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December 17, 2007
Lyon County, Ky. 4-H'ers Tackle Substance Abuse
When the Lyon County 4-H Teen Club, (representing Eddyville and Kuttawa, Ky.) searched out the number one issue in their small rural community of Eddyville, teen use of alcohol and drugs rose to the top. This committed group, which excitedly meets bi-weekly at 7 AM before school, has coordinated a successful community forum examining all aspects of this problem and is now implementing youth-led activities towards a solution. Membership in this ambitious club continues to grow as word gets out about their programs to help youth find other positive activities for spending their time.
The Lyon County 4-H Teen Club is participating in the Engaging Youth Serving Community Program funded by CSREES/USDA under Rural Youth Development Grant #2005-452901-03332 and led by National 4-H Council. They are part of a three year longitudinal project, joining at least 60 other communities in 12 states where youth as equal partners with adults conduct youth-facilitated community issue forums and then implement activities to help resolve the issue, collaborating with other community organizations and individuals.
The 4-H teens started with a presentation to the Eddyville City Council to present their facts, drawing upon a survey reporting high substance abuse at higher rates than the rest of the state. This led to a full-fledged town hall forum, drawing over 80 participants and gaining front page coverage in the local newspaper. Police, local health department officials and concerned youth and adults presented all sides of the issue with members of the Lyon County Teen 4-H Club serving as forum facilitators, timers and recorders.
Since that forum, the group has sponsored both educational programs in conjunction with other community partners, and fun activities for positive alternatives. Examples of the educational work included a Teach In for the local elementary school where teens taught students in grades 5 and 6 about the impacts of alcohol and the formation of two CHAMPIONS chapters to advocate further substance abuse education. On the fun side, a t-shirt throwing contest was included at local sports events, and a car show was held in collaboration with local business groups.
Now in its second year of implementation through EYSC5, the passion for sharing the impact of underage drinking remains high. The group is working to change the social norms that make underage alcohol consumption acceptable.
For more information on this project, contact Dr. Ken Jones at the University of Kentucky, kenrjones@uky.edu.
Lyon County, Ky. 4-H teens present survey facts that report their county shows substance abuse at higher rates than the rest of the state to the Eddyville City Council.
Posted in category 4-H Stories at 3:20 PM