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Projects with Promise

Vol. 28 No. 4

Facilitating a Strategic Community–Academic Partnership to Address Substance Misuse: Three Years of Evaluation and Outcomes

  • Dane Minnick
  • Jean Marie Place
  • Jonel Thaller
  • Dawnya Mercado
  • Emily Powers
  • Danica Fultz
Submitted
June 3, 2023
Published
2024-12-16

Abstract

This article presents the findings of a longitudinal study documenting the progress, challenges, adaptations, and outcomes of a strategic community–academic partnership (S-CAP) to address substance misuse between a local university and a medium-sized county in East-Central Indiana. The article details how the S-CAP built on initial successes to develop new organizational capacities and maximize the productivity of the S-CAP model. It also explores how S-CAP leadership navigated the dynamic environment associated with community coalition work while developing a cohesive sustainability strategy. Notable outcomes produced by the coalition over 3 years include increasing membership to over 500 individuals and more than 30 organizations, assisting with the implementation of community initiatives such as the installation of a naloxone vending machine at a local hospital, and leading collaborative partnerships that have generated over $1.5 million in funding for new addiction services for the county.