The WAY Coalition conducted an online survey to better understand our community’s needs and concerns related to youth substance use. Advertised through the village and school district email lists, the survey was sent out twice over a period of two weeks from December 6 to the 20th in 2019. Over 200 residents responded, and the results of the survey can be found in The Hastings Community Survey 2019 presentation
Almost 300 parents and 8th through 12th grade students attended the 2nd Annual Family University, held on October 22 at Hastings High School. Keynote speaker Dr. Matt Bellace spoke to students about achieving natural highs and emotional resilience, and to parents about how to support their teens in reducing stress. Attendees loved Dr. Bellace’s combination of comedy and valuable information which generated feed back such as “This was one of the best speakers that has come to Hastings and he had the crowd engaged the entire time”.
Attendees also enjoyed a delicious dinner provided by Slices, and a variety of workshop choices. The article Family University Provides Students/Parents with Positive Methods of Reducing Stress provides a nice summary on the Hastings High School website.