1. COALITION INSTITUTE SELECTS LEADER/MENTOR COALITIONS FOR TRAINING PROGRAM
Last week, CADCA's National Community Anti Drug Coalition Institute announced the selection of its first round of Leader/Mentors. A Leader/Mentor is an experienced coalition leader who has agreed to support and guide new coalitions during the initial coalition development process. This first round of L/M's will be matched with emerging coalitions (Greenhouse Coalitions) for a one year time period to support and nurture their development. Leader/Mentors will also receive ongoing leadership training through the Institute so they can continue to hone their skills. The Institute is still screening applications for Leader/Mentors who have indicated that they would like to be available for less intensive mentoring of newer coalitions. The new Leader/Mentors are:

Margaret R. Bartoletti - Rio Grande Safe Communities Coalition
Robert Brex - Northeast Communities Against Substance Abuse
Nora L. Drexler, MEd - Coalition Pathways
Deacon D. Dzierzawski - The Coalition Partnership
Cheryl M. Guthier - Community Prevention Partnership of Berks County
Rev. Marcus W. Harvey - Community Services Provider Network
Cindy Hayford - Deerfield Valley Community Partnership
Steven A. Magallan - Yakima County Substance Abuse Coalition
Willie Mitchell - San Antonio Fighting Back, Inc.
Mel Orpilla - City of Vallejo Fighting Back Partnership
Doreen Turk-White - Empowerment Zone Coalition, Inc.
Pam White - Nashville Prevention Partnership
Lori Zehe - Retired leader of two successful coalitions

2. NIDA HOSTS TWO-DAY NEUROSCIENCE SYMPOSIUM MAY 14-15
The National Institute on Drug Abuse will host "Foundations and Innovations in the Neuroscience of Addiction," a two-day symposium dedicated to the memory of Dr. Roger Brown, Associate Director of Neuroscience in the Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 14 - Thursday, May 15, 2003 in the National Auditorium in the Natcher Conference Center (Building 45) on the Campus of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Nobel laureate Dr. Arvid Carlsson will deliver a keynote address. In addition, more than 20 prominent scientists studying motivation and reward, cognition, neurotoxicity, pain and analgesia, and neuroplasticity will highlight contemporary findings from cutting-edge research in the neuroscience of drug abuse and addiction. For registration information and the agenda, go to www.drugabuse.gov or call Barbara Parker at 240-631-3956.

3. COALITION MENTORING GRANTS UP TO $75,000 NOW AVAILABLE
ONDCP/OJJDP websites now have the announcement of coalition mentoring grants of up to $75,000 now available. The deadline for submissions is June 18, 2003. Approximately 25 grants will be awarded this year with others to follow in subsequent years. Only current DFC grantees or those awarded first time grants in FY 2003 are eligible to apply for these grants. The grant selection is expected to be highly competitive and will be reviewed by special panels of coalition experts. See www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov for detailed information. All applications must be submitted on-line through the OJP electronic grants management system (GMS).

Please note that these ONDCP/OJJDP Mentoring Grants are for coalitions, not individual leaders. The OJJDP program is a separate (but complimentary) program to CADCA's Institute Leader/Mentor program. The ONDCP/OJJDP program is for qualifying Drug-Free Communities Grantees to apply. The OJJDP grant allows coalitions to design their own mentoring program and submit it for competitive funding whereas the CADCA Institute program is prescriptive (i.e. CADCA's Institute "matches" leader mentors to specific pre-screened coalitions that meet specific criteria and also works to continue to develop their leadership skills). ONDCP, OJJDP, CSAP and CADCA's Institute are working closely to coordinate both programs but they are separate programs. Nothing precludes a coalition leader/coalition from participating in both programs.

4. FLORIDA EFFORTS TARGET ECSTASY AND OTHER DRUGS
To help curb Ecstasy use, as well as other drug use, the Florida Office of Drug Control undertook a statewide, joint law enforcement operation to educate Floridians; enforce zero tolerance of illegal drugs sales to Florida's youth; target networks that supply and distribute illegal drugs; and curtail the operations of establishments that operate as de facto drug markets.

Operation Heat Rave targeted 57 RAVE clubs resulting in seizures of the drug, arrests, several hundred warrants, and a cache of more than 70 firearms. In November of 2002, the DEA launched an enforcement and national awareness campaign focused on Ecstasy and other synthetic drugs called "Operation X-Out". Working with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the DEA's intelligence and interdiction efforts are showing great return in Miami. Additionally, Florida law has been changed to make Ecstasy a Schedule I drug, with penalties for trafficking made proportional to illegal trafficking in other drugs.

The State's program includes integrated efforts among Safe and Drug-Free Schools coordinators, community-based prevention and treatment providers, Florida's growing community coalition network, and law enforcement. The media has been key as well, and some have gone beyond simply reporting. For example, Donna Davis, a lone reporter at Florida News Channel, driven by the frightening consequences of Ecstasy use, conducted research, interviewed experts, and with permission and assistance of station owners produced an educational videotape expressly for schools, communities, and parents. Ecstasy - Nothing to Rave About is a 30-minute video. The Florida Drug Control Strategy can be found at www.myflorida.com/drugcontrol. Information on the video, "Ecstasy - Nothing to Rave About" can be found at www.ecstasyprevention.com.

5. SEND QUESTIONS NOW FOR EXPERTS ON YOUTH LEADERSHIP BROADCAST MAY 29
On May 29, 2003, watch CADCA's next broadcast focusing on youth leadership from 1:00-2:30 p.m., EST. The program features Julie Laipply (Miss Virginia, USA, 2002) Role Models and Mentors for Youth Foundation; Ty Sells, Youth to Youth International; Devon McDonel, PRIDE Youth Programs International; and Robert Kaiser, Teen Visionworks Coalitions. The broadcast focuses on youth leaders within the substance abuse prevention field and the skills necessary to become an effective leader. The broadcast will feature adults who were youth leaders and now are dedicated to working with youth and also young adults who have assumed leadership roles in their communities. Tune in to learn leadership training and skill building strategies and become a better youth leader.

If you have any questions or burning issues you would like addressed on the broadcast related to Youth Leaders, please email them to Tanyanic Brown at tbrown@cadca.org before May 29. To register for the broadcast, Contact Ed Kronholm, downlink coordinator, by calling 877-820-0305; or by sending an email to dlnets@aol.com.

6. SAMHSA OFFERS NEW FAMILY-ORIENTED WEB SITE
To enhance the bond between parent and child, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) developed a new Web Site: A Family Guide To Keeping Youth Mentally Healthy & Drug Free. Available at http://family.samhsa.gov, the site offers adults who influence the lives of children ages 7 to 18 - including parents, foster parents, grandparents, extended family members, guardians, and mentors-suggestions for better communication with children, as well as other tips that aid in prevention.

Features include a mental health dictionary, drug-related facts and information, and related resources, presented in a user-friendly style for all audiences. To join the listserve, send contact information online at http://family.samhsa.gov/main/listserve.aspx.

7. PBS TO AIR "ALCOHOL: WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW" WEEK OF JUNE 21-28
During the week of June 21 to 28, PBS television's national weekly program for teens, "In the Mix," takes a hard look at drinking. Reporters Tamah Krinsky and Duane Ferguson show how badly being drunk affects behavior and driving skills. The show also introduces teens that are recovering alcoholics, and a young man who paid a high price for drinking and driving: he was left partially brain damaged from an accident. The program explores a high school program where upperclassmen hold workshops on drinking for younger students, and what happens at police sobriety checkpoints. For more information video clips, resources, transcripts and more, visit www.inthemix.org. PBS also has a website for tweens (9-13) called It's My Life, at www.pbskids.org/itsmylife with information on drug abuse.

8. NEW NIDA-FUNDED STUDY HELPS EXPLAIN HOW ENVIRONMENTAL CUES CONTRIBUTE TO COCAINE RELAPSE
Real-time monitoring of dopamine activity in the brain shows that in rats the mere anticipation of receiving cocaine may cause significant increases in dopamine levels. This finding may help explain why, in humans recovering from cocaine addiction, cocaine
paraphernalia, surroundings, and other factors associated with drug use can elicit an intense craving for the drug, often resulting in relapse to use.

This study, published by Dr. Regina Carelli and colleagues from the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill and funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, appeared in the April 10 issue of Nature. To read NIDA's complete summary, visit http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-05/niod-rmo050203.php.

9. NEW HARVARD/NIDA STUDY EXAMINES EFFECT OF MARIJUANA USE IN MID-TEENS OR YOUNGER
There is evidence that individuals who start to smoke marijuana at an early age-while the brain is still developing-show deficits in cognition that are not seen in individuals who begin use of the drug when they are older. The reasons for this difference are unclear. Scientists from the Harvard Medical School and from the intramural research program of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) found lasting cognitive deficits in those who started to smoke marijuana before age 17. The researchers analyzed neuropsychological test results from 122 long-term heavy users of marijuana and 87 subjects who had used marijuana only a few times (control subjects). Sixty-nine of the 122 users started using marijuana at age 17 or before. The subjects were between the ages of 30 and 55 at the time of the study, and all had refrained from any drug use 28 days prior to testing.

Individuals who started using marijuana at age 17 or younger performed significantly worse on the tests assessing verbal functions such as verbal IQ and memory of word lists than did those who started using marijuana later in life or who had used the drug sparingly. There were virtually no differences in test results among the individuals who started marijuana use after age 17 and the control subjects.

Youth who use marijuana before their mid-teens may show long-term deficits in certain
verbal skills-but the reasons for these deficits are not yet clear. Dr. Harrison Pope and colleagues published the study in the March 2003 issue of the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence. To read NIDA's press release, visit http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-05/niod-smu050203.php.

10. STUDY FINDS LOBELINE REDUCES SELF-ADMINISTRATION OF METHAMPHETAMINE IN RATS
NIDA reports that Lobeline, a drug with a long history of use in smoking cessation programs, may be a potential treatment for methamphetamine abuse. In a previous study using rats, researchers from the University of Kentucky found that lobeline decreased the animals' self-administration of d-methamphetamine (METH). They concluded that lobeline acted by decreasing the animal's perception of METH- induced pleasure (reward). The researchers conducted a series of experiments with male rats that were trained to self-administer METH by pressing a lever. In a group of rats that consistently self-administered METH, the researchers exchanged METH with lobeline to determine whether lobeline would serve as a substitute for METH. When METH was exchanged with lobeline, the number of times the rats pressed the lever decreased daily over the course of the experiment, indicating that lobeline did not serve as substitute for METH.

Other experiments also indicate that the ability of lobeline to decrease METH self-administration without inducing reward itself suggests that lobeline may be a useful pharmacological treatment without risk of abuse.

Dr. Steven Harrod and colleagues published the study in the February 23 issue of the journal Psychopharmacology.

11. PRENATAL EXPOSURE TO ALCOHOL MAY BE A RISK FACTOR FOR PROBLEMS LATER IN LIFE
Prenatal alcohol exposure may be a risk factor for the development of drinking problems as an adult.

Ann P. Streissguth, PhD, of the Fetal Alcohol and Drug Unit, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, and colleagues obtained information from 433 families and offspring of mothers who were first studied in 1974-1975 when they were about 5 months pregnant. Maternal drinking during pregnancy was assessed along with measures of smoking, use of caffeine and other drugs and demographic factors. Family history of alcohol problems was determined through interviews with the parents when their children were 14 years old, and updated when the children were 21 years old. Parental alcohol and drug use were assessed at seven time points over 21 years with the first measurement during the mother's pregnancy. When the children were 21 years old, they provided self-reports on drinking habits, including quantity and frequency of alcohol consumption, and completed the Alcohol Dependence Scale as a measure of alcohol-related problems and dependence.

Of the 433 offspring, 359 (82.9%) reported themselves as current drinkers and 74 (17.1%) as life-long or current abstainers at the 21-year follow-up. They reported drinking, on average, 5.77 times per month, with an average of 3.79 drinks per occasion. Consistent with national survey samples, 36.5% reported drinking five or more drinks on at least one occasion during the previous month. Thirty-five (8.1%) of the 433 offspring scored at or above 10 on the Alcohol Dependence Scale, indicating at least mild alcohol dependence.

The study (2003;60:377-385) was published in the Archives of General Psychiatry. To read a brief, visit http://www.ama-assn.org/sci-pubs/sci-news/2002/snr0414.htm#prenatal. This study was supported by a grant from the U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

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