The Road To Results

In February 2006, several Stump youth attended the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) National Youth Leadership Academy (NYLA). Of the thirty youth selected nationally to participate in this pilot, Dyllan Leonard, Khiree Smith, Chad Ricketts and Joseph Wilkerson, represented Stump The Violence Youth Leadership Institute. This initial meeting was geared toward introducing the youth to CADCA’s concept and desires to train youth to be more effective in their respective communities. Another objective of the conference was to secure buy-in, feedback and input from youth, as to what specific training they would need to be effective in their communities. The February 2-day session ended with a plan to reconvene in the summer, to kick-off the effort at the CADCA 5th Annual Mid-Year Training Institute in Henderson, Nevada.

Next, on August 12-18, 2006. Stump youth traveled to the Mid-Year training for the CADCA’s NYLA training conference in Nevada. The four Hartford youth learned about the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administrations (SAMHSA) Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF). They learned and practiced various presentation, planning, group and advocacy skills. The Stump youth participated in the plans for the then, upcoming CADCA National Conference to be held February 2007 in Washington DC, where over 300– youth attended.

On August 30, 2006, Khiree Smith and Andrew Woods traveled to St. Petersburg, Florida to participate on a nationally televised panel. This discussion was video taped and can be viewed on our webtelecast on the Hartford Communities That Care website. Click on the link in our "favorite links".