UA Drug Education Program Named To A National Registry Of Effective Programs

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Keep a Clear Mind, a model drug abuse prevention program developed at the University of Arkansas, has been named to the National Registry of Effective Programs, a resource for schools and communities seeking proven methods to educate children and parents about substance abuse.

After a thorough review of more than 400 programs, the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) selected Keep a Clear Mind as one of only 19 model programs to be named to the National Registry of Effective Programs.

Keeping a Clear Mind was developed by the UA's Health Education Projects Office under the direction of Dr. Michael Young, who has been a professor in the department of health science, kinesiology, recreation and dance in the College of Education and Health Professions for more than 20 years.

To be added to the registry, the program underwent a comprehensive review to determine whether it had been implemented under scientifically rigorous conditions and whether it has consistently demonstrated beneficial results.

"The College of Education and Health Professions is proud of the achievements of Dr. Young and the Health Projects Office," Interim dean Sharon Hunt said. "Being named to the national registry simply means that more schools and communities will be able to benefit from his excellent programs.  His work has been honored frequently in the past.  Once again, he has placed the University of Arkansas in the forefront of substance abuse prevention education in the United States."

Keep a Clear Mind is a take-home drug education program for fourth graders and their parents. The program also provides parent newsletters and student incentives. Two randomized community trials showed that Keep a Clear Mind can improve parent-child communication and increase the understanding of fourth through sixth graders about how to refuse and avoid drug use. The involvement of parents encourages open communication and is crucial to the success of the program.

The program was developed in the late 1980s by Young and his colleague Chudley Werch, a former UA faculty member. It was originally funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education and later by the Nancy Reagan Foundation. The program includes lessons that deal specifically with alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana and offers tools young people can use to "say no" to drugs.

CSAP named Keep a Clear Mind a model program in spring 2000.  Rigorous evaluation showed that Keep a Clear Mind had a positive impact on recognized risk factors for later drug abuse.  In addition to increasing parent-child communication, the participants in the program changed their perceptions of their peers' drug-related attitudes and behaviors, gained confidence in their ability to resist peer pressure and understood more about the harmful effects of drugs.

CSAP is a component of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the lead federal agency for improving the quality and availability of substance abuse prevention, addiction treatment and mental health services.

- 30 -