|
|
|
The Johnson County
STOP Underage Drinking Project (STOP)
is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization comprised of concerned professionals
volunteering their time to focus on a very important issue; eliminating the
incidence of underage drinking and related tragedies.
STOP
has been
in existence since 1998. Over the years, members have been active in
presenting underage drinking prevention programs to youth, parents and adults in
our community. Mission STOP is a collaborative effort of local agencies and organizations dedicated to reducing injury and death within the Johnson County community. Purpose STOP is committed to providing youth, parents, and the community with factual data, education, prevention and intervention tools to reduce the incidence of underage drinking and related tragedies. Vision The vision of STOP is to create a safe, healthy community where youth make positive choices. Goals
1. To
provide Johnson County with education regarding underage drinking and related
tragedies;
2. To
provide alternative activities to the youth of Johnson County;
3. To
increase youth and adult membership/involvement in the Johnson County
STOP
Underage Drinking Project. Activities
1. Continue
to provide the multi-media “Wrong of
Passage” and “Choices” programs, conduct community presentations regarding
underage drinking and STOP;
2. Provide
a minimum of four drug-free alternative
activities such as Prom Essay contest, Back-to-School events, etc.;
3. Recruit
10 new youth and 10 new adults to become involved with
STOP. History Johnson County Safe Communities, Inc. (JCSC) was created in June 1996 out of the Johnson County Traffic and Safety Council. In 1998, the Johnson County STOP Underage Drinking Project (STOP) was formed as a subcommittee of JCSC. In February 2001, the JCSC coalition obtained 501C (3) non profit status. An official name change from Johnson County Safe Communities, Inc. to Johnson County STOP Underage Drinking Project, Inc., occurred in November 2005. It is STOP’s mission to work with concerned professionals, parents, youth, community groups, schools, etc., to reduce underage drinking and related tragedies in our community. STOP has been very active in providing educational programs and information to parents, youth, professionals and various community groups. STOP has also conducted informational booths at back to school night programs, distributed literature at various sports functions, participated in area health fairs, etc. STOP’s college scholarship fund provides opportunities for area high school seniors that are positive drug-free role models to obtain scholarships towards higher education. STOP is thankful to area businesses and corporate sponsors such as Sprint, Wal-Mart/Sam’s, Gear For Sports, Microsoft and the Kansas Department of Transportation for their donations in support of STOP’s mission. Kansas Citizen’s Committee on Alcohol and other Drug Abuse recognition In August 2006, the Kansas Citizen’s Committee on Alcohol and other Drug Abuse in collaboration with Addiction and Prevention Services awarded STOP the Kansas Coalition of Excellence award. The award recognizes excellence in substance abuse prevention and community volunteers and coalitions. STOP was selected based on the ability to demonstrate strong leadership, sustainability in funding and clear goals and outcomes. Activities “Wrong of Passage” Video SeriesIn fall 2000, STOP assisted in developing and producing an award winning, two-video education series aimed at addressing the issue of underage drinking. One video, the Wrong of Passage, is geared towards parents and utilizes community partners (judges, law enforcement, hospital emergency room doctors and nurses, lawyers, etc.) to discuss the facts and tragedies relating to underage drinking in our community; the other video, Choices, is targeted towards youth and focuses on the negative consequences, including death, which may result from underage drinking. The series is to be used as an education program complete with facilitator discussion guide and participant information packet. The video programs are be marketed to adult workplaces, schools, youth groups, parent forums, neighborhood association meetings, etc. Since December of 2000, the coalition has provided 332 presentations to more than 29,947 people. The videos have won several prestigious national awards including The Videographer Awards, Award of Excellence, two highly acclaimed 2001 Bronze Telly Awards, the silver, bronze, and honorable mention from the International CINDY awards, and honorable mention from the Chris awards. Newsletter Since its development, STOP has created an annual newsletter with up-to date facts, statistics and information on the issue of underage drinking. In 2006 4,200 newsletters were sent to middle school students in the Shawnee Mission School District as part of the Drug Free Communities Grant. The City of Overland Park also mailed out Family Survival Kits that contained 4,300 newsletters as well. In the spring of 2009 the City of Overland Park will mail 3,800 newsletters in the Family Survival Kits, and provide 300 newsletters to private schools within Overland Park. Youth Leadership Summit STOP, in collaboration with the Regional Prevention Center, began hosting youth leadership summits in 2005. The summits are an opportunity for area students to receive specific training and planning on substance abuse prevention activities and education. Teams of students from area middle and high schools attend the one-day training and leave with an action plan for implementing programs and services to their peers. Since 2005, 589 middle and high school students and school sponsors have participated in STOP’s Youth Leadership Summits. National Prevention Network Prevention Research Conference 2005 The Regional Prevention Center and the Johnson County STOP Underage Drinking Project were selected as one of the three effective prevention case studies to be presented at the National Prevention Network Prevention Research Conference in New York City on August 26, 2005 on behalf of the state of Kansas. The RPC and STOP Coalition presented the findings of a case study that highlighted their local effectiveness and the impact that community partnerships have had on substance abuse outcomes in Johnson County. The presentation included local examples of how successful and effective our community has been at reducing the age of initiation to substances, lifetime and 30-day use; as well as reducing favorable attitudes toward drug use. Drug Free Communities Grant - 2005 The Office of National Drug Control Policy announced that the Regional Prevention Center, a program of Johnson County Mental Health will receive a $99,863.00 Drug-Free Communities matching grant for the STOP Underage Drinking Coalition to implement the Shawnee Mission School District Prevention Program. The grant was one of 176 new grants totaling $17.1 million awarded to community anti-drug coalitions across the country. The goal of the 711 local coalitions is to work together to prevent and reduce drug, alcohol, and tobacco abuse among youth. Coalitions are comprised of diverse groups of people, including community leaders, parents, youth, teachers, religious and fraternal organizations, health care and business professionals, law enforcement, and the media. “This is great news for the anti-drug efforts of Johnson County.” said Janine Gracy, Director of the Regional Prevention Center. “The Drug-Free Communities Program and other drug prevention efforts are important elements of a balanced national drug control strategy. The STOP Coalition is doing crucial drug prevention work in our community and this additional influx of Federal money will help them expand their efforts and reach Shawnee Mission School District children.” Public Service Announcement STOP partners with area school districts and students in middle and high school to create a fact based public service announcement regarding underage drinking. The first PSA featured then Johnson County District Attorney, Paul Morrison, on the topic of the social host law. This PSA aired on Time Warner Cable television during prime time hours with coverage to an estimated 119,000 households in Johnson County. In 2006 the PSA aired at the Great Mall 16 and Palazzo 16 movie theatres in Johnson County and reached an estimated audience of 104,000. The 2007 PSA (created by Saint Thomas Aquinas High School Sophomore Chelsea Didde) ran at AMC Theatres with 177,537 people viewing the PSA and aired a total of 3,507 times. Chelsea and the PSA were featured on the NBC Action News Good Morning Kansas City talk show. Approximately 13,680 people viewed the segment throughout the KC metro area. The PSA ran at Cinemark Theatres with 136,051 people viewing the spot and aired a total of 2,520 times. In 2008 STOP recognized two schools and their students for their PSA creations. The winners included Saint Thomas Aquinas High School Junior Chelsea Didde and Indian Trails Junior High School (Olathe School District) and the Red Echo Group that assisted nine students in the development of two PSA creative’s titled “Runners” and “MasterCard”. Students involved in the project are: Edrisa Ceesay, Tyler Guthrie, Desiree Jensen, Juwan Lockett, Chris Palacios, Chelsea Skaggs, Katya Velasco, Nakisha Wells and Bobby Wickwire. Town Hall Meeting STOP has hosted two Town Hall Meetings in conjunction with the Drug Free Communities Grant. The purpose of the Town Hall Meeting is to increase community awareness on the issue of underage drinking, identify how underage drinking affects the community, and brainstorm possible solutions. The meetings provided an opportunity for parents, teachers, officials, youth, and other community members to voice their concerns and suggest ideas for preventing young people from using alcohol. STOP Golf Tournament/Scholarship Fund STOP hosts two golf tournament fundraisers each year to benefit the youth scholarship fund and prevention related services provided by the coalition. Proceeds from our golf tournaments, in addition to business donations and contributions, allowed for county-wide prevention services and scholarships to be awarded to positive, alcohol and other drug free youth in Johnson County. STOP awarded five (5) one-thousand dollar scholarships in 2008, eight (8) one-thousand dollar ($1,000) scholarships in 2007, fifteen (15) one-thousand dollar ($1,000) scholarships in 2006 and six (6) one-thousand dollar ($1,000) scholarships in 2005.
STOP
is
looking for people ...
Youth,
parents, teachers, professionals,
concerned individuals, anyone interested in making
a difference
is encouraged to jump on board and become a part of
STOP.
There are no membership requirements or dues, just the desire and
willingness to make a positive impact on the issue of underage drinking and
related tragedies. STOP meets on the second Thursday of each month at 3:30 p.m. at the Sunset Drive Office Building, located at 11811 S. Sunset Drive, Olathe, KS 66061. Meetings usually consist of a continuing education series, updates on the strategic plan, upcoming events, activity planning and roundtable sharing. Anyone interested is more than welcome to attend meetings. If interested in helping the coalition, please contact a member of the Board of Directors. STOP seeks to recruit:
STOP also accepts donations and financial contributions to assist with program activities.
|
