The Village, Vernon Rocks Coalition Awarded $625,000 for Youth Substance Use Prevention

U.S. Congressman Joe Courtney (center) visited with Vernon ROCKS Coalition Project Director Cassie Schend (left) and Vernon Youth Services Bureau Director Michelle Hill (right) to celebrate a $625,000 grant award.

Five-year federal grant to help keep Vernon youth safe, healthy and drug-free

Vernon, Conn. The Vernon ROCKS Coalition, a collaboration of community service groups led by The Village for Families & Children in partnership with Vernon Youth Services Bureau, has been selected as a recipient of a five-year, $625,000 federal grant from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) under the Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program. The grant program, which is managed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), provides an opportunity to strengthen the Coalition’s ongoing efforts in preventing youth substance use in the community.

ONDCP’s DFC program is the nation’s leading effort to mobilize communities to prevent and reduce substance use among youth. The DFC program provides federal grants to community coalitions to identify and respond to the issues unique to their community and change community conditions tied to youth substance use. With this grant, the Vernon ROCKS Coalition will be able to continue building a safe, healthy, and drug-free community.

“Preventing substance use today is critical, so that today’s youth don’t become tomorrow’s overdose victims. We are thrilled to award this grant because we know the outcomes DFC funded coalitions are capable of achieving when implementing evidence-based prevention strategies at the local level.” said Helen Hernandez, Administrator of the DFC Program at ONDCP.

“Through the DFC program, CDC is empowering community coalitions to implement local solutions to unique, local conditions, with the common goal of preventing youth substance use,” added Allison Arwady, MD, MPH, director of the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at CDC.

The Vernon ROCKS Coalition is a collaboration of community stakeholders, parents, youth and volunteers who focus on preventing the use of drugs and alcohol in Vernon’s youth by promoting protective factors and decreasing risk factors that contribute to substance use. Members work together to reduce social access to alcohol and prescription drugs and empower families in setting clear rules and expectations for their children around substance use. Coalition members include:

• The Village for Families & Children

• Vernon Youth Services Bureau

• Hockanum Valley Community Council, Inc. (HVCC)

• Vernon Police Department

• KIDSAFE CT, an affiliate of The Village

• Amplify, Inc.

• Vernon Parks & Recreation

• Vernon Community Network

• Vernon Public Schools

• Become part of the Solution

• Walgreens Pharmacy

• Rockville Pharmacy

• Community Voice Channel

• North Central District Health Department

“The Village and Vernon ROCKS Coalition is grateful for the support of and partnership with ONDCP, CDC,” said Village President & CEO Hector Glynn. “We are proud to share this mission and effort to prevent youth substance use and protect the well-being of the Vernon community. By focusing our collective expertise and resources on the critical issues, we will ensure a positive impact on local youth, who are the future of the community.”

“We care deeply about our children – their education, well-being and health – and are grateful to the Vernon ROCKS Coalition and its partner agencies that work so hard to keep Vernon children safe,” Vernon Mayor Dan Champagne said. “We are grateful to receive this grant and for all the good work it will allow to happen in Vernon.”

More information about the DFC program can be found here.