Lorrie Lewandowski honored

Lorrie Lewandowski, coordinator/supervisor of the School and Community-Based ATOD (Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug) Prevention Program, was honored by ADAPAO (Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Association of Ohio) during their annual meeting May 2.

She was presented with the Member of the Year Award, which is presented to an ADAPAO member for exemplary contributions to ADAPAO and its membership through service to or on behalf of the association.

Lewandowski is the immediate past-president of ADAPAO, and her long tenure on the board of directors ended last June. Since her board “retirement,” Lorrie has represented ADAPAO in several formal settings, as well as provided behind-the-scenes support to the association.

She has continued to serve on ADAPAO’s Education & Training Committee and over the last year, also served as ADAPAO’s official representative on state committees, and was also part of an ADAPAO team that met with ODADAS Director Orman Hall in November to discuss prevention. 

Also awarded during the event were Thomas Kelechi, Rick Oliver, Karen Pierce, and Robin Seymour-Hicks.

“We are extremely proud to showcase the tremendous efforts and achievements of these five individuals,” said Andrea Hoff, president of ADAPAO. “Their commitment to prevention is helping create healthier communities for all Ohioans.”

Hoff noted that the ADAPAO Awards are the oldest and among the most prestigious honors within Ohio’s alcohol, tobacco, and other drug abuse prevention arena. ADAPAO began presenting the awards in 1988. The recipients have included professionals within the prevention field as well as educators, community members, and government officials.

ADAPAO is a membership association of Ohioans championing the advancement of alcohol, tobacco and other drug prevention. The association serves as “the voice of prevention” in the state, advocating on behalf of prevention to the Ohio Legislature, state agencies, and the general public. The association also provides education and training opportunities in prevention, and networks prevention advocates throughout the state to increase communication and idea exchange.

ADAPAO’s signature event is its annual one-day conference, which also serves as the setting for the awards presentation. This year’s conference, held May 2 at The River Club at Confluence Park in Columbus, focused on issues ranging from the prevention of opiate abuse and addiction and synthetic drugs to advocating an FDA approach to the issue of marijuana as medicine. Nearly 125 prevention professionals, advocates and supporters from around the state attended the annual conference

2012 ADAMHS Youth Survey results released

The 2012 ADAMHS Youth Survey results have been released. Please click here to view the report. If you have any questions, please contact Lorrie Lewandowski at (419) 354-9010, or e-mail Bill Ivoska, who assembled the report at ivoska@bex.net.

ESC participates in safety fair

The Wood County Safety Fair was put on by the Wood County Hospital. A 5-K race was also included in the day. There where numerous display tables covering such topics as water safety, nature & wildlife, electricity, nutrition, and physical activity. 

Chloe Keaton

The Wood County Educational Service Center's School and Community-Based ATOD (Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug) Prevention Program also had an information booth highlighting their programming and The New Cool media campaign.


A gift basket offered as a raffle prize during the event was won by Chloe Keaton, of Bowling Green. The basket included healthy cracker snacks, stress balls, Frisbees, make-your-own flowerpot, and a $20.00 gift certificate to Wal-Mart. 

Each child that walked through the fair received a raffle ticket for a chance to win a variety of prizes.

Parent Project class starts July 5

Most  of us in the field, working with high-risk youth know that parent involvement is the key to behavior change with adolescents. Yet, effectively educating parents in basic behavioral strategies is time consuming and repetitive. The Parent Project® is a parent training program designed for parents of strong-willed adolescents.  Since 2003, nearly 250 parents and their adolescents have attended Parent Project in Wood County and they report that there is important information in Parent Project classes for parents of all teens.    

Topics include reducing family conflict and arguing, improving school performance and attendance, identifying and intervening with alcohol and other drug abuse, interceding with negative peer associations (including inappropriate dating relationships) and helping parents to set clear, consistent rules with enforceable consequences. Parents who attend the Parent Project® are more likely to see their child’s attendance at school improve, and to require less school-based disciplinary resources as parents find powerful interventions at home with which to bring about change in their children. The motto of the Parent Project® is “Parents are the answer … when they have the tools they need.”

Presented in an educational format, parents are trained for a low fee of $20 for the accompanying 180-page workbook. Youth ages 12-18 are also invited to attend a separate class at no additional cost.  If the entire course is completed and the parent has attended all of the required sessions, the $20 fee will be refunded. Parents attend 18 hours of instruction for a cost of less than one session of private counseling.

Here are some comments from a family that completed Parent Project in the fall of 2011:

 

                              The information we learned from the sessions is priceless!   Each 

                              session was full of information and techniques designed to help 

                              deal with a variety of issues and situations that we are faced with 

                              on a daily basis.  This class has empowered us to make positive 
                              changes in our family dynamics.  After the first session we were so

                              excited to learn more.  We began to implement the techniques 

                              immediately and saw results right away. We continued to learn  

                              and use the tools given to us.  By the end of the last session we  

                              were feeling more confident that we were definitely on our way    

                              to becoming better parents, and raising respectful well adjusted  

                              teenagers! Following the guidelines we were given has definitely 

                              resulted in a more positive and happy environment at our     
                              house. Words could not express the appreciation we feel for the  

                              opportunity to have attended these classes. We would highly 
                              recommend The Parent Project to all parents!   

The next session will be held Thursday evenings from July 5 through Sept. 6, at the Wood County Educational Service Center, 1867 N. Research Dr., Bowling Green. The first two classes will run from 6 to 9 p.m. The remainder of the classes run from at 6 to 8 p.m.

 

For more information or to register, contact Lorrie Lewandowski at 419-354-9010, ext. 113 or by e-mail at llewandowski@wcesc.org.

Results of 2012 Wood County Youth Survey to be released

Overall, drug use among students is down in Wood County since 2010, according to Dr. William J. Ivoska, author of the Biennial Student Survey.

In February, 2012, students in grades 5 through 12 in public and parochial schools throughout Wood County, were surveyed on drug use-related topics, mental health indicators and bullying.

The results of the Wood County Youth Survey have been analyzed by Dr. Ivoska. He will present a summary of the report during a press conference Friday, May 11 from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The press conference will be held at the Wood County Educational Service Center in Bowling Green, Ohio.

Highlights of the report on Friday will include:

·       15.2 percent of high school seniors report smoking cigarettes, which is an all-time low in Wood County.

·       Annual and monthly alcohol use has continued to decline in all grades, except for a slight increase among high school seniors. Binge drinking rates are declining.

·       Annual alcohol rates for 2012 are lower for all grades, except seniors, when compared to 2010.  When comparing 2012 rates with 2008 rates, then there are significant decreases for all grades including seniors. The same is true for monthly use.  There are significant decreases in all grade levels between 2008 and 2012.

·       Following a national trend, marijuana use is increasing among Wood County teens. For the first time, monthly marijuana use is more prevalent than cigarette use in grades 9 through 12.

These results and other topics examined in the 2012 youth survey, including bullying, will be discussed at the press conference.

The survey was completed through the efforts and support of the Safe Schools Healthy Students Initiative and the Wood County ADAMHS Board, in collaboration with the Wood County Educational Service Center.