Agility Grants Recipients

Towson University Foundation in Baltimore, MD will support a new problem gambling prevention program from Towson University’s ATOD (Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Abuse) Prevention Center, ‘Tigers Play Responsibly.’ The program will include prevention workshops and social norming campaigns centered around problem gambling education, harm reduction and related risks. The program will serve over 20,000 Towson University students through an integrated, campus wide approach including student leadership training, events at the university ’s welcome weekend, and print and digital marketing campaigns across campus.

The Oklahoma Association on Problem Gambling and Gaming will expand its ‘I Am Native’ (IAMNDN) Youth Project. The IAMNDN Youth Project is a community-based summer camp and school-based problem gambling prevention program that will serve 200 young people in Caddo County, Oklahoma, where six federally recognized tribal nations have headquarters. The IAMNDN Youth Project offers a comprehensive approach to prevent problem gambling within Native communities. This program includes budget training from the Sudden Money Institute, participation in the Stacked Deck problem gambling prevention curriculum, and cultural arts activities. The IAMNDN Youth Project will weave in critical cultural considerations for Native participants including culturally relevant sports, prayer, and mentorship.

Nicasa, a behavioral health nonprofit near Chicago serving Lake County, Illinois, will expand their Teen Problem Gambling Group. This program is spearheaded by teenage volunteers to produce problem gambling prevention education programs for youth by youth. The group meets throughout the year to review educational materials and design activities including awareness videos, health quizzes and resource fairs. This grant funding will expand the program to reach 300 new youth participants, including student athletes and communities of color.

Visión y Compromiso (VyC) r. , a California based nonprofit, will expand its ‘No Jueuges Tu Vida’ (Don’t Play Your Life) program through problem gambling educational content and training for their ‘Promoteres’ program of community leaders, who raise awareness about problem gambling within the Latinx community in California. Additionally, VyC will deliver virtual trainings for 30 community based organizations in the five regions of California they serve and will provide culturally and linguistically specific resources to over 3,000 California residents.

Freedom House of Mecklenburg, Inc. received an Agility Grant in Fall 2022 support for “Problem Gambling Primary and Secondary Prevention Curriculum Development,” a collaborative school-based program that will incorporate problem gambling prevention curriculum into the Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools (CMS). In partnership with CMS and the North Carolina Problem Gambling Program, Freedom House of Mecklenburg will integrate problem gambling prevention lessons into the Choice Led Health curriculum taught to approximately 20,000 7th graders across 49 CMS middle schools. The program curriculum will include resources from Stacked Deck, an evidence-based problem gambling prevention program.

Volunteers of America Oregon (VOA Oregon) received Agility Grant support for the development of a Peer Driven Problem Gambling Prevention Campaign targeting high school and college-age student athletes. Using interviews and focus groups with student athletes, researchers will identify current exposure levels, attitudes and behaviors about gambling. Focus group findings will be used collaboratively by prevention experts and student athletes to develop and pilot a problem gambling awareness campaign designed to be used in outreach to all student athletes in school settings.

Ohio in Arabic received Agility Grant support for “Let Me Tell You Why,” a new bilingual awareness campaign designed to reach Arab youths and their families across Ohio. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the dangers of problem gambling and reduce the stigma around problem gambling in Arab communities by offering knowledge in a culturally appropriate manner. The “Let Me Tell You Why” campaign will consist of social media, digital and print materials that are designed to be engaging, factual, and dynamic to effectively reach a historically underserved audience.

Hispanic Urban Minority Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Outreach Program (UMADAOP) will present an education and awareness campaign for Hispanic youth in Cleveland, Ohio. The program aims to raise awareness of problem gambling behaviors in middle and high school students. Culturally competent positive education and awareness messaging will be made available via social media and other venues to the peers, community, and families of the identified Youth Leaders in the program.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness – Maryland Chapter (NAMI-MD) will collaborate with three Maryland nonprofits to present Smart Choices for Athletes, a four-part project for college athletes. NAMI-MD, Alston for Athletes, the Maryland Center of Excellence on Problem Gambling, and The Hidden Opponent’s Campus Captains Program at Johns Hopkins University will work together to develop, test and implement a one-hour virtual presentation on problem gambling and mental health for athletes. Once finalized, the presentation will be executed more widely in the state through NAMI-MD affiliates and be made available on demand.

The Nevada Council on Problem Gambling will implement a Student-Athlete Gambling Awareness (SAGA) program in several Las Vegas area high schools with prevalent high-risk populations during the 2023-2024 academic year. The program will provide a framework for primary and secondary prevention of problem gambling for student-athletes. SAGA will provide baseline knowledge for athletics staff and students about problem gambling, how it may manifest, and specific impacts student-athletes may face if they engage in gambling activities. SAGA will also develop and train student mentors to assist with program delivery and sustainability for the future.

Nicasa Behavioral Health Services will receive its second Agility Grant to facilitate the continuation of a Teen Problem Gambling Group. Since its establishment in March 2021, the group has grown to 24 teen volunteers representing diverse ethnicities and various high schools throughout northern Illinois. The group meets regularly to develop content, educational materials, and activities to educate other teens on the signs, symptoms, and risks associated with youth problem gambling and where to seek help. The Agility Grant funding will enable the group to expand its work and reach more communities of color, youth athletes, and the community with educational messaging to improve awareness and prevent teens from experiencing gambling-related harm as adults.

Student Assistance Services (SAS) of Tarrytown, NY, will implement The Hidden Hazards of Youth Gambling project for at-risk youth ages 12-17, a messaging campaign aimed at adolescents and adults who influence youth in the Westchester County community. The program will provide information about gambling fallacies and misconceptions and encourage protective factors for youth, such as good decision-making, positive coping skills and problem-solving. SAS will collaborate with community leaders and key sector partners to support policies that sustainably institutionalize consistent education and prevention measures on gambling prevention for minors throughout Westchester County.

The Alabama Council on Compulsive Gambling Prevention (ACCG) program, “It’s More Than Just a Game,” will deliver gambling prevention education to middle school students in Alabama. In a classroom setting, students will be individually presented with a series of gambling and video gaming scenarios designed to assess their prevention knowledge. Following the assessment, each scenario and correct answer will be discussed with the entire class, accompanied by educational insights from the ACCG representative. Upon completing the program, students will receive pamphlets about the risks of gambling and the potential warning signs of developing a gambling problem.

The Problem Gambling Coalition of Colorado, in partnership with the Denver Justice High School and the Denver Art Society, will increase awareness and education of problem gambling by delivering the Stacked Deck problem gambling prevention curriculum to high-school students. The project will enhance and reinforce youth engagement in the curriculum by employing art-based activities, workshops and positive reinforcement learning incentives.

AdCare Educational Institute of Maine, Inc., in partnership with The New England Prevention Technology Transfer Center, will develop a graphic novel about youth gambling prevention to distribute throughout the New England region as part of their Youth Gambling Prevention Graphic Medicine project. Graphic medicine is an evidence-based modality of providing health education and communication through the medium of graphic novels. The toolkit will include the novel and a facilitator’s guide and will be available in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

The LCADA Way will launch the Lorain County Problem Gambling Prevention Initiative to raise awareness about the risks associated with gambling and emphasize positive decision-making skills. The development of campaign materials will be led by teens and designed to engage their peers using a series of social media posts, videos and other digital media.

Maryland Council on Problem Gambling will launch a new program, Culturally Infused Problem Gambling Prevention for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Consumers. Using Agility Grant funding, they will design culturally specific prevention public awareness materials that utilize problem gambling prevention and education materials and infuse them with the cultural values, beliefs, worldviews and cultural nuances that reflect the lived realities in the Deaf and hard of hearing communities.