Empowering Teens to Keep Schools Drug Free

Fairfax County teens joined youth leaders from across the state in developing plans to keep their schools and communities alcohol and drug free.

By Aurelia Jahani

This summer 11 members of the Youth Council of the Unified Prevention Coalition of Fairfax County (UPC) took part in YADAPP. For those of you who do not know YADAPP, it stands for the Youth Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Project.

YADAPP is a five-day leadership conference for high school students sponsored by Virginia-ABC at Longwood University. The program focuses on empowering teens to keep their schools and communities alcohol and drug free by taking positive peer leadership roles. YADAPP has impacted the lives of more than 10,000 students throughout Virginia since it began in 1984. Some 440 different high schools and community organizations have participated in this youth-led program.

Our UPC team also included three young adult sponsors, and our students represented six high schools in Fairfax County. Each of our three teams was tasked with creating a “STAN” (Strategies to Act Now) Plan. Youth are expected to learn from the many workshops, forums and speakers, and develop an action plan that promotes substance abuse and/or violence prevention efforts within their own school and/or community.

Team members from UPC came up with creative, detailed and realistic STAN Plans. One of the plans created by four of our Youth Council members was called Project EX. Project EX entailed an alcohol and drug free party, held once a month for all high school students in Fairfax County. This would include live music, sport games, Tie Dye and party food. The party would also include a motivational speaker who could portray a positive relatable message to teens on the consequences of alcohol and substance abuse. Hopefully, our UPC Youth Council can implement Project EX at least twice this coming school year.

The daily motivational speaker was most everyone’s favorite part of the five-day conference. Each speaker shared important positive messages through personal experiences, storytelling, comedy and tragic losses.

One UPC Youth Council member said her favorite speaker was John Morello “because he really showed even when making mistakes you can turn your life around! It was really motivational for not only me but all the other YADAPP youth.”

Another student was most impressed by speaker Bobby Petrocelli, whose life was changed when a drunk driver’s pickup truck came through his bedroom and killed his wife. Petrocelli, author of 10 Seconds Will Change Your Life Forever, “helped me realize once again that a simple smile can change someone's life,” she said.

Still another student said the speaker who challenged her the most was Dale “Mad Dog” Messmer, a 10-year U.S. Marine veteran and businessman who made one bad choice that cost him 10 years, eight months and 11 days of his life in prison. “I met and talked to him one on one, and he was so sweet,” she said. “I was too quick to judge him at first. I learned that I need to be more open and expose myself to different people.”

Our students appreciated the YADAPP experience for a variety of reasons, including its “refreshing atmosphere” and the opportunity to learn “the importance of leadership as well as patience.” 

 “I loved that we could just say hi to someone without fear of being judged or ignored,” said one student.

 “The friendly smiles and support that was shared reminded me that the world is not full of bitterness,” commented another student.

 “YADAPP helped me to learn to work with other types of people and motivates me to be the leader and positive role model in our community,” said another student.

YADAPP was not only a great opportunity for the Youth Council but also for the three adult sponsors lucky enough to participate in this motivational learning experience with other teens across the Commonwealth.

UPC welcomes other high school students to join the Youth Council. An online application is available here, and questions can be directed to Youth Council Coordinator Samara Kimmelman. The first meeting is set for Tuesday, Aug. 6.

Aurelia Jahani recently completed a Master of Public Health degree at George Mason University. A graduate of Virginia Tech in health science, Aurelia interned last spring for UPC and worked with the coalition this summer. She began this week as assistant director with Fairfax County’s Reston Teen Center.

The Unified Prevention Coalition of Fairfax County is a nonprofit organization with more than 50 community partners working together to keep youth and young adults safe and drug free. Visit www.unifiedpreventioncoalition.org.