Youth Drinking Prevention Less Effective in Urban Community

Source: Jointogether.org Research Summary, 3/19/2008
A model prevention program that worked well in rural communities did not achieve the same results in curbing drinking among middle-school students in an urban area, a new study finds.

Science Daily reported March 17 that researchers said that Project Northland, a prevention program that reduced alcohol use 20-30 percent over three years in rural Minnesota, had no impact on middle-schoolers in Chicago who took part in the program versus those who did not.

Study lead author Kelli A. Komro of the University of Florida College of Medicine said the negative findings in Chicago surprised researchers. “This is an important finding to realize this program was not enough,” said Komro. “The bottom line is this: Low-income children in urban areas need more, long-term intensive efforts.”

The program stressed three main messages: that drinking is unacceptable in school, at home, and in the community. The project was student-led in schools, family oriented at home, and spearheaded by neighborhood volunteers at the community level. But project leaders had difficulty getting urban community leaders engaged on the issue of youth alcohol use.

“People in these areas are concerned with housing, they’re concerned with gangs and other drug use,” Komro said. “There was a whole upfront effort where we had to educate people about how alcohol was related to those other issues, and that it was an important issue to think about with their young people.”

There was at least one positive result from the Chicago study, however: after community teams visited alcohol stores and urged owners not to sell to minors, local youth reported a 64-percent decline in their ability to buy alcohol.

The study was published online in the journal Addiction.

This article summarizes an external report or press release on research published in a scientific journal. When available, links to the sources are provided above.

CSAP Grant: STOP Act

Request for Applications (RFA) No. SP-08-004
Posting on Grants.gov: March 6, 2008
Receipt Date: April 9, 2008
Announcement Type: Initial

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2008 for Sober Truth on Preventing Underage Drinking Act (STOP Act) grants.

The purpose of this program is to prevent and reduce alcohol use among youth in communities throughout the United States. It was created to strengthen collaboration among communities, the Federal Government, and state, local and tribal governments; to enhance intergovernmental cooperation and coordination on the issue of alcohol use among youth; to serve as a catalyst for increased citizen participation and greater collaboration among all sectors and organizations of a community that first demonstrates a long-term commitment to reducing alcohol use among youth; and to disseminate to communities timely information regarding state-of-the-art practices and initiatives that have proven to be effective in preventing and reducing alcohol use among youth.

Download the Complete Announcement No. SP-08-004:
Download RFA in Adobe PDF Format  (614 KB)

Funding Mechanism:Grant
Due Date for Applications:April 9, 2008
Anticipated Total Available Funding:$3.93 million
Anticipated Number of Awards:Up to 80
Anticipated Award Amount:Up to $50,000 per year
Length of Project Period:Up to 4 years

$1.2 Million available for community-based drug prevention coalitions

Source: SAMHSA News Release, 2/15/08
$1.2 MILLION AVAILABLE FOR COMMUNITY-BASED DRUG PREVENTION COALITIONS DFC MENTORING GRANTS TO FUND 15 DRUG-FREE COMMUNITIES (Washington, D.C.) - Today, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), in partnership with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), announced the availability of $1.2 million for new Drug-Free Communities Support Mentoring Program (DFC Mentoring) grants. An estimated 15 new Mentoring grants will be awarded (averaging $75,000 per grant, per year) to drug and alcohol prevention community coalitions representing a cross-section of rural, urban, suburban, and tribal communities.

View the whole press release here.
View the grant ap and requirements here.

Community Development Resource Under Way

The PIC is working on a small resource guide to help communities increase their capacity for building communities on a local level. The resource will emphasize building the economy (e.g. grants), forging and strengthening social ties, and developing the non-profit sector. We hope to include links to evidence-based practices in this field. We are also growing the collection in areas related to cultural awareness and working with specific populations. Do you have suggestions for resources? Please email them to us at pic@rmc.org.

Community Partnership Approach to Addressing Meth Webcast

Source: NCJRS, Justice Information, 12(15), August 1, 2006

On August 22, 2006, at 2 p.m. ET, a free, live, interactive Webcast and satellite broadcast will address the state of the meth epidemic that threatens the health and safety of our nation’s communities. Viewers will learn how community policing and partnerships can be used to enhance enforcement activities as well as prevention efforts.

Methamphetamine remains number one drug problem according to new survey of the nation’s counties

Source: NaCo Press Release,

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – County law enforcement officials across 44 states reported that methamphetamine remains the number one drug problem in their county, according to a new survey released today by the National Association of Counties (NACo) … The survey, “The Methamphetamine Epidemic:  The Criminal Effect of Meth on Communities,” was conducted by NACo to determine the effect of methamphetamine abuse on counties and their residents and to raise public awareness of the meth epidemic.