A Two-Year Evaluation of the Wood Rock Youth Development Project

The efficacy of a school-based initiative in reducing and/or preventing alcohol, tobacco, and drug (ATD) use in “at-risk” youth was examined. This evaluation represents a final report on the Woodrock Youth Development Project (YDP). Data from two cohorts, representing two academic program years, were combined to yield a final sample of 718 elementary and middle school youth. Youth were assigned randomly to either an experimental or control condition. Surveys containing several psychosocial measures were administered at pretest and posttest. Analyses of covariance (ANCOVA) were used to examine the impact of YDP on ultimate and intermediate outcome variables. Findings indicated that YDP participation was related to significant reductions in self-reported substance abuse in the last month and in lifetime as well as improvements in race relations and self-reported school attendance. The findings are discussed in relation to the program and other prevention efforts.