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State Honors Dulia Aguilar, Local Prevention Specialist
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| August 29, 2012 |
 The California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs (ADP) awarded Dulia Aguilar, prevention
specialist with Sutter-Yuba Mental Health Services, the 2012 Director's Award for
Innovative and Effective Approaches to Prevention. The ADP Director's Awards,
presented at ADP's statewide training conference on Aug. 21, recognize valuable
contributions by individuals and organizations to the substance abuse prevention,
treatment, research and recovery fields.
"Dulia's proactive efforts to prevent and reduce substance abuse, particularly
among youth, have impacted the lives of countless young people and their families in
Sutter and Yuba counties and beyond," said ADP Acting Director Michael Cunningham.
Aguilar was recognized for the innovative programs she spearheaded to address the alcohol
and other drug (AOD) prevention needs in the community. She coordinated park clean-ups
to count cigarette waste and drug paraphernalia to help determine the extent of substance
abuse. She sponsored a local baseball game and surveyed participants about AOD issues.
She organized an annual 5K run/walk event—"Run Drugs Out of Town"—that has grown
from 75 participants seven years ago to 850 today. As a trainer in the
evidence-based "Strengthening Families" and "Second Step" programs, Aguilar
trained local agency staff to implement the programs and added a peer mentoring component
that added value and empathy for participants.
In addition to numerous community events, Aguilar formed the Substance Abuse Steering
Coalition—a visible and progressive group that includes adult and youth from schools,
youth-oriented Friday Night Live program, local Children's Council, county mental
health and law enforcement.[More]  This an Adobe Acrobat PDF file. You can download a free PDF reader from Adobe. |
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