Muskegon DFC Featured in Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America Article

The Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America featured Ride with Pride in their latest national newsletter. The article featured the history of Muskegon ALI and Ride with Pride.
In 2012, Mona Shores School District, the Norton Shores Police Department and Muskegon ALI launched their first Ride with Pride program. In the beginning of the year, students are asked to sign a positive behavior pledge, which consists of positive behavior and choices the student needs to follow in order to be entered to win a car at the end of the
year.

The program has now expanded to 7 school districts in Muskegon County. Since 2012, Mona Shores High School saw a 51% decrease in school suspensions and in-school
referrals for alcohol or other drugs. Mona Shores recently reported that this positive school climate has now impacted reading comprehension scores up 13% in 2018.
Muskegon County was once known as the “Beer Tent Capitial of Michigan”. Summer celebrations, community events, and outdoor concerts allowed more access to alcohol and opportunities for drunk drivers and over-serving. In 2007, Muskegon’s student youth data showed 28% of high school juniors reported binge drinking in the past 30 days.

In the most recent MiPHY data, due to the efforts of Muskegon ALI and the Ride with Pride coalition, Muskegon County has seen a 20% reduction in students reporting they ever drank alcohol, a 37% decline in recent alcohol use, a 48% reduction of binge drinking among youth, and a 61% reduction of youth riding with someone who had been drinking.
In 2015, the coalition for a Drug Free Muskegon County received the CADCA Got Outcomes Award and continues to promote their award-winning efforts at the yearly CADCA national conferences.