WCPO-TV's Jenell Walton interviews CDFGC's Executive Director Mary Haag about the Tristate's Campus Challenge contest. Full story and video clip here:

http://www.wcpo.com/dpp/news/region_central_cincinnati/downtown/students...

The Coalition for a Drug Free Cincinnati (CDFGC) is currently in the process of gathering data as part of our community assessment of prescription drug/over the counter (Rx/OTC) use in the Greater Cincinnati region.

We have created a system to conduct online focus groups to gain community member perception of Rx/OTC misuse. We need the help of our local coalitions to identify individuals to take our online focus group survey.  CDFGC will be able to break down the data we receive and share it with local coalitions.   A variety of individuals from all professions are welcome to be a part of the focus groups including coaches, teachers, juvenile court judges, school resource officers, guidance counselors, principals, nurses, emergency room physicians, youth ministers, pharmacists, PTA members, and county coroners.

Please contact Nicole Schiesler at (513) 751-8000 or nschiesler@drugfreecincinnati.org if you are a local coalition member or represent one of the noted professions above. CDFGC will need contact information to invite individuals to participate in the focus groups. Representation is needed from Clermont, Butler, Warren, Hamilton, and Brown counties in Ohio; Campbell, Boone, and Kenton counties in Kentucky; and Franklin and Dearborn counties in Indiana.

The Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati has been issued a grant match challenge by The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati to raise $10,000 before December 30 in order to receive a doubled, matching $20,000 grant.

We are incredibly grateful for the support that has poured in already for this opportunity. As of December 21, we are only $1,785 shy of our goal.

The funds from this grant will go towards substance abuse prevention programs that focus on preventing and reducing substance use among youth as well as strengthening and supporting local, neighborhood substance abuse prevention efforts, and tracking, monitoring and reporting on the work we are doing that can truly create community-level change for strong and healthy communities throughout the Cincinnati region.

There are a few things to keep in mind to ensure we will receive the matching grant: 1) we must raise the full $10,000 2) we must receive your check by December 30 dated no later than the noted date 3) no single gift can exceed $5,000. With that stated, please know that gifts of any amount are valuable and very much appreciated.

There is one other way you can help us. Please forward information about our organization to your friends, family and colleagues. Not only will you help us meet our specific fundraising goal, you will also introduce us to more individuals in the community who we would like to get to know and tell about our prevention work.

The tax deductible donations can be made through the Google donation account noted in our newsletter, or checks can be sent to: CDFGC, 2330 Victory Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 45206 or call us at 513-751-8000 to make a payment by phone or if you have any questions.

As always, thank you in advance for your support and confidence.

Attention Kroger shoppers! You can support the Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati just by shopping at Kroger grocery stores. 

Now available through the Coalition - Kroger gift cards that give four percent of your grocery total to the Coalition.  Just purchase the card from us, preload the desired dollar amount and scan when you check-out. 

The Coalition automatically receives four percent of your bill. It could not be any easier.  For more information or to make arrangements to purchase a Kroger gift card, please call CDFGC Administrative Assistant Kellie Kammer at (513) 751-8000.

The numbers are in!  We are pleased to announce that the registration process for the 2012 PRIDE Student Drug Use Survey is complete and there are a number of new schools utilizing this valuable evaluation. The PRIDE Survey collects data on the prevalence of student drug use as well as attitudes, perceptions and other risk and protective indicators. These measures help gain a regional perspective on student drug use and help guide the work of prevention in a data-driven manner.

From now until mid-December, the survey distributed by the Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati (CDFGC) is being administered across the Tristate that will enable parents, local officials, law enforcement and communities to get a better understanding of what substance use issues are facing youth and their communities. This survey is taken every two years. This is the seventh survey cycle for CDFGC. This year alone, more than 76,000 students from 137 schools will be completing the survey.  Of the 137 registered schools, 59 are new to the process.  The number of registrations is up over 16,000 from 2009.  

The Coalition looks forward to working with area schools to help them understand the results of their data, and we thank them for making the survey a priority.  There is no doubt that this data will be a valuable tool for decision making in their communities.  This survey would not be possible without the generous support of our funding partners: SAMHSA (Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration),  The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati, the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services, the Hamilton County Mental Health Recovery Services Board as well as our local member coalitions and local community partners.  The cost of the PRIDE survey is $1.40 per student, however with the noted outside funding, schools are asked to cover just 25 cents per survey. The results of the data will be released April 2012. Any questions regarding the Student Drug Use Survey can be directed to CDFGC Director of Coalition Strategies Nicole Schiesler at 513-751-8000 or nschiesler@drugfreecincinnati.org.

Several Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky area high schools recently converged at Paul Brown Stadium to tackle the topic of underage alcohol and drug use. More than 70 students from these schools took part in this year's Red Ribbon Week Youth Summit held at the stadium on October 21. The event was hosted by the Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati with support from the Hamilton County Mental Health & Recovery Services Board (HCMHRSB).  Hamilton County Board Commissioner Todd Portune, HCMHRSB President/CEO Patrick Tribbe and Walnut Hills Anti-Drug Coalition Youth Leader Rico Stallworth provided featured remarks at the summit.

Red Ribbon Week is a nationwide effort to celebrate healthy, drug-free living and to motivate youth across the country to choose to live drug-free. The central event of this year's Youth Summit was the Office of National Drug Control Policy's (ONDCP) "Above the Influence" campaign that challenged students to identify good and bad influences in their environment that affect their decision making process. The students worked in small groups to share their perceptions on issues related to youth alcohol and drug use, and participated in the "Tag-It" activity where they identified things in their communities that they were above the influence of participating in. 

Students were also encouraged to "Be" the influence of alcohol and drug use prevention by mentoring other youth to be Above the Influence through implementation of the campaign at their schools during Red Ribbon Week. Check out the Coalition's Facebook page to see the students' reactions and results to the Above the Influence project. More pictures of the students' Above the Influence activities will be posted in the coming weeks to our Facebook page and website www.drugfreecincinnati.org