University/Schools Alliance Executive Meeting
March 10, 2010 @ 3:30 PM
at UD-Cooperative Extension Office Room 132 B

Attending: Harry Baetjer Tower Hill School
Mike Barbieri DE State Legislator
Kristen Blanchard SODAT Delaware
Rosemary Brooks Sanford School Parent
Brian Callahan Aquila of Delaware
Amanda Gearhart UD Student
Cindy Genau UD Cooperative Extension
Howard Isenberg Open Door, Inc.
Claudine Malone NCCO Police Dept.
Yvonne Nass Parent Education Consultant
Tiffani Nibbs DSAMH
LTC Greg Snapp DE National Guard
Kathy Ward YMCA Resource Center
Jo-Ann West Salesianum School Nurse

Staff Attending: Roberta Gealt USA Director
Mary Perno USA Project Coordinator

Minutes: The February minutes were handed out, reviewed and approved.

Updates:

DFC Grant: At this time there is $6472 left for supplies in the DFC grant with an additional. $470 will be credited to the account for funds used for Mary's move back to 77 E. Main Street, which the Sociology Department will cover. Approval for the Carryover funds from the 2009 grant has not been received. There will be approximately $10,000 to cover the Policy Summit and the Physician's Initiative. It all must be spent by September 30, 2010.

STATE STRATEGIC PLAN: The Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health is holding a series of meetings to develop a strategic plan to guide prevention efforts of the State and to provide overall direction for projects such as the SPF-SIG. The first meeting brought together many people from related fields in Delaware and consisted mostly of technical assistance to bring everyone to a common ground. It is hoped that by the end of the next meeting a vision and goals will be agreed upon.

SPF-SIG Grant: The strategic plan for this project is beginning to be developed to provide structure for the project. Priorities have been selected: 1.) Alcohol abuse throughout the lifespan; 2.) Prescription drug abuse; 3.) Other illegal drug abuse. It is expected that, while some programs will be funded, the emphasis will be on environmental strategies to change policies and practices which support the priority behaviors. Exactly how the funds will be distributed will be worked out as part of the SPF-SIG strategic plan and RFP process being developed by the SPF-SIG Advisory Council. They will also decide if funding should be allocated to areas where there is the greatest number of people affected, the highest percentage of people affected, or if it should be allocated equitably across areas.

The Advisory Council does finally have a leader appointed by the Governor's office; she is Siobhan Sullivan from DATE (Drug, Alcohol & Tobacco Enforcement). She has 23 years of experience in this field.

As part of the data collection for the SPF-SIG, a Community Survey is being distributed to individuals through organizations and online to determine what drugs and drug related problems people are concerned about in specific neighborhoods and zip codes. Kristen Blanchard gave out the survey in Sodat. Yvonne Nass will do the same. There is a separate community survey for organizations.

Two new bills have been proposed in the Delaware legislature. The first proposes sales of liquor in the grocery stores. If the alcohol sales in grocery stores is approved, Delaware will still only have eight DATE agents for 977 licenses in addition to the grocery stores. Mike Barbieri said that liquor stores are protesting profusely, but the state may still consider this bill. A second bill proposes medical marijuana in Delaware. In other states, where medical marijuana has been legalized, the percentage of use has gone up. While USA cannot lobby for bills as a group because we are funded by federal grants, our role is to educate and advocate, rather than lobby. Individuals may lobby if they are not being paid for their time by federal or state funds.

Events:

TOWN HALL MEETINGS

Twenty-two (22) sites have responded to hold these meetings. On February 25th, we held a planning meeting at Buena Vista. It was well attended. We currently have eight confirmed dates and locations in March and April. Part of the reduction in the number of sites is due to the fact that many groups are collaborating to hold the event.

March 22 Padua Academy 7 PM
905 N. Broom St. Wilmington

March 22 Kent Ct. Prev. Coalition 6 PM
Kent County Levy Court

March 24 UD-Newark 7 PM

March 25 Newark HS 7 PM

750 E. Delaware Ave. Newark

March 25 La Esperanza 5:30 PM

Georgetown Middle School

April 14 SNCCCC & New Beginnings 6:30 PM

Middletown HS 120 Silver Lake Rd.

April 22 Charter Sch-Wilm. 7PM

100 N. DuPont Rd. Wilmington

April 29 DPNA@Del Tech Wilm. 7 PM

333 Shipley St. Wilmington

POLICY SUMMIT MEETING

The Policy Summit will be held in May or June, after all of the Town Hall Meetings.

ON APPLEBEE POND PUPPET TRAININGS

Mary & Kathy Ware did puppet training in the Southern Delaware School of the Arts for 19 students and advisors. They performed four shows for about 250 students.

The next training will be at Seaford High School on March 26th.

Data Trends:

The Delaware Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) now has 10 years of trend data by gender, age and grade. The sexual risk behaviors—early age of onset, percent who are sexually active, number of partners—of Delaware students are very high, and on the 2007 YRBS were the highest in the country (possibly related to Delaware’s high rates of HIV/AIDS—fifth in the country). Marijuana use was also highest in the country in 2007 and remains high in 2009 (national data is not yet available for 2009). Age of onset for alcohol use and marijuana use is very young.

Member Participation and Comments:

Salesianum School recently hosted a program from the Caron Foundation called Brain Drain-Adolescents and Addiction: why the teen brain is vulnerable. Jo-ann West said it was a very good presentation. They had it for their junior class of about 250 kids, but it would have worked better in smaller groups because they were permitted to ask questions.

Rosemary Brooks is working on the Town Hall Meeting with Charter School of Wilmington by inviting the parents of the four independent schools.

Kristen Blanchard said that SODAT is not working on anything specific. She or someone from SODAT is willing to be on the panel to speak about DUI for any town hall meeting.

Mike Barbieri is the chair of the certification board. They are discussing the certification of prevention workers. He will find out what the certification credentials are.

$2 million dollars will be lost in DE this year due to the Safe & Drug Free Schools grants not being re-issued in the same form it has taken in the past. Before, all states received funds. Now, states must apply for funds in a competitive process.

Claudine Malone presented information on a DVD that the NCCO Police Dept. in the process of producing. It should be on their web in about a month. The topics are bullying, the internet and prescription drug abuse. The NCCO Police Department is also applying for a grant for Weed & Seed for the Route 9 corridor. The problems in that area consist of shootings, drugs, prostitutes, poverty and the lack of services.

Kathy Ward said to save the date for the annual YELL conference on October 27, 2010 at the Dover Sheraton.

The next USA Executive meeting will be on April 14th at 3:15 PM at Arcadia University, 2nd floor. The address is 111 Continental Drive Newark, DE 19713 (next to the Christiana Hilton)