06/03/2026
Take a look at this recent piece on what works in youth substance prevention. Umbrella is part of the Northeast Vermont Prevention Consortium out of NVRH. ONE Prevention Coalition Northeast Prevention Coalition Lamoille Family Center
Article:
May was Youth Appreciation Month in Vermont, a great opportunity to uplift and celebrate the achievements of the youth in our lives. As we travel through prom and graduation season, it has also been a time to think about keeping our youth safe during a period when there may be more opportunities to access adult-use substances.
Early adolescence (ages 12-18) is full of stress and conflicting emotions. During this period the adolescent brain is still developing, making it easy to learn new behaviors and form new habits. All this increases the possibility of youth engaging in unhealthy and risky behaviors including underage substance use that can have negative health and social outcomes for them now and down the road. Let’s talk about what does and does not work in substance prevention – the answers may surprise you!
Mock car crashes and drunk goggles, you’ve probably seen one of these activities at your child’s school or participated in one of these substance misuse prevention events yourself. Inviting a person in recovery to speak at an assembly or other school event is another popular prevention intervention you’ve probably experienced. These are usually one-time events at the end of the school year or at a school assembly. These events and activities seem pretty effective in getting kids to think about the consequences of substance use, right? Actually, research has shown that the opposite is true. Long-term studies on the effects of these events show that there is no impact on youth behavior following the experience and mock car crashes have even been found to increase risky behavior.
One-time events have been shown to have little effect on the choices that youth make regarding substance use. Mock crashes and guest speakers may engage youth through dramatic storytelling but they can either have no effect or negative effects such as kids feeling invincible (it won’t happen to me, it hasn’t happened yet so it won’t) or encouraged to use (this person used drugs but he’s doing great now so I won’t have negative consequences either).
So, what does work in prevention? Supportive family and school environments mean a lot to youth even as they start to feel and act independent. Evidence has shown that prevention programs that work are based on social influences, appropriate to the life stages of adolescents. These programs build substance refusal skills so kids can deal with stressful situations in their lives without feeling the social pressure to use substances, address perceptions of the real risk or harm from substances while countering misconceptions such as overestimating the number of peers who use substances.These programs are particularly effective when joined with clear school policies on substance use that emphasize positive supports such as referral to counseling or other services through a commitment to school and student participation.
Effective school policies are most successful when students, parents, and school staff have input into developing the policies. Long-term, interactive approaches have been shown to increase knowledge and the ability to act on it.
We are the Regional Coordination Team for the Northeastern Vermont Prevention Consortium, a substance-misuse-prevention group housed within NVRH’s Substance Misuse Prevention Services program, committed to aligning with partners in the region to implement evidence-based prevention programming for youth. The Consortium works to build up community resources for action and fund prevention efforts across the St. Johnsbury, Newport, and Morrisville Health Districts as one of four state Prevention Lead Programs created by the Vermont Department of Health.
You can learn more about how to bring effective youth substance use prevention programming to your local community by connecting with the Northeast Vermont Prevention Consortium, your region’s resource for collaboration and connection around prevention issues.
Learn how the Consortium helps to fund the work community-run programs in supporting what works in youth substance prevention at nvrh.org/nvpc-pl and sign up for our newsletter.
Noted as endorsing this narrative are Jessica Bickford, Coalition Coordinator, Certified Prevention Specialist, Healthy Lamoille Valley; Cheryl Chandler, Prevention Program Coordinator, Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital; Amanda Cochrane, Executive Director, Umbrella Inc.; Tiffany Garces, Prevention Consultant, Division of Substance Use Programs (DSU), VDH; Adela Peco, MMSc, Prevention Consultant, Division of Substance Use Programs (DSU), VDH; Joe Stacy, MPH, Prevention Consultant, Division of Substance Use Programs (DSU), VDH; Carolyn Towne, Director of Substance Misuse Prevention, Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital
https://www.caledonianrecord.com/opinion/columns/northeastern-vermont-prevention-consortium-what-works-in-youth-substance-prevention/article_c474789a-fe17-55b6-989d-1e2b83542e40
May was Youth Appreciation Month in Vermont, a great opportunity to uplift and celebrate the achievements of the youth in our lives. As we travel through prom and graduation season,
