Did you know that there is a substance use prevention club at Stevenson High School? Stand Up 4 Teens (SU4T) is a youth-run coalition with support from advisors Riley Hershberger and Phoebe Jud. The club meets twice a month at lunchtime so that they can discuss ways to support their peers and spread the word about the dangers of substance use. When asked why they decided to get involved with SU4T, one student shared “it’s important to have substance use prevention at school from other students”.

Providing peer to peer prevention programs is the group’s primary mission in an effort to reduce underage use of substances such as alcohol and cannabis. A big part of prevention programming is aimed at increasing protective factors in our community to shield youth from the harmful effects of substance use. This year, SU4T has decided to focus on activities that will increase school connectedness (a protective factor) so that every student feels included and cared for by their peers. Another part of the programming that SU4T would like to implement is an informational campaign for students highlighting the effects of substance use on brain development and how to make informed decisions in support of good mental health.

“In this day and age, it just makes sense to be concerned about people’s mental health,” said one SU4Tstudent. Mental health is a important
topic for teens at SHS, and the data from the Healthy Youth Survey, administered to local students every other year, support this. According to the 2021 Healthy Youth Survey, rates of depression among SHS 8th and 10th graders rose by about 1% compared to the survey results from 2018. SU4T is working to help students understand that mental health is not something that needs to be
dealt with alone, there is no shame in seeking help, and that mental health issues are more common than people may realize.

Through a combination of lunchtime information sharing sessions and posters to help destigmatize mental health disorders, SU4T will help get vital information out to students about mental health resources that are available and how substance use can make problems worse. SU4T participants are excited to get this project underway for the rest of the school year and they plan to submit their project for consideration to the Spring Youth Forum. If their project is selected, they will have the opportunity to present the project in front of a panel of judges at Great Wolf Lodge
in 2023.

Written by Stand Up 4 Teens Students