The Alcohol and Drug Awareness Program (ADAP) of Weston kicked off Red Ribbon Week on October 27 to raise awareness about the dangers of alcohol and drug abuse. ADAP youth group members greeted fellow students and provided breakfast. They also handed out red bracelets saying, “Love Yourself, Be Drug Free.”
The ADAP sponsored Evergreen Ball will be held on Saturday, December 6th, 2014 at St. Francis Church in Weston from 8:00 to 11:00 PM for all high school freshmen and sophomores residing in Weston.
You do not have to have an official date; groups are welcome.
In order to attend the Evergreen Dance, each student is expected to review the behavior guidelines on the Parent/Student contract (see below). Parents and students are required to complete and sign this contract and mail it, along with a non-refundable contribution of $45 per attendee to ADAP of Weston, PO Box 1241, Weston, CT 06883.
All contracts and checks must be received by December 1, 2014.
Due to space limitations, only 200 students may attend, on a first-come, first-served basis, according to the date of the postmark.
We will send you confirmation by email. There will be no tickets issued.
For additional information please feel free to contact :
Celia Meadow and Maria Dominici
2014 Evergreen Ball Co-Chairs
Westonevergreen2014@gmail.com
ADAP’s Youth Leadership Council provides Weston students with a safe environment to discuss the challenges they face in high school. And to learn about the risks associated with substance abuse. In addition, YLC members may mentor younger students, become peer leaders, and help with ADAP’s awareness programs in the Weston schools and in the community.
YLC is comprised of 25-40 Weston students in 9 – 12th grades. Tim Walsh is the director and facilitator for the Youth Leadership Council.
There will be a parents’ meeting on November 3. Tim Walsh will present the program and expectations. Even parents who attended this meeting last year are askedto attend this year. The meeting will be in the Community Room of the Library at 6pm (right before the YLC meeting).
Space in the YLC program is limited and acceptance is on a first come basis.
ADAP meets on the first Monday of each month at the Weston Public Library from 7-9pm.
October 6, November 3, December 1, January 5, February 2, March 3, April 6, May 4 and June 1
ADAP YLC is open to all high school students that live in the town of Weston.
For more information please feel free to contact us at westonadapylc@gmail.com.
Please download the ADAP Invitation Letter and Application:
As reported in The Weston Forum (March 2014) alcohol and marijuana use has risen among Weston teens, while cigarette and other illicit drug use has decreased.
The survey was sponsored by Positive Directions The Center for Prevention & Recovery, the Weston school board, Weston public schools, Weston Department of Youth Services, and the Alcohol and Drug Awareness Program (ADAP) of Weston. Its content was derived from the Connecticut Governor’s Prevention Initiative for Youth.
The survey’s purpose was to learn about attitudes, behaviors, and the prevalence of the use of substances such as tobacco, alcohol, and prescription and illicit drugs.
For more detailed information please visit the article at The Weston Forum:
http://www.thewestonforum.com/17276/marijuana-alcohol-usage-is-up-with-weston-teens/
Letter to the Editor. April 7
With a recent survey showing increased use of marijuana and alcohol among older teens in Weston, we want parents to know about an important resource available to help students cope with peer pressure and other issues, including drug and alcohol use. Weston’s Alcohol and Drug Awareness Program runs a youth group, in which students in grades 9 through 12 meet once a month with a trained youth coordinator.
Here’s what one parent had to say about it in a note to the ADAP board: “By involving teens seriously in difficult discussions, ADAP’s able to cut through a lot of the cynicism and mistrust kids often have for the advice adults give them,” said Francis Phillips, whose daughter is a member of Weston’s Youth Leadership Council, ADAP’s youth group.
Andrew Katz, who is now a college freshman and a former co-president of ADAP, wrote this about his experience: “Exchanging viewpoints with the group has strongly impacted the choices I have made in the pressure-filled world that is high school. We are not an abstinence group; however, we do promote healthy choices.”
for the full letter please visit: Letter-to-the-Editor.ADAP
“A Personal Journey” Parent Workshop with Motivational Speaker about Drug Use and Recovery at Weston High School on May 1st
Parents of middle school and high school students will have the opportunity, Thursday, May 1, to hear Carl Antisell, a motivational speaker who is in long-term recovery from substance abuse, speak at a workshop. The workshop will be held at the Weston High School auditorium at 7 pm.
The Alcohol and Drug Awareness Program of Weston, which sponsors a pre-Prom speaker each spring, is also offering a workshop for parents with the same motivational speaker who addresses the district’s high school students during the day.
The workshop provides, teachers, and school personnel the chance to meet and listen to Mr. Antisell, who will have talked about his journey to recovery to high school students at two morning assemblies on May 1. Parents attending the evening workshop will also be able to direct any concerns about drug and alcohol use to Michelle Albright, Ph.D., who is director of Weston Youth Services. She will moderate the event, which will also offer refreshments.
Carl Antisell began using addictive substances at an early age to help him relieve anxiety and depression. When his use spun out of control, he started the recovery process and has not used drugs or alcohol for more than three years. In addition to educating young people and their families about mental illness, Mr. Antisell is an advocate for more openness about mental health, particularly the challenges and stigma facing youths in recovery. In his own recovery process, he learned healthy, effective ways to handle his emotions as well as life’s ups and down.
A 2013 survey of Weston students by Positive Directions showed increased use of marijuana and alcohol among older teens in Weston. The link to ADAP’s website is: www.westonadap.org.
For more information on Carl please visit http://mindingyourmind.org/who-we-are/leadership/speakers/carl-antisell/
To hear Carl’s story please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R849QmbrzxI&feature=youtu.be
ADAP’s representatives kick-off Red Ribbon Week on Oct 28 at Weston High School
Student representatives held a kick-off celebration of Red Ribbon Week at Weston High school as part of a nationwide effort to raise awareness about the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse.
The ADAP sponsored Evergreen Ball will be held on Friday, December 6th, 2013 at St. Francis Church in Weston from 8:00 to 11:00 PM for all high school freshmen and sophomores residing in Weston.
You do not have to have an official date; groups are welcome.
In order to attend the Evergreen Dance, each student is expected to review the behavior guidelines in the Parent/Student contract linked below.
For additional information please feel free to contact :
Celia Meadow and Maria Dominici
2013 Evergreen Ball Co-Chairs
Westonevergreen2013@gmail.com
The Youth Leadership Council provides Weston students with a safe environment to discuss the challenges they face in high school. And to learn about the risks associated with substance abuse. In addition, YLC members may mentor younger students, become peer leaders, and help with ADAP’s awareness programs in the Weston schools and in the community
For more information please see the Invite Letter and YLC Application below:
Weston Representatives serve breakfast before the Michael Fowlin Presentation May 2013
From the Weston Forum article by Rose Horowitz & Eilene Brostoff
Receiving a standing ovation from a rapt audience of high school students, Michael Fowlin, an actor and psychologist, told them that one of the most important lessons they can learn is go “beyond what you are supposed to do and do what you need to do.” Dr. Fowlin, who has a Ph.D. in clinical psychology, used different voices at two pre-prom assemblies for high school students last week to ask students to think about their actions and to reach out to one another: smile and say hello to 10 people you don’t usually greet and welcome diversity, he said.
Click here for the full article: Weston Forum Fowlin Pre Prom Advice
