Mentoring at Boys & Girls Clubs – Opioid Prevention Initiative

The Mentoring Opportunities for Youth Initiative, Category 5 (Statewide and Regional Mentoring Initiative for Youth Impacted by Opioids and Drug Addiction) supports a broad-based approach to building mentoring program capacity in targeted regions throughout the country to help youth impacted by opioids and drug addiction. This program is authorized and funded pursuant to Pub. L. No. 116-93, 133 Stat. 2317, 2410.

Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) is uniquely positioned to drive positive outcomes for youth impacted by opioids through its multicomponent mentoring program, Mentoring at Boys & Girls Clubs – Opioid Prevention Initiative (MBGC-OPI). This innovative program connects youth with caring mentors and skill-building prevention programs while engaging them more deeply in their communities. This program, titled Sustain OPI, seeks continued support for BGCA’s first cohort of MBGC-OPI communities in order to build on project successes, lock in sustainability, and collect best practices. The target population is 240 youth ages 6–17 living in opioid-impacted rural communities in the five-state region of Kentucky, Michigan, New Hampshire, Ohio, and West Virginia. Subawards will be made to six Boys & Girls Club organizations (Clubs). Targeted youth experience risk factors in the individual, peer, family, school, and/or community domains. Family risk factors include one or more family members who are currently using or have used opioids. Youth who experience one or more risk factors are more likely to become involved in substance abuse and other problem behaviors, such as juvenile delinquency. Project goals are to promote positive outcomes and reduce negative outcomes for targeted youth, increase family and community supports, develop and share best practices, and foster project sustainability. Project objectives include provision of mentoring and prevention services to youth, piloting of innovative family engagement and mentoring strategies, and community building initiatives, including mentor training events and youth-led prevention campaigns. Youth activities include group and one-on-one mentoring delivered in the youth development environment of a Boys & Girls Club, evidence-based social-emotional learning activities, curriculum-based prevention and wellness programming, and youth-initiated mentoring and social capital mapping for teen mentees. Club activities include the development of project sustainability plans, and collaboration to produce a best practices resource. Progress will be measured using tracking reports, staff observations, and pre/post surveys. CA/NCF