Serving the towns of:

Avon, Bloomfield, Canton, East Granby, Granby, Farmington, Hartford, Hartland, Newington, Rocky Hill, Simsbury, Suffield, West Hartford, Wethersfield, Windsor, and Windsor Locks, Connecticut.

The Capital Area Substance Abuse Council (CASAC) is a Regional Action Council on substance abuse established by the Connecticut State Legislature in 1990. CASAC is a private/public partnership comprised of community leaders and citizens who develop and carry out strategies to reduce alcohol, tobacco, other drug use and risky behaviors in our communities. CASAC is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization funded in part by the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and private donations.

Mission Statement

CASAC’s mission is to reduce alcohol, tobacco, other drug abuse and other risky behaviors among youth and, over time, among adults in the Service Area by addressing the factors in our communities that increase the risk of substance abuse and promoting the factors that minimize the risk of substance abuse through community education, public awareness and advocacy.

CASAC achieves this mission by: 
•    Bringing diverse voices to the table
•    Listening and responding to the communities in the region
•    Forming partnerships and collaborations, and
•    Applying prevention science and asset-building tools

Local Prevention Councils

CASAC partners with the 16 Local Prevention Councils (LPCs) in our region to promote substance abuse prevention and early intervention at the local level. The LPCs bring together volunteer community members including the local Youth Service Bureaus, parents, youth, educators, law enforcement personnel, legislators and other concerned citizens. 

CASAC’s Coalition Coordinator, Wende Cooper, attends LPC meetings providing guidance, support, and other technical assistance as needed. CASAC administers grants to the LPCs made available by the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, Inc. Click here for more information on a Local prevention Council in your community.

Presentations

CASAC provides interactive presentations about a host of topics to youth and adults.  We seek to develop each presentation to meet the particular need of the individual community.

Newsletter

CASAC produces a quarterly newsletter – Prevention Press – showcasing our LPC’s achievements in their communities, topics of concerns, current and helpful information. Our objective is to increase awareness and knowledge by providing accurate and up-to-date information.

CASAC as a Resource Center

CASAC disseminates current information about prevention and early intervention through the Local Prevention Councils, Youth Service Bureaus, schools, community groups and agencies within our region. Videos, DVDs, brochures, curricula are all available from CASAC’s library. Contact us at 860.286.9333 for more information.

Surveys

CASAC has developed a Student Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Survey which is available to all schools in our 16 town region.  The survey assesses students’ attitudes and actions in regards to alcohol, tobacco, drugs, problem gambling, and peer perceptions. The survey is also available by clicking here.

Donations

According to CASAC Executive Director Mirelle Freedman, CASAC’s number one priority is prevention. The best science and experience tells us that reducing drug use at the community level takes time: time to put the needed interventions in place; time to change the underlying reasons for drug use in the community; time for getting outcomes; time to garner resources.

CASAC’s challenge is maintaining sustainability to continue to intervene at the community level long enough to see community-level outcomes. If volunteers are the engine and the coalition process is the vehicle then resources are the fuel. 

If you would like to help fuel prevention efforts in CASAC’s region, your contribution is very much welcomed. Please send your tax deductible donation to:

CASAC
3 Barnard Lane
Bloomfield, CT 06002
ATTN: Donations