As the community coordinator and board president of Greater Old Town Communities That Care, we would like to thank you for your Jan. 23 editorial, “Straight Talk on Drugs.” Youth substance abuse is one of the most corrosive threats facing Maine’s people and economy, and this is precisely what we target.

We have been carefully adhering to a tested and measurable prevention system. Although there is a great deal more work to do, we are deeply encouraged by our system’s strong, evidence-based results. We can document progress against youth substance abuse that has sometimes exceeded statewide progress by 100 percent.

Several years ago, we began implementing many of the concepts outlined in your editorial. Like many others in Maine and the nation, our community’s youth faced drug and alcohol problems as early as late elementary school. These challenges to our children were in many respects typical of those faced by other communities in our region, regardless of economic status or other factors. Fortunately, our community was willing to take advantage of a special opportunity.

Our community responded positively when asked to be part of a five-year University of Washington study of the Communities That Care prevention system across seven states. This system was developed scientifically but designed for local control. It asked community members to use the information from the Maine Youth Drug and Alcohol Use Survey and other archival data to prioritize the greatest risk factors specific to our community.

The CTC system embraces and builds on community assets (existing programs, community interest, willingness to engage) and fills the gaps with additional programs that have already been proved to lower those top risk factors. We were the local coordinating arm of that study. We made sure that our organization implemented the CTC programs according to how they were designed and evaluated them on several levels to make sure they were working.

The study is almost complete. It has compared 12 CTC communities, which had to contain a group meticulously applying the model, with a control group of 12 non-CTC communities across the seven-state study. Rigorous analysis and measurement show that youth in the CTC communities are doing significantly better than the control group’s youth in levels of risk and in initiation of delinquent behavior by seventh grade. Our organization’s outcomes are part of that study and of an upcoming article by University of Washington researchers.

Between 2002 and 2006, for Maine eighth-graders (yes, eighth-graders):

. Binge drinking fell statewide by 25 percent, while for us it fell twice that much – by 50 percent.

. Marijuana use in the previous 30 days fell statewide by 38 percent, while for us it fell 52 percent.

. Illegal drug selling fell statewide by 37 percent, while for us it fell 75 percent.

. Lack of commitment to school fell statewide by 6 percent, while for us it fell 22 percent.

For us, all but one of these particular risks and problem behaviors fell from a point above the statewide rate to a point below the statewide rate. This was not because all our community risk factors and problems were above the state average, some were, in fact, below. But we were determined to target our worst problems to see if we could make a difference. We did.

Despite these remarkable results, distinct challenges remain. If we want to maintain the progress made so far, sustainability and consistency are key.

We know it’s critically important that we continue to engage our communities in wisely investing in children and youth – investment in effective programs yields significant returns in dollars and lives. It’s essential to focus our efforts on what is proven to work and is likely to produce long-term impact. GOT CTC will continue to closely monitor the quality of our efforts to ensure we continue to get the results we want.

Even if our young people have started down the wrong path, we’ve seen that they can choose a better way. When they do, we all benefit.

Diane Vatne is community coordinator and David Walker is board president Greater Old Town Communities That Care.