History

Communities That Care (CTC) guides communities through a proven five-phase change process. Using prevention science as its base, CTC promotes healthy youth development, improves youth outcomes, and reduces problem behaviors. Communities that follow the process have been shown to not only reduce risk factors- those characteristics that may increase the likelihood of negative outcomes, but to also increase their protective factors- those characteristics that may lower the likelihood of negative outcomes. In 2016 the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE) provided funding to local communities to bring in the CTC process, and the Eagle River Valley was one of those communities. Since that time, this collective impact group has become the Mountain Youth Community That Cares Coalition, which has continued to grow its collaborative efforts, partnering with communities to help our youth thrive!

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Process

The Communities That Care process occurs in 5 phases.

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Communities That Care in Eagle County has moved through all five phases of CTC over the years, and is now back to Phase 4 of the process again.  During our recent Phase 3 work, specific environmental strategies were selected in order to respond to prioritized risk and protective factors that arose from the data for Eagle County.

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Risk Factors

The identified risk factors are:

• Perception of the Availability of Substances (for all ages)

• Community Laws and Norms which are favorable towards Substance Abuse

• Favorable Youth attitudes towards Substance use

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Protective Factors

The identified protective factors are:

Opportunities and Rewards for Prosocial Involvement

• in the community

• at school

• at home

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Community Strategies

At the end of Phase 4, specific outcomes for each strategy were determined and sub-goals were crafted. 

These are:

1. Strategy: Prevent substance abuse and access through new policies, practices and education
   Outcome Goal: By 2028, Mountain Youth Communities That Care Coalition will increase knowledge about, and support for, policies, practices and perceptions which prevent substance misuse and youth access to substances.

2. Strategy: Recruit and Reward Youth Participation in Community Coalitions
   Outcome Goal: By September of 2024, we will see an increase in the number of youth serving in shared leadership and decision-making roles within our community.

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For additional resources, information can be accessed at:
General Communities That Care information:  https://www.communitiesthatcare.net/

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