Ray County awards $80,000 in opioid-settlement funds for school D.A.R.E. program

Presiding Commissioner Sheila Tracy and Commissioner Bobby Don Davis voted to use opioid-settlement funds to establish a countywide D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) partnership with four school districts.

The commission approved awards of $20,000 to each district—Orrick R‑XI, Hardin‑Central R‑XIV, Lawson R‑XIV and Richmond R‑XVI—totaling $80,000. The funding was presented after superintendents Chris Russo (Orrick R‑XI), Austin Purvis (Hardin‑Central R‑XIV), Michael Stephenson (Lawson R‑XIV) and Bryan Copple (Richmond R‑XVI) met with commissioners to discuss expanding drug‑awareness and prevention efforts countywide. Commissioner Bobby Don Davis moved to enter the partnership and allocate the funds, and Commissioner Sheila Tracy seconded the motion; the vote carried unanimously among those present.

The agreements and award letters were signed at the meeting, and the commission set a review for December 2026 to assess the partnership’s outcomes and decide whether to continue funding through 2027. The motion and the awards were recorded as carried 2‑0 on the March 4 session when the action began and reaffirmed in commission minutes.

The action directs opioid‑settlement revenue to school‑based prevention work rather than other permissible uses. Details on how districts must report results or measurable outcomes were not specified at the meeting; those reporting requirements will be determined as part of the partnership agreements.

Next steps: participating districts will receive award letters and implement D.A.R.E. programming locally; the commission will review program progress in December 2026.