Prevention
BSCS’ continuum of care begins with our longstanding and deep commitment to primary and secondary prevention services. We firmly believe that it is our responsibility to actively advocate, authentically connect, and to prioritize cultural, racial and health equity in all we do. BSCS works in partnership with the communities we serve, to design prevention initiatives that bring our communities together to promote health and well-being for all youth and families.
BSCS’s Prevention Team operates three community coalitions: Impact Quincy, HEY Randolph, and the Building Up Youth Regional Partnership. By bringing community members and organizations together, community coalitions play an important role in preventing substance use and building environments that impact health and well-being for all. The health and well-being of children and youth is our responsibility: by working together we can have the greatest impact.
For more information on any of our Prevention programs, please contact Briana Keating at bkeating@baystatecs.org
Vision
Safe, supportive, and equitable communities where all people have the resources and support needed to achieve positive health and well-being.
Mission
As a leader in our region’s prevention and wellness efforts, we build healthier communities for all by:
- Creating and sustaining effective, prevention focused partnerships that highlight diverse voices and the perspectives of those with lived experiences.
- Building the capacity of the community to collect local data and to implement evidence-informed prevention programs, policies, practices and systems change
- Inspiring, engaging, educating, and advocating for upstream approaches to health and wellbeing at the community, municipality and agency level
Values
- Sustainability
- Equity
- Collective Action
- Positive Youth Development
Impact Quincy is part of Building Up Youth (BUY), a Regional Collaborative on Health and Wellness.
Funding Source:
Department of Public Health-Bureau of Substance Addiction Services and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) STOP Act.
Follow us on Facebook at Impact Quincy
The coalition has 40 diverse members including youth, community members, school principals, town superintendent, school resources officers, Board of Health members, school committee members, community center and library staff, public health nurses, public health commissioner, faith based, student council, family service departments, and advocacy groups.
Mission
To equitably promote wellbeing and to prevent and reduce youth substance misuse through effective communication, coordination, collaboration, and action in a culturally relevant way.
HEY Randolph utilizes SAMHSA’s evidence-based Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF), to conduct assessments, build capacity, plan and implement strategies, and evaluate those strategies to prevent misuse of substances of first use (alcohol, nicotine, cannabis) among youth in the Randolph community.
HEY Randolph is part of Building Up Youth (BUY), a Regional Partnership on Health and Wellness.
Funding Source:
Department of Public Health-Bureau of Substance Addiction Services and Center for Disease Control, Drug Free Communities.
Follow us on Facebook at HEYRandolph
With this funding, the Building Up Youth Partnership on Health & Wellness (BUY) works in partnership to prevent youth substance use and help all young people grow up to have healthy futures. The collaborative utilizes SAMHSA’s evidence-based Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF), to conduct an assessment, build capacity, plan and implement strategies and evaluate those strategies to prevent misuse of substances of first use (alcohol, nicotine, cannabis) among youth.
Mission
Building Up Youth (BUY) is a regional partnership on health and wellness which supports and collaborates with community members to equitably promote well-being and prevent misuse of substances among youth in the communities of Braintree, Milton, Quincy, Randolph, and Weymouth.
Vision
All young people will positively navigate through adversity and be engaged in inequitable systems of support.
The health and well-being of all youth is our responsibility: by working together we can have the greatest impact. We welcome input and participation from Parents/Caregivers, Schools, Youth, Youth Servicing Organization, Law Enforcement, Religious Organization, Businesses, Media, Civic/Volunteer Corps, Health Care, State, Local, Tribal Organizations and Organizations involved in Prevention of Substance Use or Misuse
BUY Youth Leaders
The BUY Youth Leaders Internship was established in 2023 as a partnership between Bay State Community Services and Quincy Asian Resources Inc. (QARI) to incorporate youth voices into BUY prevention programming including decision-making, planning, and program implementation. We strive to maintain ongoing relationships with youth for program relevance and provide leadership development and networking opportunities.
Funding Source:
Department of Public Health-Bureau of Substance Addiction Services
Prevention Resources:
Check out our 8 Prevention Tips for Parents/Caregivers (Available in Brazilian Portuguese; Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), English, French, Haitian Creole, Spanish, Vietnamese)
To learn more about youth prevention and how to support the youth in your life, visit buildingupyouthpartnership.org
BUY is proud to partner with Braintree Community Partnership, the Milton Coalition, Weymouth Prevention Alliance, HEY Randolph, and Impact Quincy.
Greater Boston Tobacco-Free Community Partnership
The Greater Boston Tobacco-Free Community Partnership (TFCP) prioritizes racial justice and community health over tobacco and vaping industry profits. We work with local partners to fight the industry’s historic and unjust targeting of specific groups, including youth, Black, LGBTQ+, and Latinx communities.
The TFCP collaborates with local partners to:
- Prevent youth from starting to use tobacco/nicotine*
- Protect everyone from secondhand smoke
- Promote free resources to help people quit
*When referencing tobacco/nicotine, we are referring to commercial tobacco (vapes, cigarettes, cigars, etc.) and not the sacred and traditional use of tobacco by some American Indian communities.
Funding Source
Funded by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s Tobacco Cessation and Prevention Program, the TFCP shares resources, educates, and mobilizes the community in support of local tobacco policy in Greater Boston.
To learn more or get connected, contact Mary Cole at mcole@baystatecs.org or 617-777-5229
Follow us on Facebook: Greater Boston Tobacco-Free Community Partnership
Resources and More Information
Learn how the TFCP can support your organization and if the Greater Boston TFCP serves your town or city
Massachusetts Tobacco Cessation and Prevention Program has information on vaping, smoke-free environments, quitting and more.
No Menthol Know Why – learn why Massachusetts updated its tobacco laws
Mission
Our mission is to enhance equitable access to protective factors and services for families through expanded awareness and collaboration with families, providers, and community leaders, and to develop preventative strategies that respect and address the unique cultural needs of our community.
Vision
A community where ALL children and families have the resources and support to thrive.
We look for partners to help us understand and support families in our community with their unique needs including Parents/Caregivers, Schools, Recovery Oriented Systems of Care, Law Enforcement, Religious Organization, Businesses, Media, Civic/Volunteer Corps, Health Care, State, Local, Tribal Organizations and Child Serving Organizations.
Strengthening Families Program: We offer a free Strengthening Families Program (SFP) to Quincy families with children aged 3-5. SFP is an interactive workshop for children and parents/caregivers to enhance their skills in communication, goal setting, peer pressure resistance, stress management and emotional regulation, joint-family problem solving, positive discipline, and having fun! To learn more about the Strengthening Families Program, email us at prevention@baystatecs.org.
Funding Source:
Department of Public Health-Bureau of Substance Addiction Services
Resources:
Question Persuade Refer (QPR) is a 90-minute session where participants will learn three simple steps to help prevent suicide, and how to provide resources for someone who might be struggling. Course participants learn how to recognize suicide risk factors, how to ask important questions, and how to connect someone to area resources.
Mental Health Check-in Events: Check In is an in person mental health wellness program/event for youth that fosters dialogue about mental health and suicide. These fun and engaging events are planned for and by youth and feature interactive booths focused on building coping skills, promoting connectedness and belonging, reducing stigma, and promoting diverse community resources. We can bring these events to community resource fairs, schools or other youth serving venues.
Training and events are free and open to the community. Reach out to prevention@baystatecs.org to bring services your community/organization.
Funding Source: Department of Public Health, Bureau of Community Health and Prevention (BCHAP) and Suicide Prevention Program (SPP).
Interested in Learning More About Prevention and Community Coalitions?
Watch These Short Videos
