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NBCC And Mt. Greylock School Hosting Youth Substance Use Forum

This is a picture of a flyer for the substance use panel discussion
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition

Officials call it a scourge that can devastate families and destroy lives. A panel discussion at Mount Greylock Regional High School in Williamstown tonight will focus on substance use among teenagers as the nation grapples with an opioid abuse crisis.The Mount Greylock Regional School Parent-Teacher Organization and the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition are hosting a forum on preventing substance use among young people.

“There is really clear and compelling evidence that the earlier you start drinking alcohol the more likely you are to develop a substance abuse dependency and experiment with illegal drugs,” said NBCC's director of prevention programs Wendy Penner. “So by focusing on preventing substance use by youth we can solve the addiction problem by preventing it from ever happening.”

The panel is part of initiative funded by a $100,000 Massachusetts’ Department of Public Health grant aimed at reducing underage drinking. As much as opioid abuse has been a national topic in recent years, Penner says there aren’t many resources in rural Berkshire County to address youth substance abuse. Options like recovery high schools are typically available in centrally populated areas.

“The whole philosophy of the Department of Public Health in awarding these funds to clusters of communities to prevent youth substance use it’s really not about creating interventions as much as it is about educating and empowering all the adults in the community,” Penner said. “Whether it’s teachers, law enforcement, health care providers, business owners and faith community leaders to understand what are the risk factors that are youth face and what do they need to support them around making healthy decisions.” 

Berkshire District Attorney David Capeless and The Brien Center’s Dr. Jennifer Michaels will join area educators and law enforcement members on the panel. Penner says Capeless, who has been vocal about the need to curb the opioid crisis, will likely discuss social hosting laws and how parents may be held legally liable if minors use substances in their homes. The Democrat says part of the problem is the increased amount of prescription opioids in circulation.

“Because the large amount is there, there is the temptation and eventually the reality for other people to become addicted to it,” said Capless.”

Mt. Greylock Regional School Assistant Principal Jacob Schutz is also part of the panel. He says he will explain how school administration takes a holistic approach to student health including having a substance abuse counselor from The Brien Center come to the school on a weekly basis.

“I always build that into our consequences,” Schutz said. “I don’t think if someone does something that violates a rule that has to do with substance abuse simply suspending them and kicking them out of school isn’t going to solve the problem.”

Schutz says students, parents and teachers can refer a student to the counselor. Students can also self-refer. NBCC surveys show area youth think adults expect young people to experiment with alcohol and other substances like marijuana, believing they aren’t harmful.

“I think that’s a good question to ask ourselves…why, based on that survey, are our students suggesting that the community doesn’t feel that their risky behaviors are actually risky behaviors,” said Schutz.

Overall Penner says the opioid crisis hasn’t hit Berkshire area high schools, but it is impacting people in their 20s.

“If youth don’t start experimenting with drugs until they’re in their 20s they’re much less likely to ever develop a substance use disorder, become an addict, overdose or die from drug addiction,” said Penner.

The 6 p.m. event is free and open to the public.

Jim is WAMC’s Associate News Director and hosts WAMC's flagship news programs: Midday Magazine, Northeast Report and Northeast Report Late Edition. Email: jlevulis@wamc.org
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