35

and follow pathways to recovery that may differ from theirs. Connecticut Communities for Addiction Recovery (CCAR) captured this inclusive vision in one oft-quoted statement: “You are in recovery if you say you are.”266,267 This reminds peer workers that there are many pathways to recovery and that their role is not to judge, exclude, or promote a specific pathway, but rather to help those they serve find and follow a pathway that works for them. Research on Collegiate Recovery Programs (CRPs) is limited, but is growing as well. As of February 2022, the association representing CRPs had over 150 members throughout the United States and one member in the United Kingdom.268 A survey of 29 CRPs found that annual “The CCAR philosophy is that ‘our tent is big enough for everyone.’ We don’t really pay attention to what your illness is, your drug of choice, your recovery support, the medication you may be on (or not on), etc. ‘You are in recovery if you say you are’ and you are welcome. Our thriving all-recovery groups support this notion. As a result, we have become an incredibly diverse organization.” —Phil Valentine Source: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-60327- 960-4_14 « « « « « « NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL STRATEGY 63 abstinence rates among participating students ranged from 75- to 100-percent, averaging 92- percent. Across these sites, most CRP members had not used substances for several years, while 5 percent reported past month alcohol or other drug use. This is a much lower rate than is found among age group peers in the first year following treatment. 269,270 CRP members also have been found to have higher grade-point averages than the student population as whole.271 For example, students participating in the Texas Tech CRP had a consistently higher average GPA from 2002 through 2005 than the student body as a whole, averaging 3.181 over that period compared to the overall average of 2.926.272 Additionally, research suggests that CRPs may be an effective marketing tool for colleges and universities. For example, 34-percent of CRP participants responding to one survey indicated that they would not have been in college were it not for a CRP and 20-percent reported that they would not have enrolled at their institution if it had not offered a CRP.273 Racial and ethnic minority students appear to be underrepresented in CRPs. The survey of 29 CRPs cited above found that 91-percent of participants identified as White.274 An earlier study involving one of the 29 CRPs observed that 95% of CRP members were non-Hispanic Whites while 81% of the larger student body were non-Hispanic Whites. The authors hypothesized that the disproportionately low representation of minorities may reflect lower rates of access to treatment and to four-year universities due to historic inequities.275 Nationally, there are over 40 recovery high schools (RHS) in operation across 21 states as of May 2021.276 Most RHS have licensed counselors or other clinical staff and require students to participate in mutual aid groups. Recovery high schools are small, with enrollment ranging from six to 50 students.277 Some RHS have dedicated facilities and others share space as part of public high schools.278,279 One study found that RHS students tend to reflect the racial and ethnic composition of the communities in which they are located and have more risk factors for substance use and relapse relative to youth completing treatment locally who did not enroll in a recovery high school. These students also had more risk A survey of 29 CRPs found that annual abstinence rates among CRP students ranged from 75 to 100- percent and averaged 92-percent. Across these sites, 5-percent of students reported past year alcohol or other drug use, a much lower rate than is found among youth in the first year following treatment. CRP members also have higher retention and graduation rates and higher grades than the student population as whole. Finch, AJ. Recovery high schools growth chart: 1979-2021. Association of Recovery Schools. 2021. Retrieved at https://recoveryschools.org/rhs-growth-chart/ Recovery High Schools Growth Chart: 1979-2021 Finch, AJ. Recovery high schools growth chart: 1979-2021. Association of Recovery Schools. 2021. Retrieved at https://recoveryschools.org/rhs-growthchart/ Recovery High Schools Growth Chart: 1979-2021 « « « « « « 64 NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL STRATEGY factors than a national sample of their peers exiting treatment. RHS students also had higher rates of mental illness than members of both the local and national comparison groups. Additionally, they tended to have greater substance use problem severity than members of the two control groups. 280 Another study found that RHS students were more likely than age-group controls who had received treatment but were not enrolled in a RHS to be abstinent from alcohol and drugs and more likely to graduate from high school than members of the control group. The authors estimated that increased graduation rates associated with RHS attendance resulted in mean net savings per student from $16,000 to $52,000, a benefit-to-cost ratio of 3.0 to 7.2.281 One study noted that young people of color often did not have access to treatment before enrolling in an RHS282 and another suggested the RHS model could be well suited to serving Hispanic communities as 

1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14  15   16   17   18   19   20   21    22   23   24   25  26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49  50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65