County has more funding for grants

Bartholomew County has more money for grant distribution to fight substance abuse through its Drug Free Communities fund.

There will be a total of $67,566 available for grants through the Bartholomew County Substance Abuse Council’s Comprehensive Community Plan, Drug Free Communities program coordinator Rachel Flohr David said.

That amount is up from $44,815, she told the Bartholomew County Commissioners this week. Grant applications must be submitted no later than Friday.

Use of the funds are divided into three goals or categories for the upcoming fiscal year:

$17,675 for prevention and education

$32,000 for treatment and intervention

$16,892 for criminal justice

The remainder of the grant money, generated through specific fines and fees, has been set aside for administrative purposes that include maintaining a website, she said.

Up until last year, the Bartholomew County Substance Abuse Council provided grants to specific nonprofit organizations. But concern was raised that there was never any follow-up on how those funds were used.

As a result, reporting is now required by recipients regarding where the money is going and how it is being used to reduce substance abuse.

Changes were also made because the state wanted to see more collaboration between different agencies, she said in an earlier interview. By making these changes, agencies that have traditionally been placed in only one category may be able to fit into another, she said.

An example provided last year was a police department teaming up with a group like Family Services, Inc. to do an event focused on prevention. If approved, the event would be financed with money from the prevention category – even though police normally receive funds only from Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement.

The council’s mission is to develop and implement a comprehensive youth-and-adult strategy to educate about, to prevent and to reduce the incidents of alcohol and other drugs in this area.

Once all the grant applications are collected, a committee will come up with their recommendations regard what projects should be funded. But the final choice will be made by the Bartholomew County Council in July.