LRADAC receives major federal funding for substance prevention and mental health awareness

Funding will come from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

LRADAC has been awarded significant federal funding that will tremendously impact substance misuse prevention, intervention, and treatment services in both Lexington and Richland Counties.

LRADAC was awarded a federal Partnership for Success grant by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP). The grant will fund Lexington United, a collaborative approach based in each Lexington County, SC school district, focusing on preventing youth substance use and promoting mental health awareness. The grant award of approximately $400,000 annually for the next five years will help reduce the onset and progression of substance misuse and its related problems by supporting the development and delivery of community-based substance misuse prevention and mental health promotion services. The program will expand and strengthen the capacity of local community prevention providers to implement evidence-based prevention programs.

“Receiving this funding is critical in expanding community-based prevention and mental health awareness efforts in Lexington County,” said Ashley Bodiford, LRADAC’s Director of Prevention. “Through continued collaboration and the ability to implement innovative strategies based on specific needs identified within these communities, we will be able to ensure that the disparate populations in the greatest need are served. This effort will significantly increase LRADAC’s efforts to implement outreach services and connect individuals to the necessary resources without barriers.”

Partners in the Lexington United grant include Lexington School District One; Lexington School District Two; Lexington School District Four; Lexington/Richland School District Five; the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department; the Lexington County Department of Mental Health; South Carolina Mothers Against Drunk Driving (SCMADD); the SC Governor’s Counterdrug Taskforce; and The Courage Center.

LRADAC is the designated alcohol and drug abuse authority for Lexington and Richland Counties. The public, not-for-profit agency offers a wide array of prevention, intervention, and treatment programs in locations convenient to residents of both counties. The agency has an approximately $10 million budget and serves more than 4,500 patients annually. For more information on programs and services, visit LRADAC’s website at www.lradac.org.