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Managing Editor SPRINGFIELD Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray announced on Friday that Holyoke and Springfield are two of the communities in Western Massachusetts to receive multi-year grants to promote prevention of substance abuse among the area's young people. Murray made the announcement in Springfield at the city's Recovery High School. The high school program is open to any student fighting substance abuse problems in Western Massachusetts who wishes to finish his or her degree. Springfield will be receiving $160,000 per year for the next three years for prevention programs while Holyoke will receive $100,000 a year for the next three years. Girls Incorporated is the lead agency for the program in the city of Holyoke. Girls Incorporated Executive Director Rosanne Parker said her organization would be continuing working with the Holyoke Youth Task Force on prevention programs. One of the efforts the Youth Task Force has made in the past was to go to every liquor store in the city of Holyoke right before the Superbowl and place stickers prominently about under-age drinking. Parker said part of the program would be to continue marketing positive messages for parents about teens. Springfield's funds will be administered by the city's Department for Health and Human Services. The department's director, Helen Caulton-Harris said, "This funding will allow us to engage in important outreach and education efforts that will include working directly with the young people of our city to protect them from the dangers of substance abuse, which can do so much damage to promising futures." Murray said that teens who begin drinking alcohol at age 15 are more than three times as likely to develop substance abuse issues. He said his tour around the school and listening to the students underscored the importance of prevention programs. He said that 56 percent of Springfield high school students had a drink in the last month and that alcohol or drugs played a role in 75 percent of the city's police calls. Murray said that strategic partnerships between the state and local programs and governments were important. State Sen. Gale Candaras, who chairs the Senate's committee on substance abuse and mental health, said both the House and Senate have allocated more money for substance abuse programs. Before the press conference, Murray toured the program in the former parish school of the Lady of the Rosary Church on Franklin St. Father Stanley Sokol said the parishioners were happy to "do something for the students." "People are happy to have the parish school again serving its purpose," Sokol said. Dr. William Cosgriff, the executive officer for support services for Springfield's alternative schools, said Recovery High School is one of three such programs in the state and the only one in Western Massachusetts. It is now completing its second academic year and started in September of 2006 with just three students. This year, he said, the student body rose to 25 students and there is room for 25 more. He said that all of the students must be working on their recoveries from addiction and the most common substances are alcohol and marijuana, although some students struggle with cocaine and heroin. Cosgriff said that people interested in learning more about the program should call 750-2484 or log onto http://sps.springfield.ma.us/schoolsites/recovery. | ||||||
