Ethan Webster told a room full of Botetourt Prevention Coalition (BPC) members that he found the statistics “quite disturbing and appalling, and I felt we should do something.”

Those statistics— the use of opioids, cocaine, pills and the mental health issues that affect county youth. That’s the reason the Lord Botetourt High School student joined the school’s Youth Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Project (YADAPP) Team and spent a week this summer at Longwood University learning and planning how his team might provide that help. Last Thursday, the LBHS team and the YADAPP team from James River High School explained how their week at the Virginia YADAPP conference helped them plan a program to address some of the specific “risky behavior” issues that have been identified by the Botetourt Youth Risk Behavior Survey that’s done every year among middle school and high school students.

Both JRHS and LBHS send teams to the YADAPP summer leadership conference in July. The mission is to develop youth peer leadership that fosters substance use prevention at the state and local levels. Students worked in teams to identify a problem they see in their schools and developed a plan to help address that problem. The LBHS team of Webster, Madison Cruise, Noah Moore and Madison Mullins developed a plan with a mission to “promote aid in the community and schools for mental health and drugs through education and expansion of mental health services.” The JRHS team of Jonah Bolton, Avery Word and Taylor Albers put their focus on behavior that Bolton said he sees as a challenge at James River High School and in the community— tobacco use.

Bolton said the most common drugs at JRHS are dip (smokeless tobacco), vapor smoking, marijuana and alcohol. The JRHS team’s goal is to reduce tobacco use short-term and long-term, and establish a YADAPP program that’s sustainable by forming a James River Prevention Club. The students from both schools shared the specific plans they developed while at the YADAPP conference. Student Assistance Program (SAP) Coordinator Ashley Hatcher told the BPC meeting that the students’ plans were strictly theirs. Adult sponsors did not help during the weeklong conference.

“There was a lot of fun but there was a lot of work,” she said of the conference that had students from all over Virginia. The students were questioned extensively by the BPC members following their presentations. During the questioning, Cruise said the mental health statistics they reviewed “hurt.” She said she’s seen how issues can affect friends and families. “I don’t want to see anyone go through this…. I actually want to implement change, not just hold an assembly.”

BPC members asked how they could assist, and the students welcomed their willingness to support their efforts. Bolton told them, “The more people who get on board, the better we can execute the plan.” The students said students who have challenges often won’t seek help through the SAP Coordinators at the two high schools. “There’s a stigma,” Cruise said. Word told the meeting, “We’re motivated to do something…. Students (at JRHS) don’t understand what is to get help.” She said having other students bring the message is more helpful than having teachers or adults do the same. Moore said the teams want “to leave our community a little better.” Their plans— called Strategies to Act Now (STAN) Plans are quite aggressive.

The LBHS team wants its education component to include a grade-bygrade meeting that addresses the use of cocaine, heroin and prescription pills in the community and school. That would include speakers from drug enforcement, courts, a former addict, a doctor and EMS responder. Those speakers will address the effects of drug use on the body, mind, family and community. A similar presentation would be held after school for the community. The team also wants a second “more serious Red Ribbon Week” that would provide added focus on hard drugs and mental health. The activities would encourage students to get in touch with the SAP Coordinator and promote students becoming involved in student activism. Also, the LBHS Team wants to create a SAP Board of students from different backgrounds and perspectives— all committed to serving the school and community.

The SAP Board’s job will be to find ways to implement drugfree and mental health initiatives in the school and community from students’ perspectives. It will also reform Red Ribbon Week to ensure a lasting impact of that initiative. They also want the SAP Board to have an official social media page that promotes a drug-free lifestyle throughout the year. The JRHS Team set an educational goal of reducing lifetime smokers by 7 percent through the constant repetition of fun events that you don’t need drugs for. The team also wants to drop the percentage of people who’ve smoked in the past 30 days by 7 percent.

The team feels the smoking/tobacco use statistics create serious health issues among students and the community. The team will do a poll before and after they implement their plan to see if they meet their goal. The team is planning several activities including a monthly mini-game, a larger Jeopardy-style game and starting the James River Prevention Club.