Youth Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Project

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·	YADAPP Mission
·	Goals and Objectives
·	Project Description

·	YADAPP 2008
·	Registration
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·	Youth Participants
·	Adult Sponsors
·	Youth Leaders
·	Junior Staff
·	Conference Interns
·	Resource Officers

·	STAN Plan
·	Wheeler Award
·	Mini-Grants
·	Resources

·	Regional Events

·	YADAPP History
·	Past YADAPPs

·	Contact Information

Strategies To Act Now (STAN) Planning

The focal point of the weeklong conference is the Strategies To Act Now (STAN) planning process. Over a ten-hour period, STAN planning engages participants in the process of constructing a substance abuse and/or violence prevention activity for their school and community. This process provides youth participants the opportunity to evaluate the prevention needs of their school and community in order to develop innovative, youth-led solutions addressing such needs.

STAN planning combines experiential learning with action planning. The process offers participants the opportunity to learn about group problem solving and project planning; teaches communication techniques; and discusses ways to work within a participant’s school and community. Participants learn skills in brainstorming, decision-making, organizations of tasks, working with diverse groups to meet goals, and the value of project evaluation. Many of these skills transcend prevention and are useful to other aspects of school, home and community planning.

YADAPP 1996 Junior Staff – youth staff members – created the STAN planning process. Prior to the STAN plan, law enforcement officers facilitated a similar action planning process at the conference. Today, law enforcement officers are utilized as resources for participant action plans while youth staff members guide participants through the planning process. The YADAPP 1996 Junior Staff had the idea of involving youth in this process in order to model youth leadership for the high school participants. The idea worked. As it remains today, the STAN planning process is refined and taught by the YADAPP Junior Staff.

The STAN planning process focuses on nine steps:

Brainstorming
What
Why
Who
How
When
Evaluation
Troubleshooting
Results

At YADAPP, all Youth Participant activities are focused towards developing the following skills:

Structured Problem Solving (STAN Plan)
Action Planning (STAN Plan)
Communication
Relationships
Teamwork

Wheeler Award

In addition to STAN Plan Mini-Grants, two teams at the summer leadership conference are selected to receive a Wheeler Award in the amount of $500. The Wheeler Award was created in 1986 to recognize outstanding student organizations responsible for promoting youth-led substance abuse and violence prevention activities in their school and/or community. These awards are selected based on an application process.

Morris and Billie Wheeler: The Parents Behind the Award

After the death of his daughter Sandy in 1981 who was killed by a drunk driver, Morris Wheeler retired from his position with the Southland Corporation. Two years later he returned to Southland to work on special public relations projects. He and his wife Billie have served as speakers, fund-raisers, and organizers of alcohol abuse and drunk-driving prevention efforts for both his company and the community. The Wheeler Award honors Morris and Billie Wheeler for their commitment and dedication to Virginia's youth. The Wheelers have been involved in prevention efforts for a number of years. They have raised many dollars for prevention efforts and have spoken to thousands of students statewide. Their desire to work directly with Virginia's young people has taken them to many high school assemblies to tell the story of their personal tragedy. The total commitment of this couple has inspired and guided many others in the continuing effort to prevent teens from drinking, driving and dying. Morris and Billie are an inspiration to all who hear them. As a result of their courage in telling their story, more young people today are able to say "NO" to drinking and driving. Much of the credit for this success goes directly to the leadership of the Wheeler family.

The Award

At the close of the Second Annual Youth Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Project (YADAPP) Conference in 1986, YADAPP announced the creation of an award that would be presented to an outstanding Virginia high school student organization that promoted activities and programs that encouraged a drug-free lifestyle. This award, which came to be known as the Wheeler Award, honors the Wheeler family in recognition of their outstanding efforts in the prevention of alcohol and drug-related driving tragedies among Virginia teenagers. To date, more than $20,000 has been donated and designated as monetary awards for the top two winners in the Wheeler Award competition. Sources of the cash prizes for the Wheeler Award have included the Virginia Beach Strawberry Festival, the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Board and private businesses in the Richmond/Chesterfield area. The cash awards and other forms of recognition are used to enhance and promote substance abuse prevention efforts. The award(s), consisting of a certificate and cash award, are presented at the summer leadership conference.

STAN Plan Mini-Grants

At the conclusion of the summer leadership conference, approximately twenty mini-grants in the amount of $250 are awarded to those YADAPP teams displaying exemplary planning skills, teamwork, dedication, and potential to implement a successful substance abuse and/or violence prevention activity within their school and community. Youth conference staff members select each recipient based on the following criteria:

Adult Sponsors attend the summer leadership conference by accompanying a team of four Youth Participants. The purpose of the Adult Sponsor is to empower youth to become leaders in their school and community in the effort to promote safe schools and communities and to prevent alcohol and other drug use by their peers. Adult Sponsors are very important in helping these youth reach their full potential when returning back to their school and community.

The team’s ability to work together
The soundness and feasibility of the plan
The link between the needs of the school and/or community and the goals and strategies of the plan
The link between individual strategies and goals of the plan
The presence and appropriateness of an evaluation component in the plan

STAN Plan Resources - Coming Soon

Contact Information for Previous YADAPP General Session Speakers - Click here.