Latah County Youth Advocacy Council dissolves due to lack of funding

After 13 years, the Latah County Youth Advocacy Council announced its dissolution – effective Nov. 9 – after its inability to secure sufficient funding from grants and the county.

LCYAC Vice Chair Darren Duke said it was more difficult to obtain grants – the council’s almost exclusive source of income – than it was in past years because there are not as many available and the council did not meet the criteria of some of the grants.

“We’ve had great success in bringing in grants for more than 10 years to support prevention programs for youth throughout the county,” LCYAC Chair Barry Johnson said.

The LCYAC’s mission was to reduce youth substance use in the county.

Johnson said the organization was unable to collect funding from the county as well. He said while the county was the executive agent providing office space and administrative support, the program’s funding for operations and activities was generated through grants and generous donations from local businesses and individuals.

Latah County Commissioner Tom Lamar said the LCYAC did not receive the $94,000 grant it typically receives, so the organization sought a similar amount from the commissioners. Lamar said the county was unable to fund LCYAC at the level it requested.

He said they discussed the possibility of funding the organization at a smaller amount, but the organization decided to form its own nonprofit – the Palouse Prevention Coalition.

Lamar said the new organization can still serve the region and help Latah County’s youth stay off drugs and make good decisions.

Johnson said with obstacles come opportunities.

“We were very disappointed that we weren’t able to maintain funding and we weren’t able to get the final support from the county that was needed to keep the program going, which caused us to take a step back,” Johnson said.

He said the LCYAC saw this as an opportunity to expand its programs and make them more effective while attracting new volunteers and funding.

“LCYAC has had extraordinary support from the community and that’s why we didn’t want to let it die and that’s why Darren Duke and others on the council are taking the step to start this fresh with the Palouse Prevention Coalition and to maintain our commitment to students and youth throughout the county,” said Johnson, who said he will not take on a leadership position with the PPC but instead be a community supporter.

Duke said while the new coalition might be a little different, the mission of working to reduce substance abuse in Latah County will remain the same.

He said the Youth Ambassador Program was one of the LCYAC’s largest programs, in which a few students from each of the county’s high schools pledged to abstain from illegal substances and participation in other risky behaviors while encouraging their peers to do the same.

The program coordinator was a paid position, so Duke said he is unsure how the program will fare in the future.

He said he envisions the coalition consisting of only volunteers and putting on more one-time events. He said perhaps a paid position can be developed with sustainable funding. Duke also hopes to track certain data, such as youth substance abuse numbers in the county, before LCYAC and currently, to help better understand the impact the organization has.