Scott Greenland, program manager for the opioid abatement grant, gave the Rogers County Board of County Commissioners an update on the countys early work under the award, saying the effort is focused on three main areas: a GED program inside the jail, a womens recovery program run by Family and Children Services, and expanded community prevention aimed at school students.

"The GED program is a process of being set up and offered in the jail," Greenland said, adding that the county is recruiting two positionsa0— a GED instructor and a GED proctor a0that must hold Oklahoma teaching certificates. He asked commissioners and the public for referrals to qualified candidates.

Greenland described the women-in-recovery program as "one of the most comprehensive and incredible programs Ive ever seen," saying it serves participants through early recovery and then into parenting classes, job seeking, housing assistance and other supports. He said nine Rogers County residents are currently enrolled.

On prevention, Greenland said the county has roughly 12,000 K-12 students to reach and is now serving about 9,000 with current prevention services; he said the goal is to increase that reach. "Prevention services basically [include] life skills, as well as drug prevention, alcohol prevention, education on vapes," he said, and that the grant will be used to vet and contract with organizations that deliver those services in schools.

Greenland said the grant team is also exploring harm-reduction approaches, planning at least one additional community event beyond National Night Out, and working to connect local health-care providers to the OSU ECHO project so clinicians can access virtual expert sessions. He said data collection and reporting are ongoing requirements of the grant.

When asked about future funding rounds, Greenland said he will lead the application effort. "Part of my effort of the assessment is trying to get a picture of where were at, what do we need," he said, and that the county will request more prevention funding based on that assessment.

Why it matters: Commissioners indicated interest in regular updates as the program develops. The grant funds several different interventions that together aim to prevent substance misuse, expand treatment capacity and support reentry and recovery services in Rogers County.

Greenlands presentation came during the meetings announcements; commissioners had few substantive policy changes to make at the session and focused on staffing, outreach and next steps for grant applications.

Next steps: Greenland said a fuller report will follow at the end of January when the quarters reporting is complete.