PROSPER gets $625,000 grant

NORWALK — PROSPER (Providing Resources for Opportunities, Sustaining Prevention & Education for Resilience), a local prevention coalition, was recently awarded a FY2022 Drug-Free Communities Support Program grant in the amount of $625,000 over 5 years by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program, created by the Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997, is the Nation's leading effort to mobilize communities to prevent youth substance use. Directed by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the DFC Program provides grants to community coalitions to strengthen the infrastructure among local partners to create and sustain a reduction in local youth substance use. DFC-funded coalitions engage multiple sectors of the community and employ a variety of environmental strategies to address local substance use problems. DFCs involve local communities in finding solutions and helps youth at risk for substance use recognize the majority of our Nation's youth choose not to use substances. Coalition members conduct ongoing community assessments to prioritize efforts to prevent and reduce youth substance use. The goal of PROSPER through this grant program is to establish and strengthen community collaboration in support of local efforts to prevent youth substance use. The coalition will achieve its goals by implementing the following strategies: Start Talking, Sources of Strength, Be Present, Developmental Assets to build resiliency in youth by increasing protective factors, Stomp Out Bullying, Red Ribbon Week, etc. The intended outcome of these strategies is the reduction in underage drinking and marijuana use.