Virginia ABC Awards Grant to James Madison University’s Futuro Latino to Support Alcohol Education and Prevention Initiatives

The Futuro Latino group at James Madison University was one of 11 Virginia organizations to receive funding yesterday from the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) through its inaugural Education & Prevention Grant Program. Virginia ABC hosted a reception at the agency’s regional office in Staunton and distributed checks of up to $8,000 to members of the organizations in support of their education and prevention projects.

Futuro Latino was awarded the maximum amount of $8,000 for their “No Por Ser Menor” (No, Because You are a Minor) campaign. This multi-media outreach to the Latino community aims to increase the knowledge of the harm that comes from underage drinking and alcohol misuse. The effort will target youth and parents through messaging on Facebook, Twitter, radio, television and newspaper. The group will also collaborate with enforcement organizations to create a relationship within the Latino community; to educate parents and youth about the dangers of providing alcohol to underage youth and drinking in public; and to increase business compliance for underage sales.

In their grant application, Futuro Latino reported that Latino youth see alcohol use as less risky (67.6 percent) than youth as a whole (72.3 percent) based on data from the 2013-14 Pride Survey (a locally conducted student survey). Census figures show that more than 17 percent of the city of Harrisonburg’s population is Hispanic/Latino.

Virginia ABC received 28 applications for its Education & Prevention Grant Program, and the grant review committee chose 10 other recipients including:

In total, Virginia ABC is supplying $81,192 in grants.

“This is the first year ABC offered the Education & Prevention Grant Program, and we were impressed with the number of high-quality proposals we received,” said Virginia ABC Chairman Jeff Painter. “These programs are innovative, have a long-lasting impact on the community, reach large numbers of citizens and encourage partnerships between organizations.”

The grant cycle runs through June 2015 and each organization has until then to implement its proposed program.

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The Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) is a major source of revenue for the commonwealth, contributing more than $1.8 billion to the general fund in the last five years. The agency currently operates 350 state stores. Its Bureau of Law Enforcement oversees more than 16,000 ABC licensed establishments while the Hearings and Appeals Division considers more than 700 cases each year. The agency also provides alcohol education and prevention programs for people of all ages. Now celebrating its 80th anniversary, ABC remains committed to progress and innovation in carrying out its control, service and revenue mission.