Central New Hampshire Partnerships for Prevention - Central NH Partnerships for Prevention is a five-year substance use prevention initiative of Communities for Alcohol- and Drug-Free Youth, Inc. (CADY) serving an 18-town region of central New Hampshire. The project will reach approximately 6,500 individuals annually — an estimated 32,500 individuals over the five-year project period — through school-based prevention curricula, a campus social norming campaign, youth-led peer messaging, and a year-round prevention camp model. CADY brings 27 years of substance use prevention leadership, including prior SAMHSA Partnerships for Success funding, a current STOP Act award, and leadership of a Drug-Free Communities coalition, to this priority of preventing substance misuse and advancing healthy youth development. The project serves residents of a HRSA-designated rural medically underserved region, including 2,988 K–12 students (ages 9–20) across three school districts, 3,331 Plymouth State University (PSU) students (ages 18–25), and regional parental and kinship caregiver families. Regional data show elevated rates of substance use and behavioral health need: 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey data show past-30-day marijuana use averaging 22% (vs. 19.8% statewide), first alcohol use before age 13 at 41.8% (vs. 12.2% statewide), a youth suicide attempt rate of 11.8% (vs. 8.5% statewide), and lifetime vaping prevalence of 36.1% (vs. 32.6% statewide) (NH YRBS, 2023). Seventeen percent of NH youth ages 0–17 have experienced two or more Adverse Childhood Experiences, and 2024 marked the first year regional self-harm emergency department visits exceeded the rest of New Hampshire (NAMI NH, 2025; NHDHHS, 2026). Among young adults, 88.09% of NH residents ages 18–25 needing substance use treatment do not receive it — the largest treatment gap of any age group (SAMHSA NSDUH, 2023–2024) — and PSU's Counseling Center recorded 37 DSM-5-TR Substance-Related and Addictive Disorder diagnoses and served 360 unique students in the most recent academic year (PSU Counseling Center, 2026). CADY will implement four evidence-based prevention strategies: (1) a PSU Cluster Learning Model partnership with the Social Work department delivering Lions Quest and MindUp social-emotional learning curricula in regional K–12 classrooms; (2) a PSU Social Entrepreneurship campus assessment and social norming campaign addressing high-intensity drinking and emerging substance use trends among young adults; (3) a Youth to Youth Empowerment Model social norming campaign co-developed by high school peer leaders; and (4) a year-round prevention camp continuum scaling from a 37-participant summer pilot to approximately 235 youth and 50 adults annually by Year 5, paired with a HOPE-anchored adult camp, a Recovery Community Organization partnership supporting kinship caregivers, and the annual Shout Out to Parents family engagement event. Project goals are to: (1) reduce substance use prevalence, achieving a measurable reduction in past-30-day alcohol, vaping, and marijuana use among youth ages 9–20 from baseline by Year 3 (regional YRBS and CADY prevention data); (2) reduce high-intensity drinking and encourage help-seeking among PSU young adults, with a confirmed campus social norms shift by Year 2 (survey data); (3) strengthen protective factors and mental wellness by increasing school connectedness, social-emotional competency, and ACE-resilience among K–12 students and families (Lions Quest/MindUp pre/post assessments and HOPE framework indicators); and (4) expand sustainable community prevention capacity through PSU-embedded workforce development and cross-sector partnerships extending beyond the grant period. Progress toward these goals and the reach described above will be reported quarterly in SPARS, with CADY participating in required cross-site evaluation.
