Working together to prevent and reduce alcohol use amongyouth and young adults ages 12 to 20 in the washougal community. - unite! Washougal sober truth on preventing underage drinking project (STOP)…

Working together to prevent and reduce alcohol use amongyouth and young adults ages 12 to 20 in the washougal community. - unite! Washougal sober truth on preventing underage drinking project (STOP) will change our community norm to one where youth alcohol use is no longer an acceptable rite of passage, and provide alternatives for youth to grow up in alcohol free environments and elevating the voice of youth who are not using alcohol. The strategies used for this shift will include increasing cooperation among community partners, trusted adult training, increasing skill building and leadership among washougal youth, promoting positive community norms and hosting town hall events. Unite! Washougal community coalition came into existence out of the heart of concern from the washougal high school counselors that started to take notice of the healthy youth survey data provided by the state to them in 2012. They noticed that our youth had high rates of depression, suicidal ideation and elevated substance misuse with 30 day alcohol use of nearly 30% for 10TH grade. Partnering with the school district administration and working with community members including parents, city administrators, local businesses, healthcare professionals, religious organizations and youth serving organizations, this determined and passionate team started the journey to collaborate and start to grow washougal as a place where youth and families can thrive and have the opportunity to be free from substance misuse addiction. They chose the washougal school district boundaries to serve as the catchment area for the unite! Washougal community coalition's efforts. Washougal, with a city population of 16,926, is nestled in southwest washington, situated at the eastern edge of the portland, or and vancouver, WA metro area along the northern bank of the columbia river. The boundaries for our catchment area reaches from the columbia river up to and including parts of the MT. ST. Helen's national volcanic monument area. In addition, another 8,000 live outside the city limits in the unincorporated rural area. According to the washington state office of superintendent of public instruction (OSPI), washougal school district's current enrollment of approximately 2,834 students is predominantly white (78%), hispanic (14%), two or more races (6.1%), asian (1.2%) and black/african american (1%). Approximately, 40% of the students are low-income. Many languages are spoken, however the most used are english, spanish and russian with 4.5% of the students as part of the ELL population. We do not have a strong presence in the washougal community of a federally recognized tribe. We acknowledge that the area rests on traditional village sites of the multnomah, wasco, cowlitz, kathlamet, clackamas, bands of chinook, tualatin kalapuya, molalla and many other tribes that have historically inhabited the washougal and columbia river basins as fishing grounds and for food gathering and encampments. Our school population is reported as 47.6% female, 52.3 % male and .1% as gender X (ospis designation). The populations that will be impacted by this S.T.O.P. Act grant for unite! Washougal community coalition will be youth 12 to 20 years old with a focus on our spanish speaking latino youth, our youth that do not have access to opportunities for skill development, school supports and community connection due to low socioeconomic status and our youth that reside in of our more rural parts of our school district boundaries.