MetroWest: COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP IN HOPKINTON: THE "BE FREE!" PROJECT AND THE HOPKINTON POLICE DEPARTMENT</span>

Partner organizations are “a must” for community work. During the last eighteen months, partners have proven their value in each of the five MetroWest Youth Substance Abuse Initiative communities. In Hopkinton support of the local police department is proving essential to The “be Free!” Project. “Having the Hopkinton Police Department (HPD) as a partner has increased the reach of The “be FREE!” Project, as one of several important agencies delivering a youth prevention message” says Project Director Renée Cammarata. It also creates an opportunity for enforcement and education to work in tandem with “difficult to reach” youth. The “be FREE!” Project has partnered with the HPD and others to develop a collaborative intervention process in the town. For example, when youth are identified as using alcohol or other drugs, the HPD refers them to resources within the community.

One of Renée’s first steps when she began in July 2005 was to meet with Thomas Irvin, Chief of the Hopkinton Police Department. This meeting led her to one-on-one meetings with each officer to learn more about their perspectives, needs and resources available to reduce youth substance use in the town. “These meetings were a forum for real exchange about our backgrounds, responsibilities, and vision for a healthy community for Hopkinton’s youth.”

In addition to the individual meetings, there have been a number of collaborative efforts over the past year and a half. In September, The “be FREE!” Project facilitated a training with the MetroWest TA Center on methamphetamine use: signs and symptoms, basic methamphetamine lab components, as well as demographic and geographic trends. This partnership has also yielded a youth substance abuse resource binder for police officers, to assist them during interviews with parents of youth with suspected drug and/or alcohol issues. It includes recent research that helps officers educate parents about the scientifically determined risks of underage binge drinking (Alcohol Alert, January 2006), as well as practical tools and resources for parents.

According to Renée, “Our collaboration allows us to increase each other’s effectiveness and provide the community with the best strategy for addressing youth substance abuse.” Healthy youth development requires a well-defined holistic strategy and targeted resources. Toward that end, The “be FREE!” Project helps the HPD to couple enforcement with education and respond to specific incidents with immediate resources. This collaborative approach is an example of how one municipality is working to shift norms, build community, and reduce youth substance use and abuse.

“This partnership has been an outstanding resource for the department. Not only has the project provided important prevention information for the officers through facilitation of critical trainings, but the grant has also offered access to intervention resources in times of crisis with families. Officers look to the grant when working with families struggling with substance abuse. When families in need are identified, it gives me peace of mind knowing that there are resources available and a system in place to better support our community and its youth.”

-Thomas Irvin
Chief, Hopkinton Police Department

“Through the grant we have been able to have officers work closely with a youth substance abuse specialist. She has provided our officers with specifically-tailored content and helps keep our resources up to date. Working with the grant has enabled us to work more cooperatively with the families of Hopkinton and provide our officers with increased resources to remain on the ‘cutting edge’ of drug and alcohol related knowledge and research. Through this, we are better positioned to educate families on issues relating to substance abuse.”

"During the first year of The ‘be FREE!’ Project, a significant and meaningful interaction occurred between each officer and Renée where we discussed views, opinions, responses and possible solutions to youth substance abuse. As the SRO and a full-time police officer for the Town of Hopkinton, access to The ‘be FREE!’ Project, its information, resources, and most of all personnel, has been a tremendous asset to the community as a whole."