Osage Nation Receives Grant to Address Teen Drug and Alcohol Abuse

The Nation has been Awarded Nearly $2.5 Million from The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to Treat Substance Abuse Occurring at an Early Age

By ON Communications

Pawhuska, Okla., Osage Nation Reservation (Tuesday, September 18, 2018)–Last month, the Osage Nation Grants Department received notice of an award for a competitive grant that will help teens with drug and alcohol abuse. The Nation is set to receive more than $300,000 this year to begin the early stages of a five-year project with additional award amounts totaling nearly $2.5 million.

The Grants Department applies for and assists with grant support for all Osage Nation programs and departments and said they were especially proud of this award and the lasting impact it will have. “This will help all youth from ages twelve to eighteen that attend Pawhuska, Hominy, and Fairfax High Schools. Treating drug and alcohol abuse at a young age will increase the likelihood of the person staying sober in the future. It will also help the families stay sober because they will receive counseling as well,” said Chris Standing Bear, Osage Nation Grants Manager.

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Drug overdoses are the leading cause of death for Americans under the age of 50…over 97 million people took prescription painkillers in 2015; of these,12 million did so without being directed by a physician.”

In Osage County, between 2007 and 2012 seven out of ten deaths involved a prescription painkiller and more than half of the people who died had a history of substance abuse according to the Oklahoma State Health Department.

The five-year project includes a plan for the hire of additional counselors and case managers that will be placed at Pawhuska, Hominy, and Fairfax schools. The counselors will screen and assess all high school and junior high students and follow-up with any drug or alcohol counseling that is needed. The families of students who participate in counseling will also receive counseling so that the whole family is addressing the problem and learning how to cope with addiction issues.

Overall, the focus of the grant is to use evidence-based programs with a family centered approach to decrease substance abuse in Osage communities and to also decrease the stigma surrounding successful substance abuse treatment in Osage County or the Osage Nation Reservation.

Osage Nation Grants Department
The mission of the Grants Department is to effectively support and facilitate Nation's overall strategic plans by applying sound project and grants management principles and best practices.
Physical Address
627 Grandview
2nd Floor
Pawhuska, OK 74056
Phone
918-287-5383

For Media Inquiries: Osage Nation Communications 918-287-5599communications@osagenation-nsn.gov