Supporting Children and Families Amidst the Opioid Epidemic
Funded by the William T. Grant Foundation
Among Project 2Gen’s diverse efforts, one area of focus is a commitment to understanding and improving the experiences of families affected by opioid use. This project launched in 2018 with support from the William T. Grant Foundation’s inaugural Institutional Challenge Grant, which promotes increased capacity for research in community organizations and increased consideration of practice in the research process.
Collaborators
Adam Hughes
Opioid and Extension Liaison
Anna Steinkraus
CCE-Tompkins Family and Community Development Program Coordinator
Juliana Garcia
CCE-Tompkins Two-Generation Family and Community Educator
Brittany Mihalec-Adkins
Graduate Research Assistant
Rose Ippolito
2Gen Scholars Alumn
In 2018 and early 2019, Project 2Gen and CCE-Tompkins partnered to host a series of Community Café forums on the opioid epidemic. The goal of the Community Café model is to provide a safe space for stakeholders to share ideas, challenges, and innovations in their work. In Tompkins County, cafés brought together key stakeholders to discuss local impacts of and responses to the epidemic, unmet needs of families affected by opioid use, and opportunities for research-practice collaborations to enhance family well-being.
Beyond Tompkins County, the partnership supported trainings for Cooperative Extension Executive Directors and Educators. These trainings, lead by Adam Hughes in Albany and Syracuse, provided basic information on the opioid epidemic, as well as promising strategies for supporting families. The partnership also helped to form the Opioid Program Work Team, which brings together Extension Educators across the state on monthly conference calls to share research on the opioid epidemic and provide resources for Educators to share with local stakeholders.
Research projects are also a key piece of our supporting children and families amidst the opioid epidemic. For example, Project 2Gen is conducting a scoping review of the empirical literature on the consequences of opioid use for child outcomes. The team has completed a complementary review identifying evidence-based parenting programs that support families facing substance use. The database is a resource for Extension Educators working across the United States to support families facing opioid use and other challenges.
Additionally, the partnership conducts applied research with the Tompkins County Family Treatment Court (FTC). Family Treatment Courts are a rapidly-growing, innovative approach to supporting families disrupted by substance use—simultaneously aiming to reduce parents’ substance use and promote child well-being. The Tompkins County FTC is a nationally-recognized peer learning court and involves collaborations among the courts, the Department of Social Services, local treatment programs, mental health services, and Cooperative Extension Educators. Research efforts include qualitative interviews with FTC parents and quantitative analysis of Department of Social Services data on long-term child welfare outcomes.
As part of the FTC process, families with children age 6-11 take part in the Strengthening Families Program (SFP), administered by CCE-Tompkins. In addition to studying FTC broadly, our research practice partnership also focuses on studying the benefits of SFP for families involved in FTC, as well as developing additional programming to address the unique needs of court-involved families. Through a 2019 summer internship with Cornell Cooperative Extension, Rose Ippolito surveyed CCE county offices across the state to learn about their unique needs, strengths, and challenges related to the opioid epidemic. Using the survey responses, Rose connected CCE staff with faculty members and developed research briefs based on Educators’ needs and interests. Through these efforts, Rose helped to establish a more formal network between campus and county offices so that resources and best practices can be shared.
