Hastings joint session shows declines in youth vaping and marijuana but flags binge drinking and funding risk for prevention program

HASTINGS-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. — Leaders from the village and the school district met April 28 to review the latest youth substance-use survey presented by the Hastings Way Coalition and its partners, which showed broad declines across several substances but highlighted rising intensity of drinking among the subset of students who drink.

Linda Facina, coalition coordinator for Hastings Way, told trustees and board of education members that the biannual survey of 8th, 10th and 12th graders — conducted electronically and benchmarked against county and national data collected by the National Institute on Drug Abuse — recorded participation above 60 percent in every grade and 100 percent participation in eighth grade. Facina said overall use of alcohol, marijuana and e-cigarettes has fallen since the survey’s high points in 2019, and that e-cigarette use in Hastings now trails county and national rates.

“Alcohol is the substance that’s most used by youth in Hastings,” Facina said, but added that the share of students who drink and report binge drinking has risen; in 2023 binge drinking represented 28 percent of students reporting past-30-day drinking and has grown to 44 percent of that group in the most recent administration. Facina also reported very low prescription-drug misuse: none in eighth or 10th grade and one 12th grader who reported using a stimulant without a prescription.

Principal Andy Clayman described campus-level improvements and the practical benefits of reduced on-campus substance use. “When there are instances where students enter a bathroom and it smells like marijuana or vaping, that is really detrimental to a school community,” Clayman said, noting declines in in-school use and the district’s plans to probe the causes of broader trends through student focus groups and curriculum alignment.

Student representatives who spoke echoed the data, reporting fewer vaping incidents and fewer visible on-campus use cases than in prior years, while also noting that binge drinking and some off-campus parties remain concerns. One student representative said older students’ behavior strongly shapes norms for younger peers, and recommended more student-driven social activities as alternatives to risky gatherings.

Law-enforcement and prevention partners described complementary work. The village’s Police Adolescent Liaison (PAL) program places officers in plain clothes in a school office to build relationships with students, the police representative said, and officers continue to respond to off-campus safety incidents tied to large unsupervised gatherings known locally as PADs. “It’s a safety issue,” the police representative said, noting fights and bonfires at some gatherings.

Beyond the data, presenters stressed a looming funding risk. Hastings Way currently operates with a federal drug-free communities grant awarded in multi-year cycles (initial award 2018, renewed 2023), and Facina said the coalition is in year eight of funding that is scheduled to end in year ten (September 2028) unless extended. She and Mayor Drake urged community members to contact U.S. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney’s (Congressman Latimer was mentioned as assisting via a White Plains office) office to support an extension of the program.

Board and village members asked practical questions about comparisons with other counties (county-level aggregation is available but statewide comparisons were not presented) and the likely operational impact if paid staff capacity was reduced. Facina said much of the coalition’s preventative work depends on a small paid staff (one coalition coordinator and one youth engagement specialist) and volunteers; losing paid capacity would jeopardize core functions such as data collection, parent outreach and program coordination.

School counselors explained how the anonymous survey is cross-referenced with the district’s Panorama diagnostic screener — which is confidential but not anonymous — so students who surface as at-risk can receive follow-up from counseling staff. The district also described a K–12 health curriculum that addresses substance trends, risk factors and harm reduction.

The session closed without formal policy votes on the survey or funding; both boards adjourned after the public-comment period produced no speakers. Mayor Drake said his principal takeaway was improved direct communication between the two governing bodies and urged residents to support extension of the drug-free communities grant.

What’s next: Hastings Way and district leaders said they plan student focus groups and additional parent-education outreach, and asked trustees and residents to consider community-led options to sustain prevention work if federal funding is not renewed.