Center will serve as the premier alcohol and drug misuse prevention and recovery resource for colleges and universities across the nation

 

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State University President Michael V. Drake, along with leadership representatives from the College of Social Work, Student Life and the Student Wellness Center and the College of Pharmacy, will celebrate the opening of the Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Drug Misuse Prevention and Recovery (HECAOD) with a “ribbon-joining” ceremony April 6.

“While many new endeavors kick off with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, our prevention and recovery center will feature a ribbon-joining ceremony to visually illustrate how these areas tie together to the benefit of students across the nation,” said Drake. “The center will be a crucial resource in preventing and controlling substance misuse, which can easily derail the promising lives of our students.”

HECAOD, made possible by a $2 million gift from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, will replace a federal center that was lost to budget cuts in 2012. The center will help college and community leaders develop, implement and evaluate programs and policies to reduce problems experienced by students who misuse alcohol and other drugs.

“It is well established that substance use on college campuses leads to a number of negative outcomes and can interfere with the academic success of students,” said Steven M. Hilton, chairman, president and CEO of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. “We are pleased to support the launch of a new national center at Ohio State to ensure colleges and universities across the country are equipped with the information and resources they need to support prevention, early intervention and recovery.”

To celebrate the opening of HECAOD, located in Stillman Hall on the Columbus campus, there will be a weeklong series of drug and alcohol awareness activities at Ohio State and on the Web:

Monday, April 6: HECAOD opening and ribbon-joining ceremony featuring Vice President for Student Life Javaune Adams-Gaston, College of Social Work Dean Thomas Gregoire, College of Pharmacy Dean Henry Mann and HECAOD Director John Clapp; 9-11a.m., with ribbon joining at 9:45a.m., Stillman Hall, 1947 College Road.
• Tuesday, April 7: Free screening of the film The Anonymous People, Stillman Hall, Room 100. 6:30-8:30 p.m. Food will be provided, and CEUs are available. For more information, visit: hecaod.osu.edu/events
• Wednesday, April 8: Collegiate Recovery webinar with John Kelly, associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard University Medical School, 3 p.m. Register here to participate.

 

According to the National Institutes of Health, more than 1,800 college students nationwide between the ages of 18 and 24 die each year from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes, and more than 690,000 students nationwide between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports unintentional drug overdose as the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S., and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports the average age of prescription drug abuse onset is 22. Students who engage in heavy alcohol and drug use often fail academically, which has long-term consequences.

HECAOD will be guided by John Clapp, who is also a professor and associate dean for research at Ohio State’s College of Social Work. Clapp, who served as director of the former Department of Education’s Higher Education Center for Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention, is a member of the National Advisory Council for the U.S. Center for Substance Abuse Prevention. Clapp is also an expert in Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) and has managed more than $8 million in SBIRT-related projects.

The HECAOD will have two associate directors, Connie Boehm and Kenneth M. Hale. Boehm is the director of the Student Life Student Wellness Center at Ohio State and currently serves as the national co-chair for the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Wellness and Health Promotion Knowledge Community. Hale is the co-founder of The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy’s Generation Rx initiative, widely recognized as the nation’s leading prevention program for prescription drug misuse among college students. Sarah Nerad, program manager for Ohio State’s Collegiate Recovery Community and recognized nationally for her participation in furthering recovery programs on college campuses, will serve as the director of recovery.

Contact: Jones-Harris, Frankie jones-harris.1@osu.edu or

614-330-2206

Copy of press release