Saturday, December 21, 2024
12/21/2024
The Ketchikan Drug Prevention Coalition DFC project targets the children and youth of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District, their families, and the community within which they live. The primary emphasis of the KDPC project is given to middle and high school students and members of the Ketchikan Indian Community which serves the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian people. The population of focus includes 2,100 students of whom 1,043 (49.7%) represent one or more underserved communities based on race and ethnicity. Additionally, 19.9% (418) of the student population are people with disabilities. The total population of focus to be served by the KDPC project in underserved communities based on the student population alone is 1,253 or 60%. The community data represents a snapshot of the youth substance misuse problem in the borough of Ketchikan; however, it clearly establishes ALCOHOL and MARIJUANA as the drugs of choice for our youth. The current findings clearly indicate a nearly equal preference for alcohol (21.1%) and Marijuana (22%). Marijuana has quickly gained in popularity among our youth most likely due to the national push toward decriminalization of recreational use which, for Alaska, took place in 2015. Current (within the past 30-days) marijuana use jumped 13.4% since legalization and it continues to rise. (YRBSS, 2015-2019). For these reasons KDPC has devised an action plan that focuses on increasing awareness of the harmful effects of alcohol and marijuana use as well as in providing meaningful opportunities as an alternative to substance use. KDPC has adopted the following OBJECTIVES in response: Objective 1: Reduce 30-day Alcohol use among KGBSD students from the current 2019 baseline of 21.1% to 16.9% (-20%) by 2029 as measured by the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. (To be administered in 2025, 2027, and 2029.) Objective 2: Reduce 30-day Marijuana use among KGBSD students from the current 2019 baseline of 22% to 17.6% (-20%) by 2029 as measured by the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. (To be administered in 2025, 2027, and 2029.) The efforts describe in the 12-month action plan will result in the following OUTCOMES: Outcome 1: Increase Perceived Parental Disapproval of Marijuana Use among KGBSD students from the current 2019 baseline of 70% to 84% (+20%) by 2029 as measured by the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. (To be administered in 2025, 2027, and 2029.) Outcome 2: Increase community awareness of Alcohol, Marijuana, and Opioid use by 40% as measured by the Ketchikan Community Survey. (Baseline by December 31, 2024.) Outcome 3: Decrease community attitudes favorable to Alcohol, Marijuana, and Opioid use by 20% by 2028 as measured by Ketchikan Community Survey. (Baseline by December 31, 2024.) To achieve this end, KDPC will target middle and high school age youth and their families with the following strategies to be implemented in the first year and sustained through the 5-year project: 1) Securing the infrastructure and capacity to address substance misuse prevention through wide-ranging community collaboration, 2) Improving coalition competency through trainings and education, 3) Increasing awareness of the issues around alcohol and marijuana with multimodal communications, 4) Enhancing parenting skills to buffer exposure to negative influences, 5) Implementing a comprehensive prevention media campaign targeting alcohol and marijuana, 6) Enhancing school-based Youth for Change youth coalition with training and activity support, 7) Advocating for school drug and alcohol response policy reviews and updates, 8) Conducting outreach targeting under-resourced, underrepresented BIPOC populations to include the Tribal and Filipino communities, and 9) Improving access to prevention resources for parents and their families.
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).