that will pave the way for their strengths to grow, futures to change, and for us to reinforce their value in society.

We are excited about the opportunity the Drug-Free Communities Grant gives us in such an important time in our city’s development. Buckeye is a rapidly growing city, witnessing exponential population growth since 2000 (an increase of 857.3%). The proximity to SR85 and I-10 presents a number of challenges, as these highways are considered drug corridors, connecting Mexico, San Diego, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Phoenix. The Way out West Coalition (WOW Coalition) has developed an Action Plan around the Seven Strategies for Community Level Change that focuses on three (3) substances; marijuana, alcohol and Rx drug misuse. The negative impact these three substances are having on our youth and community are strongly supported by our data. The coalition membership is committed to our mission, goals, objectives and strategies that are focused on 1) increasing community collaboration and cultural competence, 2) increasing perceived risks, 3) reducing access, 4) increasing parent-child communication and 5) building strong youth through peer leadership activities. Our twelve sector representatives which comprise our Executive Committee bring a whatever it takes attitude and are driven by excellence. Most important is the solid foundation the coalition has in place to support our work. The WOW Coalition is excited for our youth and community about the upcoming year and beyond.

The Jefferson County Drug-Free Communities that Care Coalition's (DFCTC) proposal is supported by a cross-agency collaboration made up of policy makers, elected officials, and community representatives called the Children and Youth Leadership Commission (CYLC). The CYLC, and its subcommittees were established in 2004 in order to address the immediate and long-term social service needs of children and families living in Jefferson County. The coalition, which is part of the Prevention Subcommittee, was created to identify, address, educate, prevent and reduce youth substance use. The coalition's goal of implementing an action plan to reduce youth substance use, aligns perfectly with the previous and current work of the CYLC. The DFCTC proposal will augment the work the Prevention Subcommittee has been doing to address youth substance abuse. The DFCTC proposes to actively invite and build member capacity of the coalition; create a strategic plan for substance use prevention, which aligns and coordinates with other state and local efforts; educate partners, parents and school personnel on how to implement evidence-based substance use prevention strategies; wage a county-wide awareness campaign to increase the awareness of the risks associated with substance use (school and classroom programs, after-school and prosocial activities; community events); coordinate prevention, intervention and treatment systems - an any-door systemic support plan; conduct outreach to Jefferson County's most vulnerable populations; and provide trainings across the county to increase the members' and the community's knowledge of the problems associated with youth marijuana use, youth alcohol use and youth misuse and abuse of prescription drugs; all in an effort to reduce youth substance use in Jefferson County. In addition, Jefferson County needs a centralized, professional, well-informed and coordinated communication and data collection system that all partners can input and use to collect vital information on youth substance use and abuse. The DFCTC plans to be the hub where parents and the community can come for help, information and awareness. The goals in the DFCTC proposal align with the needs of Jefferson County. In Jefferson County the rate of Emergency Department admissions for alcohol poisoning among 15-19 year olds per 100,000 was approximately 600 in 2015, representing the single greatest reason for substance-related ED poisoning visits for this age group. More than 30 percent of all Jefferson County youth in substance abuse treatment identify alcohol as their primary or secondary substance of abuse. And in 2013 and 2014, Colorado youth ranked highest in the nation for past month marijuana use, up from the fourth highest in 2011/2012. In the two year average since Colorado legalized recreational marijuana, youth self-reported past month marijuana use increased 20 percent compared to the two year average prior to legalization. Of major concern is that only 48 percent of high school students surveyed see marijuana as risky compared to 54 percent of those surveyed two years earlier. Marijuana-related school incidents involving law enforcement were notably higher in the DFCTC target communities of Edgewater and Wheat Ridge compared to the two year averages prior to legalization (2011/2012). And incidents involving all ""dangerous drugs"" was significantly higher among students in Lakewood compared to other school communities. The DFCTC is poised and ready to help Jefferson County significantly reduce youth substance use.

Drug-Free Communities Support Program Application Community Overview Guilford County is located in the state of North Carolina. It is a 658 square mile area located in the north central part of the state. With a diverse population of 512,119 (US Census Bureau, 2014), Guilford County is the 3rd largest county in the state. Guilford County is comprised of two major urban areas, Greensboro and High Point. Greensboro with a population of 282,586 accounts for the majority of residents that live within the county (55%) followed by High Point with a population of 108,629 accounting for approximately 21% of the county’s residents. The county’s population consists of 58% Caucasian, 34% African-American, 8% Hispanic/Latino and 5% Asian. Guilford County experienced a 16% increase in its population between 2000 and 2010 with the largest population group occurring among the Hispanic/Latino community. Guilford County, once an industrial-based center, has been faced with difficult economic challenges over the last several years with the decline/closing of its major industries, textile, and furniture manufacturing. Individuals and families in Guilford County are still dealing with the impact of the economic recession. As of December 2015, 5.3% of residents are unemployed and 17.3% live below the poverty level with 25% of those younger than 18 years old living in poverty. It is interesting to note that since 1938, an additional county court has been located in High Point, making Guilford County one of only a handful of counties nationwide with a dual court system. Guilford County consists of 11 municipalities and 15 townships. In addition to the two major urban areas (Greensboro and High Point), the county includes the following suburban and rural communities: Browns Summit, Gibsonville, Jamestown, Oak Ridge, Pleasant Garden, Sedalia, Stokesdale, Summerfield, and Whitsett. Guilford County has one public school district that has 127 schools and serves over 72,000 students. The county also has 35 private schools and 8 charter schools. Noteworthy is the American Hebrew Academy which is the nation’s first and only pluralistic Jewish Boarding School. The higher education community consists of 8 major colleges and universities as well as several satellite campuses. There are 4 law enforcement agencies: High Point Police Department, Greensboro Police Department, Gibsonville Police Department and the county Sheriff’s Office. The county has several private and public health entities including but not limited to: Guilford County Department of Public Health, Triad Adult and Pediatric Medicine, Cone Health System, and High Point Regional Health System (UNC Healthcare). There are several “communities within the community”. Guilford County is a refugee resettlement area that hosts thousands of refugees from Asia, Africa and South and Central America. In addition, the county has one of three Urban Survivors Unions within the United States. Also known as “user unions”; this “union” of active users engages in grassroots harm reduction efforts. This reflects the community’s longstanding reputation as the heroin capital of the southeast (particularly High Point).

LowCountry Alliance for Healthy Youth The LowCountry Alliance for Healthy Youth serves Hilton Head & Bluffton, South Carolina, a community of 60,000 combined. The goals of the coalition are to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth substance use. The coalition will achieve its goals by implementing strategies to reduce access, increase perception of harm and reduce approval of youth alcohol use, marijuana use, and misuse of prescription drugs within our communities. A combination of individual and environmental strategies have been identified, which include but are not limited to: community forums, a social marketing campaign, law enforcement efforts to reduce access, merchant trainings, trainings to increase the skills of organizations within the community sectors, advocating for changes in policies/legislation at the local and state levels, supporting youth driven initiatives.

The Akwesasne Coalition for Community Empowerment (ACCE) is a community based volunteer organization dedicated to fostering healthy youth, individuals, and families, by working together to promote and provide drug and alcohol-free events for community members. As a long enduring group since its original conception over 15 years ago on the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation, ACCE’s guiding principles are woven with Mohawk traditions and culture. The group operates as a committee of the whole with a deliberative decision-making process engaging all members with the collective community well-being as its principal goal. Youth substance use problems in our Community are attributed to many contributing factors including lack of monitoring; a shared perception of substances not being harmful; substance use being overall socially acceptable; peer related stress; ease of access; and prescription drugs being safer than illicit drugs, amongst other converging influences. ACCE’s Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program has been developed with the overarching goal of focusing on the collective Community health and well-being in order to address community issues of youth substance abuse by increasing community collaboration and reducing youth substance use of alcohol and prescription drugs and opioids. The project will serve a population of 15,425 community members of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe. Our DFC program will continue to expand and improve ACCE’s efforts to foster community level change by utilizing SAMHSA’s Strategic Prevention Framework to address identified community needs and emphasize the involvement of community members from the planning stages through implementation of program activities. ACCE’s DFC program is fully supported by the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe. The Tribe recently completed its strategic planning process which highlighted community feedback prioritizing the need to address underage drinking and prescription drug/opiate misuse among youth under the age of 18. The proposed DFC program aligns well with the Tribe's strategic priorities in addition to ACCE’s plans to partner and collaborate with other Community systems and organizations to ensure effective implementation of the program’s planned strategies and activities.

The Livingston County Community (LCCA) is a county-wide coalition that seeks to unite the Livingston County community to reduce and prevent youth substance use and to live a safe and drug-free lifestyle. The LCCA is applying for DFC funding to increase community collaboration within Livingston County, as well as reduce 7th and 9th grade reported past 30-day use, increased perceived risk, increase peer disapproval, and increase parental disapproval of alcohol, prescription drugs, and youth marijuana use, between from September 30, 2017-September 29, 2022. We will utilize the seven strategies for community level change to increase community collaboration by: Providing support in the community, Enhance knowledge and skills, Provide information to the community and coalition partners, Change the consequences/incentives, Provide support for youth, and Enhance skills of youth. We will utilize the seven strategies to decrease 7th and 9th grade youth past 30-day alcohol use, increase perceived risk, increase peer disapproval, and increase parental disapproval by: reducing access and enhancing barriers for parents, reducing access and enhancing barriers in the community, change consequences in the community, provide information to youth, and provide information to parents and community members. We will utilize the seven strategies for community level change to decrease 7th and 9th grade youth past 30-day prescription drug abuse, increase perceived risk, increase peer disapproval, and increase parental disapproval of use by: reducing access and enhancing barriers in the community, provide information to youth, provide support for youth, modifying and changing policies, and providing information to the community. We will utilize the seven strategies for community level change to decrease 7th and 9th grade youth past 30-day marijuana use, increase perceived risk, increase peer disapproval, and increase parental disapproval of use by: providing information to youth, enhancing skills of parents, provide information to parents and community members,change the physical design of the community, and change consequences in the community. With the assistance from an evaluator, we will track our changes and monitor our progress on each of our goals and will modify strategies and specific activities if necessary. The LCCA will remain culturally competent.

Decatur Township Drug-Free coalition will work to prevent and reduce substance abuse among youth in the community by providing proactive education and sustainable strategies through mobilization of community resources.

The Ray County Coalition serves Ray County in MO, a community of approximately 23,000. The goals of the coalition through this grant to reduce youth use of alcohol and other drugs and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth substance use. The coalition will achieve its goals of reducing youth use of alcohol, tobacco and marijuana by implementing these strategies: Coalition development, youth/adult education, social marketing, compliance checks and policy development. WestCare Kentucky, Inc. will serve as the administrative and fiscal agent for this grant until the coalition can establish a local 501 C-3 to provide this administrative function.

Dubois County Coalition for Adolescent Resilience and Empowerment Strategies (CARES) is seeking five year funding from SAMHSA for a Drug Free Communities Support Grant (FOA SP-17-001). If funded, this grant will allow us to build capacity within our coalition so we can enact cultural change to lower substance use among youth. Capacity building efforts will include training for coalition Sector Reps, Members, and partner agencies. It will also help us to promote CARES within our county to additional stakeholders so that our coalition continues to grow. Currently, we have 12 Sector Reps, four executive leaders, and 34 additional members, representing over 25 different partner agencies. Our people are from every geographical, cultural, and socio-economic area in our county, including diversity of ages, gender, religion, capabilities, and other differences. Our people are also active in numerous other community organizations which broadens our net of influence. With this grant, we'll be able to host high quality trainings and workshops to build understanding of the problems related to youth substance use and build collaboration to effect change. We seek to change the culture behind youth substance use in our county. Dubois County is primarily a white, German-Catholic community, with a large economic gap between the rich and the poor. All segments of our county have substance use issues. The primary substances used among youth and adults are alcohol, marijuana, methamphetamine, and opiates. Our German/Catholic culture encourages significant alcohol consumption among all ages and it is common for people to become vocal against law enforcement when anyone is arrested for substance use. The most common comment made is, ""Don't police have anything better to do than arrest for (insert substance here)?"" CARES seeks to change that culture so that parents, youth, and general public understand the effects of substance use among youth, especially alcohol and marijuana. To enact change, if funded, we plan to work with school administrators to change school drug policies so they are enforced and serve as a barrier to substance use. We also plan to work with city officials to adopt ordinances that prohibit alcohol consumption on city property. Currently, there are significant tail-gating parties at sports events in city parking lots adjacent to sports arenas. With signage to post the new ordinances and the social marketing efforts we propose, we hope to curtail public intoxication and educate people about the signal of acceptance they send when drinking in front of youth. Obviously, we'll need significant dollars to educate the public, parents, and youth about the dangers of substance use. Funds will be used for posters, signs, trainings, and annual meeting (open to the public) to help get our message understood and embraced. We'll also need funding to promote our activities and to conduct a social media campaign of ""Talk, They Hear You"". Grant funds will also be used to obtain and analyze data from a wide variety of sources, including the youth themselves, parents, and general public. We plan to hire a consulting firm to conduct the evaluation of our efforts to assure program fiduciary. We also intend to use funds to disseminate information about our progress, upcoming events, and further solicit community involvement. Information will be disseminated through a wide range of efforts, including presentations to various audiences by our Sector Reps, an annual meeting open to the public, quarterly newsletters, ongoing social media posts, press releases, and a written annual report. Coordination of all of the above will be key to assuring our success. CARES has chosen TRI-CAP to be the fiscal agent for our grant. TRI-CAP has been a community action agency for over 50 years, managing nearly $5000,000 annually in federal, state, and local grants.

Out of the Dark Inc. (OTD) and Craighead Out of the Dark Coalition (CODC), formed in 2008, are located in the northeast corner of Arkansas, Craighead County. The Coalition’s mission is to establish and strengthen collaboration among service-providing agencies, businesses, faith-based organizations, civic groups, government agencies, and members of the community working together for the reduction and prevention of youth substance use in Craighead County, Arkansas. Substance abuse among youth in Craighead County is common. The 2015 Arkansas Prevention Needs Assessment (APNA) student survey data show significant use of an assortment of drugs; the most prominent being alcohol and marijuana with prescription drug abuse on the rise. Factors contributing to this abuse include a lack of consistent funding for prevention efforts, proximity to drug trafficking corridors, easy access to alcohol and other drugs, perceived favorable parental and community attitudes toward drug use, and high incidence of poverty. Youth substance abuse is apparent in the community as seen by Craighead County having the 6th highest rate of juvenile substance abuse arrests in the state in 2015 along with an alarming rise in youth treatment admissions for non-heroin opiates from 2013 to 2015. With funding from the Drug-Free Communities Support Program, CODC will address the issues of alcohol, marijuana, and prescription drug abuse in youth (individuals age 18 years and younger) in Craighead County. The proposed project will utilize the Strategic Prevention Framework. Processes and activities will be monitored and evaluated for effectiveness through ongoing data collection to formatively assess the coalition’s progress, determine whether or not stated objectives are met, and measure the impact of the Action Plan activities on the stated objectives. Goals of the CODC 12-Month Action Plan focus on these issues through implementation of the following strategies: • Increase coalition infrastructure and capacity • Strengthen community buy-in and partnerships • Build new community partnerships • Strengthen stakeholder (parents, community members) skills and increase knowledge • Reduce alcohol, marijuana, and prescription drug use among youth • Conduct a social marketing campaign to address drug use among youth • Change consequence of alcohol use by providing incentives/disincentives • Reward and enhance youth refusal skills • Provide alternative social events and activities With DFC funding for the proposed project, CODC will work to change the culture of Craighead County so that fewer youth become substance users.

The Upriver Youth Leadership Coalition will utilize the Strategic Prevention Framework to strengthen community collaboration and infrastructure around youth alcohol and marijuana use in Kamiah, Idaho. Kamiah is a small frontier town located in central Idaho with a population of about 4500 within the 83536 zip code. Kamiah is located in two counties (Idaho and Lewis) and is on the Nez Perce Tribe Reservation. The mission of the Upriver Youth Leadership Council is to empower youth and adults to build a heathier community through prevention leadership. The three primary goals of the Upriver Youth Leadership Council are to: 1. Foster leadership and resilience skills in our community youth. 2. Prevent the initiation of youth substance use. 3. Build a collaborative, sustainable community-wide prevention infrastructure. Partners include: healthcare, law enforcement, school, media, churches, government entities, Nez Perce Tribe, youth serving organizations, business owners, civic organizations, youth and parents UYLC uses the Strategic Prevention Framework to address substance abuse issues in our community. The issues UYLC are specifically addressing with the 2017 DFC application are: Youth Alcohol Use: Grades 6-12 past year use rates for alcohol (28.5%); past 30 day use rates (16.1%) How? --Reduce access to alcohol; increase perception of harm of underage drinking. Youth Marijuana Use: Grades 6-12 past year use rates for marijuana (17.3%); past 30 day use rates (8.6%) How? --Reduce access to marijuana; increase perception of harm of using marijuana. UYLC will utilize the seven strategies for environmental change in the comprehensive 12-month action plan. UYLC has a data driven evaluation plan to evaluate the effectiveness of meeting the objectives in the 12 month action plan that address the local conditions.