2007 ICSD Student Life and Culture Survey Community Coalition for Healthy Youth coordinated by Tompkins County Youth Services Department 320 W. State St., Ithaca, NY (607) January, 2008

CCHY Goals Reduce substance use among youth Delay age of onset of any drug use Reduce frequency of use in the past 30 days Increase youth perception of harm of use Increase youth perception of disapproval of use by peers & adults

CCHY Goals (continued) Establish & strengthen community collaboration to prevent and reduce substance use Improve school safety and student bonding to school by reducing incidence of hurtful behavior

Overview of 2007 Student Life and Culture Survey Examined student activities, substance use, experiences with school climate & and safety and parental monitoring Designed with input from ICSD secondary principals, social norms experts & federal grantor April/May, 2007 – administered (web-based and scannable options) in schools to students in grades 6-12; 2,219 valid responses (73% of students enrolled)

Substance Use Data Overview

ICSD Student Current Alcohol Use* ICSD students using alcohol in the past 30 days Middle schoolers – 1,056 students at DeWitt, Boynton and LACS (gr. 6- 8). High schoolers – 1,160 students at IHS and LACS (gr. 9-12). *Alcohol use throughout the survey was defined as “more than a few sips or for religious purposes”.

ICSD Student Current Cigarette Use ICSD students using cigarettes in the past 30 days

ICSD Student Current Marijuana Use ICSD students using marijuana in the past 30 days

Comparing ICSD Students’ Lifetime Use with National Peers* More ICSD students have ever tried alcohol Fewer ICSD students have ever tried cigarettes * 2006 Monitoring the Future Survey, given nationwide to a representative sample (roughly 50,000 students in 400 schools). 8th 10th 12th

30 day Alcohol Use – Time Trend by Grade More students in all grades used alcohol in the previous 30 days in 2007 than in 1999 & 2002.

30 day Cigarette Use – Time Trend by Grade Cigarette use is down in all grades since 1999.

30 day Marijuana Use – Time Trend by Grade Marijuana use has increased for grades 10 & 12 since 1999.

ICSD Students’ Lifetime Use of Alcohol, by Grade The higher the grade, the more students have ever tried alcohol. By the end of middle school, almost half of all students have tried alcohol.

M.S.H.S. Alcohol (except for a few sips or for religious purposes) 11.2 years 13.3 years Cigarettes11.3 years 13.3 years Marijuana12.2 years 14.0 years Nationally, average age of first use of alcohol is approx. 14 years. (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) Average Age of First Use (students who have reported any use)

Prevalence of Lifetime Alcohol Dependence According to Age of Drinking Onset Age started drinking Percent ever Alcohol Dependent Source: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Children who start drinking before age 14 are 4 times more likely to develop alcohol dependence.

Underage Drinking in the U.S. Nationally, approximately 10% of 9- to 10- year-olds have started drinking. Nearly one- third of youth begin drinking before age 13. (Source: U.S. Surgeon General) Underage drinkers are responsible for 16% of all alcohol consumed in the U.S. (Source: Journal of the American Medical Association)

Underage Drinking and Adolescent Development Underage drinking can cause alterations in the structure and function of the developing brain. New research indicates that the developing adolescent brain may be particularly susceptible to long-term consequences from alcohol use. Some studies find that adolescents who drink heavily may experience adverse effects that disrupt normal growth and affect liver, bone, and endocrine development. (Source: U.S. Surgeon General)

Where ICSD Students Got the Alcohol They Used (asked only of students who reported any lifetime use of alcohol) More than one answer possible. M.S. (n=352) H.S. (n=729) Friends33%80% Home without parents’ knowledge*36%39% Older sibling19%29% Home with parents’ knowledge*32%24% At school6%11% More than one answer possible * CCHY area of focus in

Where Students Got the Marijuana They Used (asked only of students who reported any lifetime use of marijuana.) More than one answer possible M.S. (n=68 H.S. (n=424) Friends 78%84% At school 32% In community 24%29% Older sibling 31%18%

Availability of drugs Students who reported it would be very easy/ sort of easy to get: M.S.H.S. Alcohol46%77% Marijuana20%68% Cigarettes29%67% Fewer ICSD students than their national peers would find it easy to get all substances.

Negative Consequences of Substance Use Students who have ever... (asked of all students) M.S.H.S. Kept drunk friend from injuring self or others 12%41% Ridden with friend who had been drinking alcohol 8%21% Kept someone from being a victim of alcohol-related sexual harassment or assault 8%15%

Negative Consequences of Substance Use Students who have ever... (asked of students who have ever used alcohol; percentages are of those who have used alcohol) M.S.H.S. Done something they later regretted because of alcohol use 16%41% Gotten in trouble at home because of alcohol use 10%24% Had school work hurt by alcohol use 6%10%

Students who perceive risk from regular use are less likely to use marijuana Perceived Risk of Harm Reduces Marijuana Use Percent of students who used marijuana in the past 30 days

Perceived Parental Disapproval Reduces Alcohol Use Students who think their parents disapprove of their using alcohol are less likely to drink. Percent of students who used alcohol in the past 30 days

Alcohol & Drug Info from Adults M.S.H.S. Trusts parents some/a lot for drug info88%85% Learned some/a lot from parents re. drugs in last year 62%47% Trusts teachers some/a lot for drug info 88%77% Learned some/a lot from teachers re. drugs in last year 76%43%

School Climate & Out-of-School Life

School Experience & Attitudes M.S.H.S. Feels safe at school mostly/always 85%83% Feels welcome at school mostly/always 79%76% Has trusted adult in school 59%55% Says school adults care & encourage often/always 60%46% Says school rules are fairly enforced often/always 67%47% Ranks academics as very important 77%76%

School Experience (continued) M.S.H.S. Says school staff are usually/always available to deal with bullying 39%44% Notices physical bullying of others at least weekly 29%32% Is target of hurtful verbal putdowns at least weekly 25%17% Is target of physical bullying at least weekly 6%2% Was disrespected by students at school in last year 73%60%

Parents & Community M.S.H.S. Has a trusted adult out of school85% Spends 3+ hrs/week doing things with family 75%64% Parents set clear rules often/always74%67% Parents care & encourage often/always85%80% Faces consequences when breaking parents’ rules often/always 73%63% Parents monitor internet use some/a lot (of those students with home computers) 49%26%

Computers & Internet M.S.H.S Experienced cyber bullying in last year 31%29% Cyber bullied someone in last year28%24% Was asked to meet an internet “friend” face-to-face in last year 10%13% Has computer & internet access at home 90%92% Has MySpace (or similar) account44%68%

Summary  Students are drinking and using other drugs  When they start drinking matters  Parents and trusted adults matter  Ease of access matters  CCHY, schools, parents & community need to work together to reduce use

Next Steps - How the Data Will Inform the Coalition’s Efforts Coalition to use data to engage parents & community - for environmental strategies to reduce underage access to alcohol to reduce violence and improve school climate Community organizations to assess needs and target services

Next Steps - How the Data Will Inform the Coalition’s Efforts (continued) Schools to target and evaluate efforts to reduce hurtful behaviors Expansion & support of Second Step® Anti- Violence curriculum in county schools DeWitt Middle School social norms campaign Boynton Middle School school climate improvement project Ithaca High School Link Crew school climate improvement project