Welcome to part two in a four-part series in which we share findings from year one of Virginia’s State Opioid Response (SOR) Grant. This week, we continue our series with a look at progress related to Virginia's prevention efforts. We also share reflections on how prevention practitioners have responded to the emerging COVID-19 crisis, and how their work has quickly adapted to continue to deliver high quality prevention services in the midst of a rapidly changing environment.

For most young people who enroll in college, it is their first time away from home and away from the support of their established peer groups and family members (Fromme, Corbin, & Kruse, 2008). This adjustment can be overwhelming, as is the added full college course schedule and expectations to perform (Macan, Shahani, Dipboye, & Phillips, 1990). On top of that, individuals at this age are in a stage of development when they are introduced to often difficult realities of adult responsibilities (Arnett, 2000).

Although schools’ primary function is to provide education, they serve as a natural access point for children across diverse subpopulations to receive health services (Richardson & Juszczak, 2008: O’Connell, Boat, & Warner, 2009). School-based interventions have the potential to educate youth about mental health issues and decrease stigma (Essler, Arthur, & Stickley, 2006). This section of the review focuses on guiding best practices for treatment of behavioral health in school-based settings organized across four domains: comprehensive behavioral health systems within schools; prevention; school policies; and personnel.

Since our founding in 1976, the OMNI Institute has invested in shared learning—the act of working together to achieve a common objective.