Strengthening Community: The Collaborative Recognizes State Prevention Awardees

LONDONDERRY, VT August 11, 2025  –  The Collaborative, a Prevention Lead Organization for the Vermont Department of Health (VDH), Division of Substance Use Programs (DSU), announced over $850,000 in sub-grant funding. This funding will support 21 vital community prevention partners across Vermont, enabling them to address disparities in Vermont’s substance misuse prevention system by filling geographical gaps and expanding access to crucial services.

Among the statewide organizations to receive funding are Big Brothers Big Sisters of Vermont, Education Justice & Coalition of Vermont, Prevention Works!VT, and Unleashing the Power of Partnership for Learning (UP for Learning).

Maryann Morris, Executive Director of The Collaborative, emphasized the profound impact of these partnerships, stating, “Our funded partners are absolutely vital to the PL4 project, ensuring substance misuse prevention stays deeply rooted locally while directly addressing our region’s greatest challenges. I’m especially impressed by the caliber, skill, and care of this year’s new group of partners.”

Initiatives supported by these grants include:

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Vermont Youth Resiliency Project: pairing youth with mentors using its evidence-based mentoring model. The project also includes activities that build resilience, support healthy coping skills, foster creativity, and strengthen teamwork and leadership. Youth will lead a culminating community-wide prevention campaign or activity. To learn more about Big Brothers Big Sisters of Vermont visit: https://www.bbbsvt.org/.

• Education Justice Coalition of Vermont BIPOC & Allied Youth Leadership Development and Connection: centering its work on healthy youth-adult relationships, youth leadership, and empowering youth to create change. This project includes four connected programs: a Youth Organizing Training Program, a Youth Social Justice Network, a Summer Social Justice Camp, and Camp Free to Be—a BIPOC-centered camp. Programs focus on youth from underrepresented communities, including BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and disabled youth. To learn more about the Education Justice Coalition of Vermont visit: https://edjcoalitionvt.org/.

• Prevention Works!VT:  supporting Prevention Professionals, Both Community and School-Based by providing tailored support to primary prevention staff in schools and community settings across the four health districts served by PL4. To learn more about Prevention Works!VT visit: https://preventionworksvermont.org/.

• Unleashing the Power of Partnership for Learning (UP for Learning): empowering middle and high school teams to engage in Getting to ‘Y’ (GTY), a youth-led initiative that uses Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) data to reduce health risks and strengthen protective factors. GTY builds youth agency, fosters purpose and hope, and promotes healthier school communities through student-driven prevention efforts. To learn more about UP for Learning visit: https://www.upforlearning.org/

Vermont Prevention Lead Organizations are funded by state appropriation. As Prevention Lead Organization for Region 4 (PL4), The Collaborative coordinates prevention work in Bennington, Windham, Windsor and Southern Orange Counties. For over 25 years, The Collaborative has worked to empower healthy youth, families, and communities. Today, its direct service area includes 18 towns and 10 schools, focusing on promoting healthy communities and substance-free youth through education, programming, and policy development. For more information on The Collaborative or PL4, visit www.thecollaborative.us or www.pl4.org.