For the past decade, WV has been developing a
prevention system to make a sustainable impact on reducing problem behaviors
(specifically substance abuse) in the Mountain State. Essentially, WV’s prevention
system is a
capacity building infrastructure that focuses on providing support to communities
so they can address their own problems. The system additionally encourages coordination
at the state level.
WV’s prevention system is predominately funded with prevention set-aside dollars
from the federal Substance Abuse Prevention
and Treatment (SAPT) Block Grant. It is also supported in part by a federal
Strategic Prevention Framework
State Incentive Grant (SPF SIG).
WV has two state level entities that guide its prevention system: WV's Partnership
to Promote Community Well-Being and the WV Division on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.
Officially created by Executive Order No. 8-04 in May 2004, The
WV Partnership to Promote Community Well-Being (The Partnership) is the
state’s designated substance abuse prevention and intervention planning body
and an advisory council for WV's implementation of its SPF SIG. It consists
of Governor-appointed representatives primarily from state and community entities
who have training, experience, and/or special knowledge concerning substance
abuse, prevention, intervention and treatment. Its purpose is to to coordinate
a comprehensive statewide substance abuse system through activities including
but not limited to: planning, securing resources, recommending sub-grants, and
evaluating.
Located within the WV Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR), the
WV Division on Alcoholism and
Drug Abuse (DADA) oversees the statewide provision of substance abuse prevention,
intervention, and treatment services to adults, adolescents, and children. The
DADA is the receipient of WV's federal SAPT Block Grant. 20% of the grant must
be designated for prevention. The DADA uses the prevention set-aside to contract
with the several entities that carry out prevention activities. The entities
include: Community Connections,
South Charleston Impact, the WV
Library Commission, and the WV
Prevention Resource Center (WVPRC).
The backbone of WV’s prevention system is a regional network of Community
Development Specialists (CDS) . The WV Prevention Resource Center's 16 CDSs
are trained prevention professionals who live and work locally throughout WV’s
55 counties. They work in teams of four with each team responsible for approximately
12 to 16 counties in four different regions in the state. A CDS’s job is to
work collaboratively with grassroots community organizations and individuals,
providing technical assistance specifically in the area of substance abuse prevention
within a risk and protective framework, while stressing assets. Responsibilities
include assessing community strengths and weaknesses, helping communities with
strategic planning, team building, formulating goals and objectives, grant writing,
coalition building, and developing and implementing evidence-based programs,
practices and policies. CDS also assist communities in using evaluation to improve
their efforts.
In addition to the network of Community Development Specialists, the
WV Prevention Resource Center (WVPRC) maintains other specialized teams
who support the CDS, as well as other individuals, organizations, and agencies
in the form of information dissemination, networking and collaboration, facilitated
learning and training, and evaluation activities.
Community Connections Inc.
is Mercer County's Family Resource Network. It coordinates Coalitions
For a Better WV and the WV
Teen Court Association. Coalitions For A Better WV is WV's Official State
Association of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions
of America (CADCA) Association.
The West Virginia Library Commission
manages West
Virginia's RADAR Clearinghouse, which offers to the public free materials
including brochures, pamphlets, curricula, posters, research monographs and
more.
Now, because of WV's SPF SIG, WV's prevention
system additionally includes several new capacity building components: county-level
prevention planning and implementation grants, regional learning opportunities,
and county prevention partnerships. WV is re-awarding most of SPF SIG funding
to support local sub-grantee prevention
planning and implementation. Phase 1, which took place during 2006, involved
county-level prevention planning grants. Phase 2 began in 2007 and will continue
into 2008. It involves county-level prevention implementation grants to more
than a dozen counties with high need in regards to substance abuse.
Local, prevention-oriented partnerships/coalitions
exist in most of WV's 55 counties, and they are the front line of the state's
prevention system. Some have been in existence for quite some time, while others
are fairly new. Many were formed because of WV's SPF SIG, and many are members
of Community Anti-Drug Coaltions of America. Some partnerships/coalitions fulfill
multiple roles and tackle various issues, while some counties have multiple
groups tackling various things.
WV’s implementation of its SPF SIG also includes
Regional Learning Opportunities (RLOs). The RLOs - open to prevention professionals,
members of county prevention partnerships and other community organizations,
and WV SPF SIG grantees - provide a venue for regional networking/information
sharing, peer to peer learning, and training/technical assistance.
There are many other prevention efforts in WV. Although most have a specific
focus and funding source, all prevention efforts fall in line with the ultimate
goal of improving the overall well-being of WV’s citizens. Other prevention
efforts in WV include: adolescent health
coordination; adolescent pregnancy
prevention, asthma
prevention, diabetes prevention,
domestic violence
prevention, family resource networks,
HIV prevention, injury
prevention, osteoporosis
prevention, prevention
resource officers, pollution
prevention, safe and drug free schools coordination, suicide
prevention, tobacco prevention.