The Northern Illinois Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse has been awarded two federal grants totaling $500,000 to help students at Round Lake High School and their parents.
The not-for-profit agency will work with the high school and the community coalition BEST (Bringing Everyone’s Strengths Together) to strengthen families, reduce violence and prevent substance abuse.
The group has been granted $150,000 a year for two years from the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention and $100,000 a year for two years from the Center for Mental Health Services. The money will be used to begin a program called RAFT (Resiliency Among Family and Teens).
Judy Fried, NICASA executive director, said RAFT is designed to foster resilience and address risk factors associated with problem behaviors in youths. The first part of the program will focus on teens.
Using components of Teens, Crime and Community, a nationally recognized program created in 1985, RAFT will give selected Round Lake High School students the opportunity to take a leadership role in making their school and community safer.
The second part of the program will focus on parents of high school students, especially those whose 9th graders who are at a critical development transition and at higher risk for substance abuse and other problems. The program will work to strengthen family ties and improve communication between parents and children.
RAFT’s teen component is scheduled to begin in January and the parent component in March.
Fried said Round Lake School District 116 Supt. Mary Davis has taken the lead in directing the school district’s partnership with NICASA.