Our Impact

The Coalition for Urban Youth and Family Development has built the member capacity and community partnerships that have allowed us to institutionalize prevention initiatives targeting underage drinking, marijuana, tobacco, and prescription drug use. In partnership with The Youth Connections, Inc. and Changing Lives and Staying Sober, CUFYD has helped reach over 50,000 Westside residence with substance abuse prevention messages and resources through public education campaigns, public forums, workshops, summits, community outreach projects and programs. CUYFD also partnered with Empowerment Zone Coalition to promote a public policy advocacy initiative that resulted in an ordinance to hold landlords responsible for boarding up their abandon buildings to decrease illegal drug activity and increase neighborhood safety. These abandon buildings threaten the safety of young people walking to school and some of them were used as drug dens. CUYFD was instrumental in moving the Detroit City Council to pass a resolution in opposition of legalization of marijuana.

Over the past year, CUYFD has evolved into a community organization recognized by the City of Detroit and Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPS) as a key change agent and critical partner. With their support, CUYFD has grown to include strategic alliances within each of the 12 sectors. The alliances serve to bring needed substance abuse prevention services into the Westside community. CUYFD currently directs meaningful youth development activities at The Center and Mumford High School such as the Pathways to Success, a career development and mentoring program targeting high risk youth. Programs such as Pathways to Success are augmented by a series of environmental strategies that include the Westside Town Hall Meeting on Substance Abuse, neighborhood-based drug awareness and parent education events, and seasonal family focused celebrations offering substance free venues for families to interact.