Liquid error (sections/main-article line 96): invalid url input
School is back in session, and summer is winding down. It won’t be long before the first nip of fall will be in the air, which means October and Red Ribbon Week are just around the corner. This October 23-31, youth will celebrate substance-free living with this year’s Red Ribbon Week slogan “YOLO. BeDrug Free.” It is common for youth to perceive drug-use as normal, but inactualitymostyouthdo not use drugs or alcohol. And when kids say or hear “YOLO” this is the exact reason why. Our kids know they only have one chance at life, and rather than risking it on drugs and alcohol, they embrace healthy activities.
How will your school or organization choose to raise awareness for living healthy, substance-free lives? Red Ribbon Week is the perfect time forCelebrating Healthy Choices. This one-week activity set helps you make the most ofspecialschool-wide events for your Kindergarten through Grade 5 students. Everything you need to organize your school-wide event, including plans and scripts for opening and closing assemblies, as well as fully scripted fun and engaging activities, is provided in straightforward kits. Activities include songs, raps, and puppet play that teach students the social emotional skills they need to make healthy choices. Students learn rap lyrics and get a chance to perform them at a school-wide performance. Celebrating Healthy Choicesis a fun way to bring everyone together to foster a healthier school climate and celebrate a good cause.
The Mecklenburg County Alcoholic Beverage Control Board in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina supports prevention education through its Special Grant Initiative to leverage community resources from multiple sectors to support comprehensive early prevention education. The program engages local partners to deliver TGFD - Maximizing Life in schools, after-school programs, and other youth-serving settings with analysis and reporting provided by the C.E. Mendez Foundation to assess the impact of this collaboration on the students.
Equipping Students. Strengthening Schools. Building Safer Communities
In this issue, you'll find practical resources, valuable insights, and new opportunities to support your prevention efforts.
Making Room for Prevention
The Shared Responsibility for Implementation Fidelity
Schools, prevention providers, and funders share a commitment to helping young people thrive. Their responsibilities should reinforce one another, but when expectations are established separately, they can create a difficult contradiction.
When implementing an evidence based prevention education curriculum, maintaining fidelity to the researched model is essential to achieving the outcomes all stakeholders expect. Finding ways to fit these models into already crowded calendars can lead to compromises that reduce its intended impact.
This month’s article, “Making Room for Prevention,” explores this challenge and what schools, providers, funders, and policymakers can do together to ensure prevention education has a place to do its important work.
Read the Article
Social Media
Are you following us?
Don’t miss the good stuff! Follow Too Good programs for fresh prevention ideas, helpful resources, program updates, and stories from schools and communities nationwide.
Using Too Good in your school or community? Tag us @TooGoodPrograms in your posts and stories so we can celebrate and share the great work you’re doing! You can also help spread the word about prevention by sharing our content with your colleagues and community.
Upcoming Open Enrollment Trainings
Curriculum Trainings
October 6-8, 2026 - Boston, MA
February 9-11, 2027 - Atlanta, GA
Register Today
