Prevention through Connection
June 2015
CASA honors Manhasset Students!
First Senior Award  and CASA Club establishedl

Manhasset CASA is only as great as those individuals who dedicate themselves to provide their time, effort and resources to further our mission in the prevention of youth substance use. 
Griffin Hyde accepts CASA's first Senior Award from Dr. Caryn Sawyer and Cathy Samuels (Nicole Kiprilov is absent from the picture)

Last week, Manhasset CASA  honored Griffin Hyde and Nicole Kiprilov  with our very first Manhasset CASA Youth Committee S enior Award of Excellence for their outstandin g work in the field of substance abuse prevention.   The students were selected from CASA's Youth Committee based upon their level of commitment,hours of service, and dedication as a positive youth role model to support Manhasset CASA's mission under its Drug Free Communities Support Program. 

Since 2010, Griffin and Nicole have made outstanding contributions in the prevention of youth substance use in Manhasset including designing and implementing 7th grade Science classroom lessons on the dangers of e-cigarettes,actively participating with adults at CASA's quarterly Sector meetings, and creating and producing with North Hempstead Television Positive Perspectives from Teens in North Hempstead.  We are humbled and grateful to have worked with these students as they have truly made a difference in the community.  We wish them much success in the years ahead!

We are also thrilled to report  that this fall, CASA's Youth Committee will become a student club at Manhasset High School. The change will sustain youth participation in the prevention of substance use in Manhasset after CASA's Drug Free Communities Support Program Grant funding  expires in 2018.


In closing, we would like to thank the Robbie Levine Foundation and Manhasset High School Staff and faculty for implementing our Red Watch Band training in early June. All graduating seniors received the CPR/AED instruction from the Robbie Levine Foundation's "Teens for Life" initiative. 
Manhasset educators also helped students understand the importance of alcohol overdose as a medical emergency and provided the knowledge to give them the skills and confidence to help prevent a tragedy on their college campuses. Click here for more pictures from the initiative!


Manhasset CASA congratulates the entire Class of 2015 for their outstanding academic and community service achievements! We wish all families a happy and safe celebration!  

Manhasset CASA Executive Board

There's an App for that!

Parenting Tools to Prevent Underage Drinking

 

As the school year ends and summer begins, parents may have more time to connect with their children and more opportunities to have meaningful talks.  SAMHSA's APP can help parents prepare for one of the most important conversations they may ever have!

 

The free app, available through the  App StoreSM, Google Play™, the Windows® Store, and Windows® Phone Store, features an interactive simulation that uses avatars to help parents practice bringing up the topic of alcohol, learn the questions to ask, and get ideas for keeping the conversation going. The app is part of SAMHSA's "Talk. They Hear You." Underage Drinking Prevention National Media Campaign, which encourages parents and caregivers to talk with children early about the dangers of alcohol.

SALE of PALCOHOL Approved 

New York Lawmakers Take Action!

 

Since  the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau approved the sale of powdered alcohol or Palcohol and the FDA does not have a legal basis to block market entry of the product, New York State and federal lawmakers have been working to ban the product due to concern for the health and safety of our teens and children. 


Palcohol is a powdery substance, when mixed with water, becomes a cocktail. Prevention and addiction experts note its appeal toward children and teens as well as the ease of mixing lethal drinks, adding to food or drinks, snorting, and concealing or transporting the product.  Click here for more information.

 

Lawmakers across New York have moved quickly to legislate banning this product as it will be available for purchase and consumption as early as this summer.  The New York State Senate (Senate Bill 1757A) and New York State Assembly (Assembly Bill 1357A-2015) recently passed bills amending the alcoholic beverage control law to prohibit the sale of any powdered or crystalline alcohol product. Several states including Alaska, Louisiana, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, and Virginia have already passed similar legislation.  U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer also introduced legislation to make the production, sale and possession of powdered alcohol illegal in the United States as a provision of the Sober Truth on Preventing Underage Drinking Reauthorization (STOP) Act. 

 

According to Mother's Against Drunk Driving, "As with anything 'new', this product may be attractive to youth, so MADD encourages parents to talk with their teens about the dangers of underage drinking-because alcohol is illegal for those under 21, no matter how it's packaged." 

  

For tips on how to talk with your middle school student about the dangers of alcohol, click here for MADD's NEW Power of Parents Handbook for Middle School parents or here for their original Power of Parents Handbook for High School parents.

Town of North Hempstead S.T.O.P. Program

Residents can drop off expired & unnecessary meds!
Special thanks to the Town of North Hempstead for its efforts to ensure prescription drugs do not get into the hands of our teens and children! 

Residents are invited to clean out your medicine cabinet of any prescription or over-the counter drugs that ma y be ex pired or unwanted and disguard them at the Town of North Hempstead's S.T.O.P. (Stop Throwing Out Pollutants) Program.   The program will take place on Saturday, June 20th 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at North Hempstead Beach Park North Lot at 175 West Shore Road, Port Washington . All drugs will be discarded in an  environmentally safe manner while protecting your kids! Please note this service is open to Town Residents - No Doctors' Offices.   For more i nformation about how to dispose   of  pharmaceuticals safely call 311, go to  northhempsteadny.gov  or 

 


For additi onal information about talking with your kids about the dangers of prescription drugs, click here for Talking to Your Kids about prescription drug abuse from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). 
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CASA Sector Member LICADD on the Radio
Working with Project Independence & You!
 
This Friday, June 19th from 10:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., CASA Sector Member Lisa Ganz from the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (LICADD) will be a guest on the Town of North Hempstead's Project Independence & You Radio on WCWP 88.1 FM.

Lisa will be discussing adult and teen prescription drug misuse and the importance of residents locking up medications.  The program will also highlight the Power of a Grandparent manual which was developed by CASA to assist grandparents and seniors to talk with their grandchildren about the dangers of drugs and alcohol. 
Councilwoman Anna Kaplan (shown center) chats with CASA and LICADD at the Community Resource Fair

Last week CASA and LICADD participated at Project Independence's Community Resource Fair at the Company  1 Firehouse in Manhasset.   CASA distributed the Power of a Grandparent booklet to Manhasset seniors and informed them of the Town's upcoming S.T.O.P. event on June 20th which accepts and disposes of unwanted medications (see above for further info).  The Power of a Grandparent was again endorsed by Project Indepence and hard copies are available by contacting Manhasset CASA's office at 516-267-7548.  


Thank you to the Town of North Hempstead and Project Independence for their continued support in the prevention of adult and teen prescription drug misuse.   


Positive Stress Levels for Teens  

Chilling out this Summer!


The American Psychological Association's report, "Stress in America: Are Teens Adopting Adults' Stress Habits?" finds that many American teens report unhealthy levels of stress and lack strong stress management skills. 

Stress takes a toll on teens' mental and physical health. Parents can help teens find better ways to cope with the following resources:
  • Teach teens to measure and track their stress levels with this quiz from Smokefree.gov.
  • Peruse the Positive Youth Development and Mental Health sections of the Office of Adolescent Health (OAH) library to find resources on coping strategies and mental health for teens.
  • Bust stress and teach stress management skills with a "Relieve the Stress Fest" from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) for Teens.
Manhasset Community 
Coalition Against Substance Abuse (CASA), Inc. 
P.O. Box 392
Manhasset, NY 11030
(516) 267-7548
  
Manhasset CASA exists as a resource to reduce the illegal, underage use of alcohol, tobacco, & other drugs among its youth, before they are in trouble, by connecting parents, schools and the community as partners in the common goal.  In 2013, CASA was honored to receive its second five year Drug Free Communities Support Grant (DFC) by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).  Our goals are to reduce substance abuse among youth and, over time, among adults; and to establish and strengthen collaboration among communities, private nonprofit agencies, and federal, state, and local governments to support the efforts of our community coalition to prevent and reduce substance abuse among youth.