Grant County Prevention and Recovery Center is one of eighteen recipients of
the Washington State Incentive Grant (SIG). SIG funds are allocated to
communities to prevent the use, misuse and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana
and other drugs by Washington State youth. Community grantees are expected to
make their local prevention system more effective by establishing prevention
partnerships, using a risk and protective factor framework for data driven needs
assessments, and by implementing and monitoring science-based prevention
programs.
Project Sites
Grant County implemented SIG-funded prevention programs in the four widely
dispersed, rural communities of Quincy, Warden, Soap Lake, and Grand Coulee. The
economy in Quincy and Warden is agricultural-based. Soap Lake and Grand Coulee
depend mostly upon tourism. Grant County Prevention and Recovery Center (PARC)
manages the local SIG project out of Moses Lake. Grant County's population
grew by 36.3% in the past decade, substantially above the statewide growth of
21.1%. Median household money income is $32,405 compared to the state median
income of $41,715. The percentage of children living below poverty is 20.6%.
Prevention History
Prior to SIG, few funds were available for prevention. The Department of
Social and Health Services (DSHS), Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse (DASA),
and the Department of Community Trade and Economic Development (CTED) provided
funds for a county prevention specialist. The Washington State University County
Cooperative Extension agent provided educational services countywide, and most
communities had a D.A.R.E. (Drug Resistance and Education) program. Quincy is
the only city that had active after-school prevention programs before SIG
funding was received. Grant County Parks and Recreation was well-versed in the
risk and protective factor model, the use of prevention-related data for
planning, and the use of science-based programs. However, the individual towns
where SIG programs were implemented were relatively new to prevention.
Prevention Programs
Each SIG service provision site planned to implement seven programs. They are
categorized by rigor, which is the extent to which the program has been shown,
through scientifically defensible research methods, to be effective in different
locales, and with multiple populations. The highest rating is rigor 5, the
lowest, rigor 1. Five of the substance abuse prevention programs that Grant
County selected were higher level rigor programs: two rigor 5 programs, Life
Skills and Preparing for Drug Free Years, and three rigor 4 programs, Smart
Moves, All Stars, and Reconnecting Youth. In addition, they selected two rigor 1
programs, Saturday Night and an After School Enhancement Program. Grant County
PARC collaborated with the local school districts to implement these programs.
Progress toward SIG Community Level Objectives Objective 1: To establish partnerships...to collaborate at the
local level to prevent alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and other drug use, misuse,
and abuse by youth.
Funds from the SIG grant gave the Prevention and Recovery Center the
opportunity to partner with local school districts, Grant County Cooperative
Extension, the Education Service District, local police departments and the Boys
and Girls Club. In Soap Lake, the Mother Theresa Mc-Kay Youth Outreach and
Wellness Center is partnering with a wide range of community agencies in Moses
Lake and Ephrata to provide information and services to the youth at the center.
Objective 2: To use a risk and protective factor framework to
develop a community prevention action plan...
and
Objective 3: To participate in joint community risk and protective
factor and resource assessment...
Grant County Prevention and Recovery Center has been using a risk and
protective factor framework in planning for prevention programs for several
years. It acted as the lead in the spring 2001 pilot test of the SIG-sponsored
collaborative needs assessment, bringing together multiple prevention partners
to conduct a data driven assessment of county prevention needs.
Objective 4: To select and implement effective prevention actions...
Each Grant County SIG community planned to feature seven best practice
programs. These programs are categorized by rigor based on the extent to which a
program has been shown, through scientifically defensible research methods, to
be effective in different locales, and with multiple populations. The highest
rating is rigor 5, the lowest, rigor 1. Five of the substance abuse prevention
programs selected by Grant County were higher level rigor programs: two rigor
five programs, Life Skills and Preparing for Drug Free Years, and three rigor
four programs, Smart Moves, All Stars, and Reconnecting Youth. Two rigor one
programs, Saturday Night and an After-school Enhancement were used to supplement
the other programs and to serve as means to attract youth into the prevention
programs.
This past year Grand Coulee and Coulee City had an After School or a Summer
Program. Quincy, Warden and Soap Lake had one of more sessions of the following
six programs: After School, All Stars, Friday or Saturday Night, Life Skills,
Smart Moves and Summer Program.
Most participants took a pre- and post-test, but due to data-entry problems
with the Everest system, no reports were available at the time of data
collection.
Objective 5: To use common reporting tools...
A requirement of SIG is that the Washington State Survey of Adolescent Health
Behaviors be administered in participating schools. Grant County schools
participated in the Washington State Survey of Adolescent Health Behavior in
1998. Prior needs assessments were based on data from the DSHS County Profile
and other archival sources. Grand Coulee and Soap Lake participated in the
student survey due to the SIG requirements. Quincy and Warden participated due
to requirements of another project.
Conclusion
Overall, the Grant County SIG project has improved the quality and the
comprehensiveness of the county's prevention system. Major achievements
include the initial and continuing administration of the Washington State Survey
of Adolescent Health Behavior in Grant County schools, the introduction of
science-based programs, and the opening of the youth outreach center in Soap
Lake. During the last year of SIG community funding, the prevention community
intends to institutionalize some of the changes in the system of prevention
planning, funding, implementation, and monitoring developed while participating
in SIG.
Download Community Report
Click
on the PDF symbol to the left to download the brief description
to the achievements and challenges experienced in implementing
science based prevention in this community: "Prevention
and Recovery Center, Grant County Executive Summary of Community-Level
Process Evaluation Reports" Publication Date: 04/2002. Report Number: 4.43-5a (136 KB)
Click on the PDF symbol
to the left to download a description of the prevention
activities and the main community partners: "Community
Project Description for Grant County - County Prevention
and Recovery Center." Publication Date: 04/2002. Report Number: 4.43-5b (143 KB)
Click
on the PDF symbol to the left to download the components
of the community plan: "Project Action Plan
for Grant County - Prevention and Recovery Center." Publication Date: 04/2002. Report Number: 4.43-5c (324 KB)
Click on the PDF symbol
to the left to download the report of the first year activities:
"Prevention and Recovery Center, Grant County Washington
State Incentive Grant 1st year Community - Level Evaluation
1999-2000." Publication Date: 11/2000. Report Number: 4.43-5d (212 KB)
Click
on the PDF symbol to the left to download the report of
the second year activities: "Prevention
and Recovery Center, Grant County Washington State Incentive
Grant 2nd Year Community - Level Evaluation 2000-2001." Publication Date: 04/2002. Report Number: 4.43-5e (280 KB)
Click on the PDF symbol
to the left to download data on changes in risk and protection
factors for prevention program participants: "Program
Outcomes" Publication Date: 04/2002. Report Number: 4.43-5f (79 KB)
Click
on the PDF symbol to the left to download data on changes
in trends of risk and protection for the entire community:
"Community Outcomes Report - Grant County - Prevention
and Recovery Center" Publication Date: 04/2002. Report Number: 4.43-5g (74 KB)
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with disabilities may call to request a paper copy.
Related Information
Link
to website providing additional information about Grant
county
For more ways to get in touch with the Department of Social
and Health Services, go to
the DSHS Contact
Information Web page. Technical Site Comments: DSHS Webmaster.
Copyright 2004 Washington State Department of Social and Health Services.
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