Youth Drug Use and its
Effects in our Community.
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
1
Introduction
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Team Members
♦ Angelica Martinez
♦ Armando Farfan
♦ Erica Carmona
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Research Questions
♦ What are the effects drug use has on
youth in our Community?
♦ What are the effects on students who
use drugs?
♦ What are the effects on students who
do not use drugs?
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Findings
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College - Spring 2009
Schooling Level
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College - Spring 2009
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Age
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College - Spring 2009
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Ethnicity
Hispanic/Latino – 92%
 White – 6%
 Asian – 1%
 African American – 1%
 Other

◦ Mexican
◦ Pacific Islander
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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YOUTH DRUG USE
♦ 43
% of our survey
respondents reported current
drug use
♦
15% 8-12 graders nationally
report current drug use (2008)
Source: National Institutes of Health
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Drug of Choice
♦ 91% Marijuana
♦ 12% Cocaine/Crack
♦ 4% Meth
♦ 2% Heroin
♦ 10% Other
Alcohol
PCP
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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What Led the Youth in Our
Community to Use Drugs?
Friends/Community (13)
Stress (7)
Family (4)
Curiosity (3)
Myself (3)
Don’t Know (9)
Other (4)
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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The Effects that Drugs are
going to have on Your Future
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College - Spring 2009
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This is What it Would Take
to Stop Using
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College - Spring 2009
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Among Respondents Who
Reported Using Drugs
♦ 11% said it would be very hard to turn away
from drugs when they are around them
♦ 6% said it would be hard
♦ 9% said it would be easy
♦ 13% said it would be very easy
♦ 30% said it would be neither
♦ 67% said not using would help them stay
focused on making better decisions in life
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Family Relationships
♦ 32% of respondents said that drugs have a
very negative affect on family relationships
♦ 36% said drugs have a slightly negative effect
♦ 25% said drugs have no effect
♦ 6% said drugs have a positive effect
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Ability to Get a Good Job
♦ 42% of respondents said drugs have a very
negative effect on their ability to get a
decent job
♦ 30% said drugs have a slightly negative effect
♦ 19% said drugs has no effect
♦ 7% said drugs has a positive effect
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Ability to Finish High School
♦ 1% of respondents said drugs have a very
negative affect on their ability to finish High
School
♦ 29% said drugs have a slightly negative effect
♦ 24% said drugs has no effect
♦ 5% said drugs has a positive effect
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Ability to go to College
♦ 45% of respondents said drugs have a
very negative effect on their ability to go
to college
♦ 24% said drugs have a slightly negative
effect
♦ 21% said drugs has no effect
♦ 6% said drugs has a positive effect
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Is There Pressure?
♦ 72% of respondents said yes
♦ 27% of respondents said they are not
pressured among their peers
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College - Spring 2009
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Death from Drug Use
♦ 25% of respondents said they did lose
someone in their life due to drug use
♦ 74% said they did not
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College - Spring 2009
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Agreeing or Disagreeing to
following Statements
♦ 54% agreed that drug use causes theft in the community
♦ 59% agreed that drug use causes violence in the
community
♦ 44% agreed that drug use causes prostitution in the
community
♦ 52% agreed that if parents use drugs children will too
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Parental Support
♦ 70% of respondents said they do get support
from their parents with everything they do
♦ 29% said they don’t
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College - Spring 2009
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After School Activities
♦ 39% of respondents said they do
participate in after school activities
♦ 61% said they don’t
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College - Spring 2009
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Feelings about Drug Use
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College - Spring 2009
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The Need:
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College - Spring 2009
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Need: Effective Drug
Prevention
♦ 43 % of the 161 high school
students we surveyed report
regular drug use
♦ This compares to national rates
of
15% of any illicit drug use
among
high school students in
the last
month
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College - Spring 2009
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Need: Effective Drug
Prevention
High percentages of respondents agreed
that drug use leads youth to:
♦ Theft
♦ Prostitution
♦ Violence
♦ Trouble finishing high school
♦ Trouble going to college
♦ Trouble getting a good paying job
♦ Trouble with family relationships
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College - Spring 2009
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Need: Effective Drug Education
♦ There is ignorance about drug effect
among drug users
♦ When asked what the effects of drugs are, the largest
response category among drug users was “don’t
know”
♦ When asked if they thought drug use is harmful, a
large majority of users said no or none
♦ When asked what they thought it would take to stop
using, the largest response category among users
was “don’t know”
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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The Solution:
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College - Spring 2009
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Possible Solutions
♦ Strong community action leaders
♦ Parental involvement in the
community
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Parental Involvement
♦ Getting the media involved with
community events, fundraisers, and all
activities
♦ parental involvement in all activities
♦ parents speaking up
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College - Spring 2009
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Strong community action leaders
♦ Have
community action leaders get
more involved with our youth
◦
◦
◦
◦
Juvenile hall and California youth authority
Group homes, juvenile Rehab
High schools and after school programs
♦ Get involved in community events:
Fund raisers/ to take kids on trips
Extra curricular activities like field trips
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Recommended Solution:
Parental involvement
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College - Spring 2009
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Getting the media involved with community
events, fundraisers, and all activities
♦ Calling the local news station to address the
local concerns within our community
♦ Expanding our voices through the local news
media
♦ Bring to light the issues we are afraid to face
Digital Bridge Academy - Cabrillo
College - Spring 2009
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Parental involvement in all activities
♦ Parents attending school activities
♦ Parents coming together to create a
community action group that will help
inspire our youth
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College - Spring 2009
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Parents Speaking up
♦ Talk to their kids about the real effects of drug use
♦ Get them the resources they need so they can get
help
♦ Get involved in their recovery
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College - Spring 2009
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