Washington, DC – More than 1,500 substance abuse prevention and treatment specialists from across the country will convene in Indianapolis Aug. 2-6 for Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA)’s 2015 Mid-Year Training Institute. The week-long training, held at the JW Marriott, will teach participants how to address one of our nation’s biggest public health challenges – youth drug use.
CADCA’s Mid-Year Training Institute is a one-of-a-kind intensive training opportunity, offering more than 70 half-day and two-day courses geared towards helping participants find solutions to their community’s toughest substance abuse problems.
“The Mid-Year is a unique professional development opportunity for anyone trying to prevent and reduce drug abuse, and its related problems, in their community,” said General Arthur T. Dean, CADCA’s Chairman and CEO. “After four days of intensive training, participants will return to their communities with new skills and strategies, and a clearer roadmap to create environments where young people can thrive.”
CADCA’s Mid-Year will cover a wide range of topics – everything from how to prevent prescription drug abuse and reduce heroin use to how to create tobacco-free environments, reduce impaired driving and develop policies to reduce marijuana use, synthetic drug use and underage drinking.
Keynote speakers include Michael Botticelli, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy; Kana Enomoto, Deputy Principal Administrator for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA); and Karla Sneegas, Branch Chief for the CDC’s Office of Smoking and Health.
In addition, participants will hear from a number of renown experts in the field of drug use prevention, treatment and research such as Dr. Ruben Baylor, Health Science Administrator for the National Institute on Drug Abuse; Fran Harding, Director of SAMHSA’s Center for Substance Abuse Prevention; Dr. Ralph Hingson, Director of the Division of Epidemiology and Prevention Research for the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; Dr. David Jernigan, Associate Professor, Department of Health, Behavior and Society and Director, Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Joe Rannazzisi, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Diversion Control, Drug Enforcement Administration; and many others.
The Mid-Year also welcomes nearly 200 youth from around the country who will take part in CADCA’s youth-led, adult-guided civic engagement training, the National Youth Leadership Initiative (NYLI), where they’ll learn how to become drug prevention advocates and powerful community leaders.
