March 2025

Prioritizing Prevention: Alexandria Youth Leaders Join City Staff at National Leadership Forum

Each year, youth and adult coalition members attend CADCA's National Leadership Forum, the largest training event for substance use and misuse prevention leaders interested in making a positive impact in their community.

This past winter, twenty-three youth leaders and four City staff members joined SAPCA Coordinator Emma Beall to attend this event.

Please join us in recognizing these prevention champions for coming together to learn about the latest strategies to fight substance use and bringing back their ideas to inform SAPCA's prevention efforts.

Juniors

• Khamille Muhammad, SAPCA Board member, Peer Advocate
• Marieme Dat, Peer Advocate
• Mohammad Elyas, Youth Ambassador
• Phoebe Booker, Youth Ambassador
• Yasin Bhuiyan, Peer Advocate
• Zenith Parker, Peer Advocate



Seniors

• Kayla Jenkins, Peer Advisor
• Teliyah Hillary, Peer Advisor

City staff

• Alicia Washington, Youth Development Specialist and Project Discovery Coordinator
• Emma Beall, SAPCA Coordinator
• Jennifer Ford, Secondary Schools Program Coordinator
• Leia Stuart, ACAP Youth Engagement Specialist 
• Valeria Antelo, Youth Development Counselor

Youth leaders and City staff attended sessions highlighting a variety of issues, including

the importance of self-care, nuances about emerging substance use issues, the cycle of addiction, the connections between substance use and mental health, and the growing need for collaboration at the local level to address substance use.

As the landscape of substance use challenges continues to shift and evolve, the need for up-to-date evidence-based research, resources, and strategies are paramount to making progress towards ensuring safe, healthy, and drug-free futures for our youth. As individuals and together as a community, we have the power to create positive, lasting change that can transform our communities to ensure that youth in Alexandria can thrive today, tomorrow, and in the future.

Your Help is Needed to Help SAPCA Assess Its Effectiveness

Dear Fellow Alexandrians,

I am writing to ask a favor of you. The State has asked all Virginia substance use prevention coalitions to have their coalition members and other community members complete a survey on the coalition's effectiveness in addressing youth substance use prevention. This survey will take between 15-20 minutes to complete.

Believe me, I know this is a major investment of your valuable time. I promise that your investment will pay off for Alexandria's children and youth. The SAPCA Board will use the information you provide to continue the initiatives and work you think are effective and revise or eliminate any initiatives and work you indicate are not effective. They will also use your information to determine what new initiatives and work should start. The State will use the information to assess the overall effectiveness of coalitions across the state and make any changes needed as well as share trend information with coalition leaders.

Please complete this survey from start to finish in one sitting because you will not be able to return to finish a partially completed survey. Also, to provide the best information for us, please complete all questions. Please complete the survey no later than March 20, 2025.

• The survey link is: https://omniinstitute.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6yDXLC3EYX3TJxH
• Note: Please do not click on/launch the survey until you are ready to complete it in one sitting
• The name of our CSB is: Alexandria CSB. Please select the correct name from the drop down list in the survey.
• The name of the Coalition you are assessing is: Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Alexandria. You will need to enter this in the survey.
• If you wish to preview the survey before you start, please click here to see the paper version of the tool.

Thank you very much for sharing your invaluable input and helping SAPCA.

Best Wishes,



Allen Lomax

Chair, Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Alexandria

SAPCA Partners with Opioid Work Group to Deliver Episcopal High School Assembly

Last month, SAPCA partnered with the Opioid Work Group to present an assembly to 83 freshmen students at Episcopal High School.

During this assembly, students learned facts about alcohol, marijuana, vaping, and fentanyl. Students also learned about naloxone, a safe and effective antidote for opioids. If given in time, naloxone can stop an opioid overdose and restore normal breathing until emergency response can arrive. Naloxone is available for free at the Teen Wellness Center and the Alexandria Health Department. 

To learn more facts and consequences about alcohol and other drugs, visit PreventItAlexandria.org.

To learn more about local efforts to eliminate opioid misuse and its harmful effects throughout Alexandria, visit alexandriava.gov/Opioids.

Five Things You Should Know: Youth Leadership Programs

Did you know that the City of Alexandria provides many opportunities for youth to build their leadership skills while making a difference in their community? Check out some of the many programs focused on centering youth and making sure their voices are heard.

1. The Alexandria Youth Ambassadors are a group of high school students that support community engagement efforts focused on anti-violence, trauma healing, and social emotional learning. Contact Noraine Buttar to learn more.

2. The Peer Advocates are a group of Alexandria youth who work closely with SAPCA, the Alexandria Campaign on Adolescent Pregnancy (ACAP), and the Alexandria Sexual Assault Center to support prevention and outreach efforts. Contact Leia Stuart to learn more.

3. The Peer Advisors mentor younger youth, give public presentations on prevention topics, and participate in community service projects. Through this afterschool leadership program, Peer Advisors also participate in trainings about peer pressure resistance skills, tobacco prevention, mediation, leadership, and public speaking. Contact Jennifer Ford to learn more.

4. The ACT Youth Council is a program designed by youth for youth with the purpose of providing Alexandria youth the decision-making power and funding to address key youth issues within the community. Learn more here.

5. Alexandria Library's Teen Advisory Group meets the third Thursday of each month to help create new programs and weigh in on library decisions. Learn more here.

Youth of all ages can also explore opportunities to earn volunteer hours by signing up for Volunteer Alexandria's children and family newsletter or visiting VolunteerAlexandria.org.

Medication Disposal Recap

At the beginning of 2025, SAPCA encouraged residents to clean out their home medicine cabinets to support our community's efforts to safely dispose of prescription and over-the-counter medications.

Thanks to our community, the City safely disposed of 133 lbs. of medication collected from Alexandria's permanent medication drop boxes throughout the month of January.

Looking for other opportunities to dispose of unused, expired, and unneeded medications? Stay tuned for information about the City's next National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.

You can also dispose of medication year-round, including pet prescriptions, at Alexandria's three permanent medication drop boxes.

Visit alexandriava.gov/opioids to learn more about the importance of safe medication disposal and share this information with others. You could save a life.

Save the Date: National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week

Did you know that National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week is taking place March 17-23? This annual event inspires dialogue about the science of drug use and addiction. It also provides an opportunity to bring together scientists, students, educators, healthcare providers, and community partners to help advance the science, so that we can improve the prevention and awareness of substance misuse in our own communities and nationwide.

Check out these ways to recognize National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week this spring:

• Craft #MyWhyNDAFW Videos: Share your unique voice in the conversation around drug use prevention and positive mental health.
• Play this new kahoot to understand how acute stress affects the body, how it differs from chronic stress, and learn strategies to support mental and emotional health
• Take the interactive National Drug and Alcohol IQ Challenge quiz to test your knowledge about alcohol and other drugs.
• Explore answers to teens' top 10 frequently asked questions about drugs and health.
• Share why you adopt healthy behaviors for your mind and body using this #MyWhyNDAFW sign. 

To learn more facts about alcohol and other drugs during National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week and year-round, visit PreventItAlexandria.org.

Free Webinar: The State of Developmental Relationships

How do we leverage Developmental Relationships to support each and every young person? By understanding what they need. 

Register now for the Search Institute's State of Developmental Relationships, a free virtual webinar on March 11 at 2 p.m.

Drawing from insights gathered from thousands of young people about the relationships and experiences that shape their world, this webinar will discuss emergent trends impacting youth development and wellbeing , including:

• Developmental relationships and character development
• The role of relationships as an enhancer of school/program climate
• Relational actions—gaps and opportunities

Click here to register for this free webinar.

The Search Institute's mission is to conduct and apply research that promotes positive youth development and advances equity. Learn more here.

Quick Links

Enter the 2025 America's Field Trip Contest

America’s Field Trip is a nationwide contest designed to engage elementary, middle, and high school students around America’s upcoming 250th anniversary in 2026. Students in grades 3-12 can earn a chance to go behind-the-scenes at some of America’s most well-known historical landmarks! 

Students are invited to submit an essay, artwork, or poem answering the question “What does America mean to you?”

First-place awardees will get to experience one of several unforgettable field trips to places like Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Ohio, the National Archives in Washington, D.C. and more. Second-place awardees and teachers can also earn cash awards. 

Don’t miss out on this chance to be part of America’s 250th anniversary! Click here to submit your entry by April 16.

Learn more at america250.org/fieldtrip/rules/ 

Save The Date for Spring Break Volunteering

Youth Engaged In Service (formerly Breaks with Impact), or YES, is returning this spring with opportunities for middle and high school students to serve the community. YES participants will engage in efforts to deter food insecurity, clean up local parks, remove invasive species, serve local nonprofits, and more.

Tentative dates for spring break programming are as follows:

• Tuesday, April 15
• Wednesday, April 16
• Thursday, April 17
• Tuesday, April 22
• Thursday, April 24

Dates and topics are subject to change. Visit the YES webpage for more information.

Learn about other volunteer opportunities for youth of all ages at volunteeralexandria.org.

Join the Green Teen Club!

Join the Green Teen Club, a free program for teen adventurers and nature enthusiasts ages 11-18, for exciting field trips and hands-on activities. During this program, teens will delve into local ecosystems, hike scenic trails, learn about conservation, and encounter fascinating wildlife.

The Green Teen Club meets the third Wednesday of each month from 6-7 p.m. at the Jerome "Buddie" Ford Nature Center (5750 Sanger Ave.)

Click here to learn more.

Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Alexandria 

4850 Mark Center Drive

Alexandria, VA 22311