Youth in Action - NE
Alcohol is the number one drug of choice for American youth and kills more youth than all other illegal drugs combined. One of MADD Nebraska’s core strategies is to reduce by 5% the proportion of youth 16-20 years of age who drink alcohol and/or engage in high risk drinking. Youth in Action (YIA) is MADD Nebraska’s community based program that empowers high school students in grades 9-12 to help prevent underage drinking. Youth in Action teams are led by a trained adult coordinator who helps students implement projects focused on reducing underage access to alcohol by targeting social and retail access, and working with law enforcement to support underage drinking laws. There are more than 46 teams in 16 states with YIA groups and Nebraska is proud to be one of them! MADD Nebraska also partners with coalitions to achieve the goals of YIA.
What is Needed to Start a YIA Team?
All teams need one adult coordinator and at least two committed youth coordinators. It is helpful to have support from local law enforcement for participation in future YIA projects.
MADD Nebraska Youth in Action Projects
- Alcohol Purchase Surveys: Young looking 21 year-olds survey retailers to find out if they are properly checking for identification on alcohol sales.
- Compliance Checks: Underage youth work as decoys with undercover police officers to make sure retailers aren’t selling alcohol to minors and penalize those who do.
- Law Enforcement Recognition: Youth plan events, large or small, to recognize the hard work and dedication of local law enforcement in the fight against underage drinking.
- Roll Call Briefings: Youth create a presentation for law enforcement to show support of and partner on enforcing underage drinking laws.
- Shoulder Tap Surveys: With supervision, youth educate adults about the dangers and consequences of providing alcohol to minors.
- Sticker Shock: Youth work with retailers to place prevention messages on alcohol multi-packs, creating a visual reminder of underage drinking laws.
For More Information
For more information on or to participate in MADD Nebraska’s Youth in Action program, please contact our state office at staff@maddnebraska.org or by phone at 402-434-5330 or 1-800-444-6233. To learn more about additional Youth in Action projects, please visit the MADD National website at http://www.madd.org.