New program supports Hays County schools in combating fentanyl crisis

Taking a step back

Since June 2023, Texas has required school districts to teach sixth-12th grade students about fentanyl abuse and drug poisonings with House Bill 3908, or Tucker’s Law, which is named after Tucker Roe, a 19-year-old from Leander who died after taking a fentanyl-laced pill in 2021, according to previous reporting by Community Impact.

Tucker’s Law mandates Texas public school students to receive research-based instruction on four components, according to UTHealth Houston School of Public Health:

• Suicide prevention
• Prevention of the abuse of and addiction to fentanyl
• Awareness of local and community resources and any process involved in accessing those resources
• Health education that includes information about substance use and abuse, including youth substance use and abuse

FESTA’s overarching goal is to reduce the onset and profession of substance misuse, broadly opioids, and specifically fentanyl, and its related consequences in Hays County, according to their website.

What FESTA is doing is multipronged, according to Kelly Clary, FESTA project director and Texas State social work assistant professor. The program is conducting a needs assessment, developing and implementing an educational curriculum that includes a fentanyl component, hosting outreach events with communities in Hays County, and establishing a community advisory board that meets monthly.

FESTA’s website specifically outlines this approach further, stating that they are focused on:

• Information dissemination
• Education
• Alternative events
• Problem identification and referral
• Community-based processes
• Environmental strategies

As for outreach events, FESTA has hosted two Narcan trainings in fall 2024 for Wimberley and Dripping Springs, which had almost 40 participants. The community advisory board includes Hays County Sheriff’s Office, Hill Country MHDD, Cenikor and Texas ICON.

According to FESTA’s website, they are also planning to create educational training for teachers and staff, along with parents or caretakers, and create a “train the trainer” program for sustainability of the project.

FESTA will be providing all of these services for the next five years, however Clary hopes to continue to program even after funding ceases. Over the project’s lifetime, more than 9,000 adolescents and 500 adults will be served, according to the website.

“I am committed to doing this prevention and this outreach work in my community, not only during this time, but again, beyond,“ Clary said. “I do not want these problems to persist, and I want to help be part of that change, that impact that we can have on our youth.”

Why it matters

Since the pandemic, Texas has seen a rise in substance use and drug-related deaths. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, there were over 106,600 drug poisoning deaths in the U.S. in 2021—the highest on record and a 51% increase from prepandemic levels.

In Texas, there were 2,770 opioid poisoning deaths in 2021, accounting for 56% of all drug poisoning deaths in the state.

Clary said one of the biggest challenges in addressing substance abuse is the stigma surrounding the issue. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness Texas, stigma creates barriers to seeking treatment, as individuals may avoid getting help due to fear of judgment or discrimination.

“We should address that elephant in the room. ... I really strongly believe knowledge is power,” Clary said. “We need to get this information out to students, and we need to do it in multiple ways, from different perspectives, from different stakeholders, because the more that they hear it, ... the better likelihood they're able to make those informed decisions when they are given that opportunity to make a choice.”