By Laurie Herrick, Preventionist The Middlesex County Coalition for Healthy Communities held its first meeting of 2022 on January 12. The coalition is looking forward to fostering community change by educating the community and working with our partners during the upcoming year. At the meeting, discussions were focused on a few of the key even...

For teenagers everywhere, learning to drive and getting a driver's license is an exciting rite of passage. It's also an enormous responsibility, and it's important for teens to understand the consequences of dangerous driving — especially when alcohol and other substances are involved. In 2000, Middlesex County, New Jersey launched its very first D...

By Laurie Herrick, Preventionist Wellspring Center for Prevention and the Coalition for Healthy Communities support youth peer-to-peer prevention messaging in many ways. One way is through our "Don't Get Vaped In" Creative Expression contest. Students in grades 6, 7 and 8 throughout Middlesex County are invited to interpret their idea of our contes...

By: Stephanie Yau and Dheeksha Sudhakar, Incorruptible.Us Students From South Brunswick High School National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week (NDAFW) is an annual, week-long observance to encourage more conversations about the effects of drugs and alcohol especially on teenagers. The week brings awareness of many misconceptions and myths that teens...

By Yashi Srivastava, Middlesex County Youth Ambassador Campaign for Tobacco-Free KidsThe use of tobacco in the U.S. is the No. 1 cause of preventable death. The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK) is a non-profit organization that has dedicated more than 20 years to protecting children and saving lives from tobacco use, and is the leading ad...

By: Wellspring Staff The last several months have been difficult on all of us, especially students who have been isolated from their friends during the COVID-19 quarantine. This extended isolation has taken a toll on our youth's mental health, and many teens are unsure of where to turn during these trying times. In honor of National Mental Health M...

By Laurie Herrick, Preventionist For the past nine years, the Coalition for Healthy Communities, an initiative of the Wellspring Center for Prevention, has hosted a creative expression contest for middle school students. In the past, the contest focused on the misuse and abuse of prescription and over-the-counter medicines by adolescents. This year...

By Helen Varvi, Deputy Director National Prevention Week (NPW) is held each year during May. Originally, SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) chose this timing because it is near the start of summer, an important time for school, communities, and prevention professionals to focus on prevention. Adolescents and ful...

By: Mara Carlin, Coordinator of Coalition and Community Programs This week marks the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) 10th annual National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week. For 10 years NIDA has been connecting students and teens with scientists to launch community wide educational events so that teens can learn the science surrounding drugs...

By: Mara Carlin, Coordinator of Coalition and Community Programs On March 6, 2020, The Coalition for Healthy Communities and Wellspring Center for Prevention held the 16th annual Young Women's Conference, My Journey, My Voice: Empowering Young Women, at Middlesex County College in Edison, NJ. A total of 140 10th graders from 12 High Schools in Midd...