Agenda - 03-05-2003 - 9c - Laserfiche WebLink

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Neither the health department nor either schools system has any active on -going youth tobacco prevention efforts. Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools uses the Life Skills Curriculum to prevent substance abuse with some very limited applications to tobacco prevention. Orange County Schools uses the DARE program for substance abuse prevention, which is even more limited to tobacco prevention. If this money were not available, there would be no resources available to address this problem. The availability of the grant funds enabled the school systems and the health department to focus on a health problem that has lifelong consequences to the entire community. This grant opportunity became available in late 2002 through the North Carolina Health and Wellness Trust. It seeks to prevent youth from beginning tobacco use and assists those that are users to stop. The grant application is a collaborative effort between the Orange County Schools, the Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools, the Orange County Department of Social Services, and the Orange County Health Department. The Healthy Carolinians Coordinator and representatives from each of the collaborating agencies wrote the grant application and submitted it in November, 2002. The Health Department received notification in late January that the grant was selected for funding. This grant is one of 26 that were awarded across the state, from a pool of $6,707,377. The overall focus of the project is on reducing tobacco and marijuana use among middle and high school students and on developing the skills necessary to prevent the use of these substances. In each of the three years, the project will train at least 40 youth peer educators - 20 from each school system - to provide prevention education to other youth. Each of the school systems will focus on different grade levels for implementation. In addition, teen parents, Phoenix Academy, and Night Panthers will have programs focused on their particular needs. A unique focus will be on grandparents of teen parents, often who are providing care for the young children in their homes. Tobacco cessation programs will also be offered for those youth already using tobacco products. The general objectives and activities of the project can be found on page 9 of the attached grant application (page 11 of this abstract). More specific outcomes of the grant will include: • Each grant year, at least 40 Peer educators (20 from each school system) will be trained to ask, advise, and assist students with tobacco use prevention and cessation resources. • Each grant year, Peer Educators will report having referred at least 1,000 students to services addressing tobacco use, marijuana avoidance and cessation resources. • Each grant year, Peer Educators, in coordination with the Youth Tobacco Prevention Project Manager, will conduct at least 35 sessions for OCS students reaching 500 third graders and 25 sessions for CHCCS students reaching 700 ninth graders. • By March 2006, Orange County Youth Risk Behavior Survey data will reflect a 3% decrease in the number of OCS. and CHCCS students who reported smoking in the last 30 days with OCS 9th graders and CHCCS 10th graders as benchmarks. Currently, 24% of OCS 9th graders and 20% of CHCCS 10th graders report having smoked in the last 30 days. • Each year, the Youth Tobacco Prevention Project Manager will facilitate education, counseling, and support for 100% of OCS and CHCCS students and faculty requesting smoking cessation assistance.