Saturday, March 15, 2025
3/15/2025
Tri-County Health Network and the San Miguel Communities that Care Coalition work in the Telluride R-1 School District, a 900-student district located in the town of Telluride in rural, southwestern Colorado. The mission of the Coalition is to is to engage with youth, community members, parents, and key stakeholders to increase protective factors and reduce risk factors with the long-term goal of reducing youth substance use among students in the Telluride School District. Youth in Telluride face numerous risk factors that put them at increased risk for substance use. Our community sees a large number of tourists who indulge in alcohol and marijuana; a large seasonal transient work population of 18 to 30-year olds; and numerous pressures on the resident population due to high cost of living, low wages, and a lack of mental health providers. It is not surprising that high school students in our community report using both alcohol and marijuana at significantly higher rates than their peers across the state of Colorado. To address youth substance use, the Coalition utilizes a comprehensive approach, including addressing the underlying risk factors contributing to substance use, limiting youth access and exposure to substances, changing the culture of our community, and building health equity. Our objectives include: • By the end of year 1, provide information to 75% of the Telluride community on youth substance use and community-level risk and protective factors and 75% of the students enrolled in 6th-12th grade, as demonstrated by attendance at community forums and media reach numbers • By the end of year 1, enhance skills for 50 community stakeholders by offering 3 evidence-based and other workshops, as demonstrated by attendance and findings on post-workshop assessments. • Decrease past 30-day alcohol and marijuana use for 6th-12th graders by up to 10%, measured using the 2023 Healthy Kids Colorado survey (HKCS) as a baseline and subsequent HKCS to assess changes, by partnering with 10 local organizations and businesses to provide support to increase protective and reduce risk factors by creating more opportunities for prosocial youth involvement • Reduce youth use of marijuana by working with marijuana dispensaries to reward dispensaries for partnering with the Coalition, thereby increasing barriers to marijuana access for youth, as measured by a 25% reduction in the number of youth who perceive access to marijuana as “easy” or “somewhat easy” using the 2023 HKCS as a baseline and subsequent HKCS to assess changes • Reduce youth access to and use of alcohol by increasing barriers to alcohol access for youth, as measured by a 15% reduction in the number of youth who perceive access to alcohol as “easy” or “somewhat easy” using the 2023 HKCS as a baseline and subsequent HKCS to assess changes • Reduce the percentage of youth reporting feeling “so sad or hopeless for more than two weeks over the past 12 months that they stopped doing regular activities”, as measured by a 10% decrease in the number of youth reporting this using the 2023 HKCS as a baseline and subsequent HKCS surveys to assess changes by enhancing skills for 100 students enrolled in 9th-12th grade by offering 2 evidence based workshops for students by the end of year 1 Specific strategies we will utilize to achieve our objectives include: providing information about youth substance use, risk factors, protective factors, and Coalition efforts to community members and tourists; enhancing the skills of community members through training workshops; working with partners to create a youth club; creating a parent workgroup; working with youth-serving organizations to develop a universal enrollment and financial aid application to use across programs; providing positive publicity for marijuana dispensaries and stores that sell alcohol that partner with the Coalition and pass compliance checks; and working with local governments to draft and issue proclamations.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).