IDAHO OFFICE OF DRUG POLICY
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February 2019
Youth Spotlight: Thomas Moss-Mozley
Substance Abuse Primary Prevention Grant Reminder
ODP Welcomes a New Research Analyst
ODP Legislative Update
Northwest PTTC Prevention Workforce Survey
Youth Spotlight: Thomas Moss-Mozley
Kamiah Coalition Youth Advisory Board President named Idaho's Brightest Star
By Janene Engle
Reporter/Photographer, The Clearwater Progress 

Perhaps the first thing you will notice about Kamiah High School  
Thomas with UYLC President, Sharlene Johnson
senior Thomas Moss-Mozley is that he is very busy, a personal choice for Thomas that he says keeps him out of trouble. "Almost since freshman year I've had three jobs, it gives me stuff to do," said the motivated teen who recently accepted the honor of being chosen for the Idaho's Brightest Star Award.
      This year 69 outstanding volunteers from throughout the state were honored at Idaho's Brightest Stars Ceremony last Wednesday in Boise. The annual event is organized by Serve Idaho, the Governor's Commission on Service and Volunteerism.
      "Volunteerism is a gift that benefits citizens and addresses needs in communities throughout our state," said Governor Brad Little. "These men and women are not seeking recognition, but it is important to acknowledge these Brightest Star recipients and their generous commitment to giving to others and ensuring a bright future for all citizens."
      The volunteers were nominated for their contributions in seven categories - Business, Individual, Nonprofit/Civic Organization, Senior Citizen, Student, Teacher/Professor and Veteran. Idahoans nominated "brightest stars" throughout the state, and a panel of community reviewers made the final selection.
      All nominees were recognized as stars in their communities, and one Brightest Star Volunteer of the Year was chosen in each category.
      Thomas got involved with Kamiah's chapter of the Youth Advisory Board when he was a sophomore. "There are a lot of kids afraid to step out of their comfort zone," said Thomas. "I've had to step out of my comfort zone a lot with our events, having to present everything, having to introduce people, it's a little nerve wracking," he added with a half-smile.
      "Thomas is one of the five founding members of the Upriver Youth Leadership Council Youth Advisory Board where he presides as president," said UYLC President Sharlene Johnson. "He leads by example, and our YAB members look to him for guidance. In July Thomas attended the National Youth Leadership Institute with his YAB counterparts. NYLI is a highly interactive and collaborative training that goes through the Strategic Prevention Framework which is a proven model for community change that increases leadership capacities, civic and political engagement, and problem-solving among youth. Thomas led his group to develop a very detailed strategic plan to combat youth marijuana use. Oftentimes the facilitators of the training referred to them as the "rock stars" of the training. Speaking out against alcohol and drug use is difficult, and change is hard. But Thomas continues to speak up and speak out to his peers. He is a leading example of living a positive drug free lifestyle. In 2018, Thomas had 238 hours of volunteer service in YAB alone."
      When asked what he thought was the key to his success, Thomas pondered  briefly before answering, "I think it's mainly who you surround yourself with at school. For a while I didn't surround myself with the greatest people and I changed that. I got other people involved in this group (Youth Advisory Board). It was kind of weird at first, we were all strangers coming together, we're pretty much one big ol' family now, we're super close. It's kind of nice having those people that you know really well to help you, you know they're by your side when you're planning these events because it's really hard to do by yourself. With all of us working together, it makes it super easy."
      Furthering his quest to help people, Thomas plans to attend college and study psychology and criminal justice to be a clinician in prisons. "I do my job shadowing every other Friday in Orofino," said Thomas who is pleased that his recent achievement will help him attain his goals.
      Along with surrounding himself with the right people and keeping busy throughout his formative years, Thomas credits his parents for giving him a firm foundation. "My parents are really strict," said Thomas. "You know...I had certain things I could and couldn't do, I knew right from wrong, I knew my boundaries. Everyone needs boundaries."
      "I had the honor of nominating Thomas for the Brightest Star award," said KHS secretary Terry Law. "What a great kid. I am so proud of him. He quietly does so much for all the students at Kamiah High School that it almost goes unnoticed."
      Completely surprised at being nominated for such an honor, Thomas didn't feel he met the stringent criteria. "When we walked into the room for the award ceremony, the nominee's bios were running on a large screen," said Law. "When it came to the student category, Thomas stood there and read the 10 bios and then turned to me and said, 'They are so much better than I am, I will never win.' After he won and received his award, he walked back to our row and a woman sitting in front of us turned and introduced herself as a Boise councilperson, congratulated him and told him she was proud of him for making a difference. He thanked her and later asked me, "Why did she say that?" Thomas was extremely happy about receiving this award, but he truly doesn't see what a wonderful, caring and talented young man he is."
      "I received an email regarding the Idaho Brightest Star Award and almost ignored it because it was from the library community and was due the next day," said KHS Librarian Mona Farmer. "Then I thought about our students and what a wonderful group we have. Thomas stands out in his giving to this school and community, and now we know he stands out in the state of Idaho. He is generous with his time, talents, and concern."
      According to Farmer, Thomas was quite humbled when he was notified of his nomination.
"Why would anyone nominate him for such a thing? He didn't think he deserved this kind of recognition. He didn't think he was doing anything special," said Farmer.  
      "When we all got to Boise, he was so very nervous. He still wasn't sure he belonged there. When he read about the other students he knew he wouldn't win. They had more hours, or more years, or more something.
      "I think he won because he is involved with all ages of kids through the YAB and UYLC and because he is a leader. He doesn't just go along and put in hours. He plans and implements programs that have a positive impact on this whole community," added Farmer.
      Giving hundreds of volunteer hours to the community, Thomas was a shoe-in for the nomination. "Most teenagers don't give of themselves like he does," said Law. "But what makes him so special is that he's a leader as well."
      "I am going to miss Thomas next year, he is a great kid. He has wonderful dreams of going to college and helping people; I hope this is one step that will support his dreams, he is so deserving," added Farmer.
      In the student category for Idaho's Brightest Star there were a total of 10 nominees; Thomas was the only nominee from Northern Idaho.
      Utilizing a culmination of the past two years' experiences on Kamiah's YAB, Thomas mustered his courage to accept the award in Boise. "It was scary in front of all those people," said Thomas, "I was really nervous!"
      "I have said it before when I talk about our HOSA students," said Law, "but I will say it again; Kamiah High School has amazing, talented, caring kids that deserve to be recognized!"

Substance Abuse Primary Prevention Grant Reminder
FY2020 Application Open until March 15, 2019

Funding Opportunity Title:
Substance Abuse Block Grant
Primary Prevention Programs
Description: 
This application is to be used by prevention providers seeking funding to deliver substance abuse services directly to youth, families and other at-risk individuals of Idaho, and/or community-based coalitions, agencies and organizations seeking funding to employ environmental strategies designed to reduce the impact of substance abuse at the community level.  
Due Date for Applications:                           
5:00 PM (MST), March 15, 2019
Anticipated Total Funding Available: $1,600,000
Estimated Number of Awards:
50
Average Award Amount:
$40,000
Grant Recipients Notified:
June 1, 2019
Grant Award Period:
July 1, 2019 - June 30, 2020
Application Submission:
Applications must be completed and submitted online. Additional information is posted to prevention.odp.idaho.gov 
Eligible Applicants:
Eligible applicants include an governmental entity (including tribal entities), such as counties, cities, schools and school districts, local law enforcement agencies, other public entities and non-profit private entitied such as community-based organizations. Federal regulations (Section 90.135, HHS) prohibit the awarding of Block Grant funds to any entity other than a public or non-profit entity.
Submit Questions to:
Marianne King, Grant Project Director

marianne.king@odp.idaho.gov
(208) 854-3043

This funding may not be used for substance abuse treatment. Prevention service(s) provided prior to the signing of a grant award document will not be eligible for reimbursement.

Applicants assume all costs associated with the preparation of this grant application.

Grant awards are contingent upon funds appropriated by federal funding agencies and the Idaho Legislature.
 
ODP Welcomes a New Research Analyst

Meet Alexandra (Alex) Curd


The Office of Drug Policy is happy to introduce Alex Curd who joined our team as the new Senior Research Analyst.

Alex will be responsible for data collection and management, the coordination of the state-wide substance abuse prevention needs assessment, and the administration of the Idaho Healthy Youth Survey.

Alex is originally from Maryland and comes to ODP from Washington, D.C. where she most recently worked as a project coordinator at Sibley Memorial Hospital. Prior to that Alex worked for the office of U.S. Senator James E. Risch. Alex holds a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Florida and a master's degree in healthcare administration from George Mason University.

She moved to Boise with her fiancĂ© and is excited to explore the Idaho outdoors.  You can contact Alex at alex.curd@odp.idaho.gov or 208-854-3048.

ODP Legislative Update
Bill Tracker Updated Daily
ODP is closely tracking policy relevant to substance abuse prevention and treatment and  has created a simple legislative bill tracker to provide daily status updates during the legislative session. The tracker contains links to the bill text, a brief description of the bill, sponsors, status, and upcoming agenda items if published in advance. The tracker is updated daily.  It can be accessed t hrough the  ODP home page  under Policy or  click here  for a direct link to the tracker. 

L to R: Gov. Little, Rep. Wood, Adm. Smyser, and Sen. Nelson at HB12 signing.
ODP is happy to share that Governor Little signed House Bill 12 into law today, February 14, 2019. This bill amends Idaho's naloxone access law to say that any "health professional licensed or registered under this title" may prescribe and dispense naloxone. This update was made to provide clarifying language that encourages providers and healthcare systems to implement naloxone outreach programs.  

We are also closely following House Bill 122 relating to Hemp. In an attempt to align with the 2018 Federal Farm Bill, this legislation would add a new chapter, 17, to title 22 of Idaho Code to enact the Hemp Research and Development Act. It would also amend sections of Title 37, including the Schedule I, to define hemp as "the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant, including the seeds thereof and all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts, and salts of isomers, whether growing or not, with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than three-tenths of one percent (0.3%) on a dry weight basis," and exclude hemp from the definition of marijuana. 

ODP has updated our CBD fact sheet to include excerpts from the 2018 Farm Bill and guidance on what it allows under Federal Law. The 2018 Farm Bill does not amend Idaho Code, but House Bill 122 seeks to align Idaho Code with the 2018 Federal Farm Bill.  Click here to access the document. 

ODP encourages you to reach out to committees and stay involved during the legislative session. 

Northwest PTTC Prevention Workforce Survey
Your Input is Needed by March 1, 2019
The Northwest Prevention Technology Transfer Center (PTTC) is funded by SAMHSA to advance the Region 10 (Alaska, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon) prevention workforce's ability to find, select, implement, and evaluate evidence-based and promising substance abuse prevention programs, policies, and practices to achieve a meaningful reduction in substance misuse and its harmful consequences. 

In an effort to better assess the substance misuse prevention needs in Region 10, the Northwest PTTC is conducting a needs assessment. The PTTC will use results from this needs assessment to develop training and technical assistance services and resources.  

The PTTC is looking for 100 completed surveys from each state, and at last count Idaho had 51 submitted. If you can, please take about 15 minutes to complete the survey. Feel free to share the link with other prevention colleagues. 

Click here to access the survey. 

The Idaho Office of Drug Policy leads Idaho's substance abuse policy and prevention efforts by developing and implementing strategic action plans and collaborative partnerships to reduce drug use and related crime, thereby improving the health and safety of all Idahoans.


We envision an Idaho free from the devastating social, health, and economic consequences of substance abuse.