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Workplan

Rural Underage Alcohol Problem Prevention Project 

Workplan
Project period: July 1, 1999 through December 31, 2000
Existing Problem: Recent surveys of local high school students indicate that underage drinking is a big problem in rural communities  of east San Diego County. For instance, within the seven days prior to the survey, high school seniors indicate that:
  • 78% had ridden in  a car with a drinking driver
  • 78% drank enough to be very drunk
  • Average age of first alcohol consumption was 12 years old
The survey also tells us that (among seniors) the somsumption is always (32%) or usually (47%) at parties where there is no parent present (74%). These same seniors tell us that access to alcohol is easy. The most common methods to obtain alcohol were:
  • Friend (58%) or stranger (30%) buys for them
  • Buy it in Mexico by themselves (30%) or a friend (26%)
  • Buy from a store that is known to sell (22%)
Several factors contribute to the existing problem of underage drinking in this rural area of East County. With the exception to its proximity to the US/Mexico border, San Diego's backcountry is not unlike many other rural communities in social attitudes and demographics. For example:
  • Geographically isolated by several miles, students are served by a unified school district with only one high school
  • Family longevity in the community (over 70% of the high school seniors have lived in the community over 6 years)
  • 46% of the high school seniors drank alcohol at a party where parents were present
  • 16% of the high school seniors report that thier parent buys alcohol for them
Description: Cross-disciplinary, multiple intervention project targeting rural east county communities along the Highway 94 corridor (beginning at Jamul and connecting with Imperial County) in collaboration with Tecate, Mexico. The project draws upon existing partnerships, such as San Diego County Youth Access to Alcohol Policy Panel; Communities Against Substance Abuse (CASA); San Diego County Responsible Hospitality Coalition (RHC); Friday Night Live and IHA's existing Cross-Border US Teen & Binge Drinking Project to implement strategies and tactics designed specifically to meet the unique needs of rural communities.
Policy Goals:
  • Initiate and institutionalize high-visibility DUI enforcement (including Zero Tolerance Youth Drinking and Driving) operations along the Highway 94 corridor.
  • Support the implementation of US Customs policy of inspection and intervention regarding underage alcohol possession and transportation among US teens at the Tecate border crossing.
  • Support the creation of long-term policies of responsible hospitality practices throughout the region on both side of the border.
  • Establish lasting community process to identify alcohol outlets that sell to minors and implement a plan to eliminate the problem.
Objectives: IHA will pursue the above goals through the following community and youth development, media advocacy and enforcement objectives:
Objective #1: Increase enforcement of underage drinking laws.
  • Perform initial assessment consisting of key informant interviews (in the form of a two level survey).
  • Coordinate w/ Policy Panel's Law Enforcement Task  Force to identify and carry out specific enforcement interventions, strategies and tactics designed to meet rural east county needs. Potential enforcement strategies include DUI enforcement, enforcement at the border and a controlled dispersing pilot program.
Objective #2: Collaborate with Mt. Empire High School to provide youth development and involvement in community-based, environmental prevention activities.
  • Facilitate youth workshops (2) leading to the creation of youth coalition to participate in ATOD prevention activities.
Objective #3: Participate in the Collaborative Design of Responsible Beverage Sales and Service Training
  • Risk assessments (2) in rural East Co. to identify problem outlets and provide leadership in developing recommendations and implementation plan.
  • Intake and interpret learnings from bar assessments and survey work of IHA's Cross-Border Project.
Objective #4: Provide media advocacy services in support of the project
  • Coordinate strategic newsmaking opportunities (such as high-visibility enforcement operations) to support the goals of the project.
  • Target local community papers and electronic media to generate a minimum of 1 newsmaking cluster per year. News targets include: Union Tribune (1), radio (1), school paper (1), backcountry papers (2), and Mexican media outlets (1).
  • Target appropriate community and youth participants and collaborators to participate in existing newsmaker skills training opportunities scheduled throughout the contract period.
  • Post media advisory, releases and output summary on project web page.
Objective #5: Collaborate with SDSU Foundation's Combating Underage Drinking Project in the development and interpretation of various assessment tools:
  • Carry out on-site assessments (3) in Tecate, Mexico.
  • Hold discussions with PIRE regarding gathering, analysis and distribution of assessment data pertinent to Tecate, California and Tecate, Mexico, similar to that of IHA Cross-Border Project in the Dan Diego / Tijuana region.
  • Alcohol consumption behaviors among Mt. Empire High School and Middle School students.
Objective #6: Produce Action Kit for Combating Underage Drinking in Rural Communities for information to be utilized by other rural communities in designing their own interventions.
  • Action Kit will be comprised of project slides (not to exceed 15, 10 of which will be from project materials such as news articles, list of collaborators and meeting agendas and/or announcements); a "how to" booklet (not to exceed 25 pages); and a videotape.
  • IHA will provide one copy to Project Director, Ray DiCiccio, along with electronic disk from which it can be reproduced.
  • Post Action Kit (with exception to the video) on the project's web site in a manner in which it can be downloaded by web users.
Objective #7: Project Web page
  • Facilitate the development and publication of a project web page and ill oversee posting appropriate project-related materials to that web page
Objective #8: Produce Issue Briefing (2-page) on Combating Underage Drinking in Rural Communities using project processes and outcomes as a case study for use by other rural communities throughout California.
  • Distribute Issue Briefing among project partners, including Mt. Empire School District, US Customs, San Diego County Health & Human Services Agency, Alcohol & Drug Services, CASA, and selected elected officials, among others.
  • Publish the Issue Briefing on the project web page
Potential Collaborators
  • CASA
  • Countywide Law Enforcement Task Force on Underage Drinking (Policy Panel)
  • SD Co. Responsibility Hospitality Coalition
  • Mt. Empire School District
  • SD Co. Sheriffs Dept.
  • Border Patrol
  • US Customs (Tecate, California Port of Entry)
  • CHP
  • Rural Fire District
  • Zero Tolerance Project
Timeline
July 99
Complete planning process & agreements
Analyze initial student alcohol use and focus group data (from Combating Underage Drinking Project)
Define project partners and roles
Design key informant interview tool
Complete first round of key informant interviews (law enforcement, US Customs, Border Patrol and INS)
Complete initial draft of Issue Briefing
Aug 99
Carry out initial on-site assessment in Tecate, Mexico
Coordinate w/ Policy Panel's Law Enforcement Task Force re: plan for specific enforcement interventions, strategies and tactics.
Initiate design of project web page
Initiate development of Action Kit (materials will be compiled throughout the duration of the project)
Revise & distribute (final) Issue briefing (post to the web site)
Sept 99
Plan, recruit sand design materials for Youth Leadership workshop
Post appropriate project materials on web page (on-going throughout project)
Key Informant interviews (level 2)
Risk assessment #1 to ID problem outlets
Build support for enforcement intervention strategies & plan of action
Prepare logistics for high-visibility law enforcement operation (#1)
Oct 99
Facilitate workshop #1 in partnership w/ Mt. Empire High School
Hold discussion w/ PIRE re: gathering, analysis and distribution of assessment data pertinent to Tecate, CA & Tecate, Mexico.
Intake and interpret bar assessment, develop intervention plan
Carry out high-visibility enforcement operation (#1) w/ media cluster
Nov 99
Implement RBS & Practices strategies and intervention plan w/ problem outlets (US side)
Dec 99 On-site assessment (#2) at bars in Tecate, Mexico.
Jan 00 Implement RBS in Tecate, Mexico
Feb 00 Plan, recruit and develop materials for youth workshop (#2)
Mar 00
Facilitate workshop (#2) w/ Mt. Empire school students 
Assessment (#2) of problem alcohol outlets
Apr 00 Revisit intervention plan for problem outlets
June 00 Intake and interpret learnings from bar assessment and survey work (both US and Mexico)
July 00 On-site assessment (#3) at bars in Tecate, Mexico
Aug 00 Complete production of Action Kit
Sept 00 Project presentations (as deemed appropriate)
Oct 00 Prepare final report
Nov 00 Submit Final Report
Dec 00 Distribute Action Kit
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