The Bridge Center, Inc. (TBCI) and their collaborating organizations are applying to obtain Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Strategic Prevention Framework – Partnerships for Success for Communities, Local Governments, Universities, Colleges, and Tribes/Tribal Organizations Grant funding, to support their Prevention Educators Advancing Care & Empowerment (PEACE) project. The PEACE project will provide comprehensive substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion, and enhanced infrastructure for youth and young adult residents throughout Greater Mobile County in the state of Alabama. These funds will be well utilized in the effort to improve the overall level and quality of substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion in this high-needs community by making certain that fewer citizens are having their lives devastated by addiction and untreated mental illness, so that they might lead happier and more successful lives.
Goal 1: Increase the direct involvement of Mobile County businesses, organizations, and interested individuals in preventing the onset and reducing the progression of substance abuse and its related problems, and in promoting positive mental health amongst children and youth over a five-year period.
Objective 1: By the end of March 2025, PEACE will have convened a coalition of citizens and representatives from various sectors of the community to strengthen Fulton’s substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion capacity and greater community infrastructure by completing the steps of SAMHSA’s Strategic Prevention Framework.
Objective 2) Each year, PEACE will have maintained 90% of coalition community partnerships to increase capacity to fill gaps and address other problems related to substance abuse and mental health promotion.
Goal 2: Establish and maintain active involvement of youth and young adults in sharing the message of substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion over the five years of the program.
Objective 3) By the end of 2029, PEACE will have increased Mobile’s infrastructure by training 50 students (10 annually) as Peer Educators to disseminate substance abuse prevention and youth mental health promotion information.
Objective 4) By the end of 2029, the Health Educators assisted by Peer Educators will have provided 10 evidenced based prevention mixed best practices sessions to 1,000 children and youth (150 to 225 annually) to increase knowledge, perceived risk of harm, and behavioral change regarding alcohol, tobacco products and marijuana use, in addition to promoting positive mental health via violence reduction.
Goal 3: Reach out to share the message of substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion to individuals in the greater community not being served directly by the project over the five years of the program.
Objective 5: By the end of 2029, PEACE will have implemented fifteen (15) traditional and media campaigns (three a year) to reach 5,000 (1,000 a year) children, youth and young adults targeting the prevention of underage drinking, marijuana and tobacco products use, in addition to promoting positive mental health.
