For more than 40 years, the Fort Bend Regional Council on Substance Abuse has provided counseling and outpatient programs to county residents struggling with substance abuse.

In addition to its regular programs, the council leads the Fort Bend Community Prevention Coalition with members of the business, law enforcement, faith, health and civic communities.  The coalition held its annual drug symposium April 20 at the Missouri City Community Center to discuss furthering youth drug use prevention.

“Whereas we work directly with kids, the coalition works at a community level developing laws and policies,” Prevention Program Director Bob Conlon said.

The nonprofit began in Rosenberg in 1976 with adult-only programs, according to Laura Jenkins, director of program compliance. She said the council’s adult program has grown from about 150 people in its first year to almost 543 people in 2016.

The council has staff at Access Health in Richmond and at the Texana Center in Rosenberg as well. In the 1980s, the council expanded to include youth programs that are now held in 40 schools in Fort Bend ISD, Lamar Consolidated ISD and Stafford MSD.

“The need was recognized because, I’m sure many of the people—this is my guess—many of the people who came in had children and the schools asked for our help,” Jenkins said.

In total, the council reaches about 45,000 students per year through its youth programs, Conlon said. The nonprofit also holds three summer camps.

Ed Shemelya presents on marijuana regulations and usage during the Fort Bend Community Prevention Coalition's meeting April 20, 2017. The Fort Bend Regional Council on Substance Abuse is opposed to marijuana legalization.[/caption]

Conlon said FBISD has recently solicited their partnership at schools deemed to have higher levels of drug use or at-risk behaviors reported on the district’s school surveys.

Frank Perkins, a youth prevention counselor, works with middle and high school students and said when the 12-week program starts, teens are typically hard to reach.

“Because the information we talk about gets personal, and so you’re the stranger, in so many words,” Perkins said, adding  some learn to open up. “I’ve seen kids who were very skeptical at the very beginning then become very large butterflies [by] the end and don’t want you to go.”

Tiffany Chaney, lead counselor at Willowridge High School, said the council has worked with her students for two to four years and simply having other counselors like Perkins at the school regularly helps.

Laura Jenkins, left standing, Frank Perkins, right standing, and Bob Conlon, seated, of the Fort Bend Regional Council on Substance Abuse.[/caption]

“As the counselor-student ratio increases, that’s two additional bodies that we have on campus that can help us reach out to our kids,” she said. “So at least on a Friday, at least one time a week, something they said may impact them.”

Youth programs are designed for all grade levels, but some shared discussion topics include the power of media influence and peer pressure to use illegal substances, anger and stress management. The latter subject is something Conlon said parents might not realize young children can experience.

“You start a conversation with them about, ‘What get’s you worried? What get’s you uptight?’” he said. “And then of course they identify all kinds of positive and negative coping strategies, and then the prevention counselor comes in.”