MEDWAY — Superintendent Armand Pires and Director of Wellness Dr. Ryan Sherman are pleased to announce that Medway Public Schools has been awarded a $625,000 grant from the Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program.
The grant will be distributed over five years, in installments of $125,000 per year aimed at supporting youth substance use prevention in Medway.
The primary goal of the grant funding will be to hire a project coordinator to lead the district’s SUP’ Medway community-based substance use prevention coalition. The grant was created and submitted by the SUP’ Medway Coalition, which is a team of school and town personnel, students, parents, and community professionals.
The DFC Program, which is directed by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, provides grants to community coalitions across the country that work to prevent and reduce substance use among youths. The grant aims to provide these coalitions with funds to strengthen relationships with local community partners and implement different strategies and programs that are designed to reduce youth substance use rates.
“Our SUP’ Medway Coalition is the result of the hard work and dedication of so many within the district, and it means a lot to have received this critical funding to further our mission,” Director Sherman said. “These funds will go a long way in helping us identify and prevent substance use among our student population and educate the greater Medway community on the dangers of substance use.”
To be eligible for the grant, coalitions needed to have a steering committee made up of representatives and participants from 12 sectors of the community including: youth; parents; law enforcement; schools; businesses; media; youth-serving organizations; religious and fraternal organizations; civic and volunteer groups; healthcare professionals; state, local, and tribal agencies with expertise in substance abuse; and other organizations involved in reducing substance abuse.
Coalitions are also required to conduct regular community assessments in order to implement data-driven, community-wide strategies that address social issues, as well as environmental prevention strategies that aim to prevent and reduce youth substance abuse.
The grant is awarded in cooperation with the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
“I wish to congratulate Medway Public Schools for receiving a $625,000 Federal Drug-Free Communities grant. With this funding, Medway’s substance use prevention coalition is equipped with the resources needed to reduce rates of youth substance use across the school district,” said U.S. Rep. Jake Auchincloss. “I applaud their commitment to fostering a drug-free environment, as this work will have long-lasting, positive effects on their students, both academically and personally.”
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