Trustees approve $10,000 donation to Fairfield Prevention Coalition after youth presentation

The Fairfield Township Board of Trustees voted Feb. 10 to donate $10,000 from local opioid‑settlement monies to the Fairfield Prevention Coalition after a presentation by coalition staff and four student leaders about school‑based prevention campaigns.

The coalition’s student speakers — including Charlie Toulouse, junior president of the coalition, and Jacob Hopper, a senior who serves as the coalition’s senior representative — described peer‑led campaigns in the school district that target vaping, prescription pain‑medication misuse and connectedness as protective factors. Jacob Hopper said survey results collected by the coalition show sharp declines in misuse: “The total number of Fairfield students misusing prescription pain medications decreased from 209 students in 2019 to 16 students in 2023,” he said.

Administrator Kimberly Lepensi and trustees questioned the survey methodology during a brief Q&A. Coalition leaders said the data come from the Prevention First survey administered regionally to roughly 6,500 students with built‑in validity checks.

After the presentation, a trustee moved to amend the agenda to consider a donation. The board then voted to approve a $10,000 transfer from the township opioid‑settlement account to the coalition. Roll call recorded votes in favor from Trustee Maccabee, Trustee Berding and Trustee Harkenmeier; the motion passed.

Coalition representatives said the funds would support continuing the coalition’s middle‑school “farming effects” outreach and to pilot expansion of that program into high schools and Butler Tech vocational programs. They also described plans to bring nonthreatening, age‑appropriate prevention messaging into elementary schools.

The coalition thanked trustees for the support and said it would report back with updated data in the next round of surveys.