Prevention Initiatives
Amistades Substance Abuse Coalition
Through federal funding, Amistades manages
the Amistades Substance Abuse Coalition, a community-driven group that provides
substance abuse prevention in the Flowing Wells area. The Flowing Wells community consists of 13.1
squares miles in the City of Tucson Empowerment and Enterprise Zones as
classified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Coalition’s
goals include the reduction of alcohol and drugs among youth and enhancement of
existing collaborative efforts in the community. The Coalition addresses the
problem of underage drinking, marijuana and tobacco use, and is also concerned
about inhalant abuse and prescription drug use among Latinos. A vision to create healthy, productive, safe
and drug-free communities is its driving force. The Coalition’s primary funding
source is the United States Department of Health and Human Services - Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) / Center for Substance
Abuse Prevention (CSAP) in partnership with the White House Office of National
Drug Control Policy Drug Free Communities Support Program (DFCSP) and Sober
Truth on Preventing Underage Drinking Act (STOP).
Using
the CADAC model which requires representation from 12 community sectors, the
Coalition has been successful in recruitment and retention of community members
in the Flowing Wells area. Coalition membership
engages in ongoing community problem solving efforts to reduce substance abuse
in the community. The Coalition uses the
following environmental prevention strategies:
multi-faceted, comprehensive grassroots substance abuse public awareness
campaign; advocacy / support of current community awareness and mobilization
efforts to adopt Social Host Ordinance and Unruly Gatherings Ordinance; alcohol
diversion classes for Latino youth; campaign to monitor store signage (banners,
posters, etc.) and advertisements that sell and promote alcohol to minors; Latino substance abuse prevention training opportunities, and CUBs
(covert underage buyers).
STOP Underage Drinking Project
In 2009, the Amistades Substance Abuse Coalition
received funding from SAMHSA to enhance existing prevention efforts in the
Flowing Wells area. Enhanced environmental prevention strategies to
reduce underage drinking include: youth driven media campaigns; social host
enforcement awareness and education campaigns; multi-cultural (Latino, Native
American, & African American) alcohol diversion classes; monitoring of
storefront negative alcohol advertising, and providing multi-cultural underage
drinking workshops to social services providers.
The Coalition has developed mutually
beneficial relationships with community individuals, groups, businesses,
schools, and a myriad of stakeholders. Additionally, it has established
collaborative associations with many local substance abuse coalitions and/or
task forces in the Tucson metropolitan area to achieve the goals and objectives
of its community prevention plan. The Coalition uses a grass roots
community approach and incorporates cultural considerations into its community
engagement and mobilization. The Amistades Substance Abuse Coalition is
committed to sharing its cultural expertise to increase community-wide capacity
in cultural competence with other coalitions, task forces, and prevention/treatment
agencies in the area and state.
Proyecto REGALOS
Amistades is a collaborative partner of
the Arizona Youth Partnership grant funded by the Governor’s Office of Children,
Youth, and Families. The purpose of the grant is to increase parent involvement
in substance abuse prevention and to increase parents’ knowledge / understanding
of the serious risks and public health problems caused by the abuse of alcohol
and controlled substances. Proyecto REGALOS (Raising Every Generation
to Attain Lasting Opportunities for Success) is
implemented in the following three communities in Pima County: Flowing Wells,
Marana, and Sahuarita. Amistades Inc. manages
the project for the Flowing Wells community. The project targets parents of
youth ages 3-18 years of age to participate in a two-pronged family program
which uses components from the Strengthening Multi-Ethnic Families Program and
the Parent Pledge Platicas Program. The
project collaborates with the existing substance abuse coalitions in the area
to recruit and retain participants. These coalitions include the Amistades
Substance Abuse Coalition (Flowing Wells) and the Northwest Regional Coalition
(Marana).
Community Partners
