California Grant Extension Allows IPS to Expand Ongoing Programs Serving Youth in San Diego’s Border Region
SAN DIEGO – Institute for Public Strategies (IPS) is proud to announce the extension and expansion of its $850,000 Elevate Youth California (EYC) grant to fund substance use prevention programs for youth ages 12 to 26 in San Diego’s border region, with a focus on Hispanic and immigrant communities. EYC grants are awarded through the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) and funded by the Proposition 64 California Cannabis Tax Fund.
The IPS Youth in Action (YIA) program, central to this effort, combines leadership development, peer-led support, and trauma-informed mentorship to build resilience, reduce substance use, and promote equity-driven policy change, ensuring youth have a meaningful role in transforming their communities. The program includes four core components, including the YIA Coalition, Prevention Academy, Young-Adult Mentoring Program, and three advocacy teams including the Clean Coast Collaborative.
YIA coalition members will help plan and lead eco-cultural workshops, including community clean-ups, posadas, and healing workshops. These culturally rooted events contribute to social connections, cultural pride, and community ownership. Youth will engage their families and peers to ensure community involvement and broader reach. Participants will also engage in a six-month prevention academy to address the root causes of substance use, develop civic engagement skills, and lead community workshops. Academy graduates will have the opportunity to join advocacy teams or take part in environmental justice initiatives.
“Youth are exploring the personal and community impacts of substance use while learning prevention strategies centered on resilience building, harm reduction, and early intervention,” said Paola Rochin Bochm, IPS Director of Prevention Programs in the South Bay and Border Region. “We are also building peer and mentor support networks to reduce social isolation, a key risk factor for substance use disorder.”
IPS is one of 95 community-based and Tribal organizations in California to receive a portion of more than $65 million funded by revenue generated from Proposition 64, which legalized adult non-medical use of cannabis.
IPS has a longstanding commitment to community well-being, engaging directly with youth and families through evidence-based trainings, resource provision, and civic engagement efforts. IPS works alongside communities to build power, challenge systems of inequity, protect health, and improve quality of life with a vision for safe, secure, vibrant and healthy communities where everyone can thrive.
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Contact:
Brittany Hunsinger
Institute for Public Strategies
(619) 476-9100 ext. 122
