One Howard nonprofit anti-drug group wants to hear directly from youths about teen alcohol and drug use.
“We really want a range of kids to talk to us about what is really going on in Howard County,” said Laura Smit, executive director of HC DrugFree.
Using a $20,730 grant from the Horizon Foundation, HC DrugFree plans to create a teen advisory counsel and teen focus groups with youth from around the county to weigh in on drug use issues.
The grant was one of several awards from the foundation?s $250,000 in Community Health Issues Program grants announced recently. These grants fund local organizations? innovative health and wellness programs.
HC DrugFree typically relies on state and federal surveys and statistics to get a snapshot of teen alcohol and drug use in Howard, Smit said.
But with a teen council, the group could reach out to the target population to get the real story, examining issues such as what drugs teens are using and what message is effective for parents and teens, Smit said.
The grant also will support HC DrugFree?s teen job and volunteer fair next month, which will connect teens to work opportunities in the county.
About 21 percent of high school seniors in Howard reported using marijuana within a month of taking the 2004 Maryland Adolescent Survey, the latest one available.
About 34 percent of seniors said they had used the drug within a year of completing the survey.
HC DrugFree, created 12 years ago, has become a leader in outreach to parents and teens about drugs, said Rich Krieg, president and CEO of the Horizon Foundation, a philanthropy in Columbia.
“Kids know when they are not being taken seriously, and I think HC DrugFree is excellent in speaking in a language that is honest and educated,” he said.
