PDF (Lessons learned in drug abuse prevention: a global review)

LOCAL
Across Ages: An Intergenerational Mentoring
Approach to Drug Prevention
REGION:
North America
COUNTRY: USA
Organisation: Temple
University/Centre for
Intergenerational Learning
TARGET GROUPS:
● High-risk youth (9 -13)
● Parents
SETTINGS:
● Community-based
● Schools
IMPLEMENTING AGENTS:
● Mentors
PROJECT PURPOSE:
To provide children with
positive role models through
mentoring
COST: US $1,500 per child
per year
DURATION: 10 years and
ongoing
“When you give your love, you see and feel where it goes” – older volunteer.
Background:
The United States of America has a national drug control strategy developed by the
Office of National Drug Control Policy. This is a federal Government office responsible
for setting policy with regard to drug trafficking, treatment and prevention. The
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is responsible
for allocating and monitoring many of the federally-funded programmes and research
initiatives.
There are currently almost 30 million young people in the United States between the
ages of 10 and 17 1 . Most of them will grow up to be healthy, mature adults, but an
ever-increasing number are growing up with little hope of enjoying the benefits that
come with adulthood. They are not learning the skills necessary to participate in the
educational system or to make the transition into the labour force. They often cannot
become responsible parents because they have limited experience in family life and
lack the resources to raise their own children. These especially vulnerable youth are
functionally illiterate, disconnected from school and prone to drug abuse, depression
and early criminal activity. Today, more than half of all US children will spend some time
in a single-parent family. 1 Poverty and its consequences put young people at greater
risk of drug abuse. Non-white youth in the US, including an increasing number of
Hispanic and Asian children, are often affected in greater numbers.
The project was designed as a school and community-based model. Over a ten-year
period, it has targeted students aged 9-13 from public schools with similar profiles
regarding such key elements as high levels of absenteeism, suspension rates and low
educational performance. The project, in Philadelphia and in its replications nationwide,
also targets ethnic minorities who are traditionally under-served.
44 Sources: 1 The Current Status of Youth in the United States as cited in J. G. Dryfoos (1998):
Safe passage: Making it through adolescence in a risky society. Oxford University Press: New York.