Pubdate: Fri, 11 Mar 2005
Source: Metrowest Daily News (MA)
Copyright: 2005 MetroWest Daily News
Contact:  http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/619
Author: Jon Brodkin
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?225 (Students - United States)

FIVE TOWNS TARGET SUBSTANCE ABUSE

Five MetroWest and Milford area communities will target drug and alcohol 
abuse in high schools and middle schools in a new $1 million initiative 
developed by the MetroWest Community Health Care Foundation.

The initiative, the foundation's largest since it formed in 1999, is an 
attempt to prevent substance abuse, identify those at greatest risk of 
addiction and improve access to treatment for kids with drug and alcohol 
problems.

The foundation aims to bring the best practices from around the country to 
area towns, many of which use substance abuse programs that have not been 
proven effective, said Martin Cohen, foundation president.

"A lot of these communities, they've been trying to address substance 
abuse," Cohen said. "A lot of it is hit-or-miss. It wasn't based on the 
science. It didn't involve the evidence-based best practices."

The grant recipients, announced yesterday, include Framingham, Hopkinton, 
Needham and Wayland. A fifth grant was also awarded to Milford and 
Bellingham, which are pursuing a joint program.

The five grants are $200,000 each and will be distributed over three years. 
The foundation has also contracted with the Boston-based Education 
Development Center Inc., to provide technical assistance to the 
communities. Brandeis University's Schneider Center for Behavioral Health 
will evaluate the foundation's project.

Drug and alcohol use is widespread in Massachusetts, according to a risk 
behavior survey of high school students released by state officials last 
year. In the 30 days prior to being surveyed, nearly half of students had 
consumed alcohol and more than a quarter engaged in binge drinking, defined 
as consuming five or more drinks within two hours.

Nearly half of students reported having used an illegal drug at least once. 
Marijuana was the most commonly used substance.

"Substance abuse crosses over all boundaries," said Jill Leach, wellness 
coordinator for the Hopkinton school system. "It's a typical problem that 
most communities see with teenage youth."

In Milford and Bellingham, there have been a number of kids arrested for 
crimes related to substance abuse, and officials at the juvenile court say 
they are concerned, said Judy Bolandz, director of the Wayside Community 
Counseling Center in Milford.

Bolandz wrote the grant proposal for Milford and Bellingham. She said the 
towns plan to complete a comprehensive needs assessment and then develop a 
community-wide coalition involving schools, police, health boards, parents 
and probation officers, to combat substance abuse.

"Everyone's trying to do the best they can in their own areas, but we 
really haven't linked everyone with each other," she said.

Much of the new grant program's resources will be aimed at middle schools. 
The Framingham school system plans to increase screening and intervention 
for middle school students who show signs of substance use, while Hopkinton 
will implement a new prevention curriculum in the middle school.

Research suggests substance abuse prevention initiatives can have the most 
impact at the middle school level, with refresher programs for high school 
students, Cohen said.

"I think it's still new (for middle-schoolers)," he said."They may be more 
prone to experimentation at a younger age, peer pressure factors may be 
different."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom