National Youth Leadership Initiative

first National Drug Control Strategy, in 2010, the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) has been coordinating a government-wide public health and safety approach to reduce drug use and its consequences in the United States. The 2015 National Drug Control Strategy represents the Administration’s 21st century approach to drug policy that works to reduce illicit drug use and its consequences in the United States. This evidence-based plan, which balances public health and public safety efforts to prevent, treat, and provide recovery from the disease of addiction, seeks to build a healthier, safer, and more prosperous country. Preventing drug use before it starts is a fundamental element of the 2015 National Drug Control Strategy. As noted in its introduction, there has been overall progress in reducing illicit drug use among young people, including youth (ages 12-17) and young adults (ages 18-25). ONDCP would like to enhance the efforts of the Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program by engaging youth to become involved in coalition work and become substance abuse prevention leaders within their communities. DFC-funded community coalitions are required to work with various sectors of their community to identify local drug problems and implement comprehensive strategies to create community-level change. The contributions of community coalitions constitute a critical part of the Nation’s drug prevention infrastructure. DFC-funded community coalitions are a catalyst for creating local change where drug problems manifest. Findings from the 2013 DFC National Cross site Evaluation indicate that prevalence of youth substance use has declined significantly in DFC-funded community coalitions. ONDCP expects to award one Federal cooperative agreement under the National Youth Leadership Initiative, for a two year period, beginning approximately January 2016. The successful non-Federal entity (NFE) receiving award must equip youth and their adult advisors with the essential knowledge and skills needed to make significant community-level change. Implementation of the National Youth Leadership Initiative (NYLI) must follow a youth-led, adult-guided approach that follows the best practices in youth development, empowering young people to be vocal and visible as they work to impact a broad range of public health issues where they live, study, and play. In addition, the NYLI must continue the expanded support begun in 2014 by ONDCP to develop the infrastructure needed to increase the number of youth from diverse populations (i.e., Tribal, African American, LGBTQ, Military, Hispanics and Inner City) to receive enhanced training in coalition work and the prevention of youth substance use.