Consideration of a Grant Application to the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth to Educate Youth about the Evolving Dangers of Fentanyl.

The Alexandria Health Department (AHD) is applying for a $4,000 Activation Grant from the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth (VFHY) to implement the "Dangers of Fentanyl Lessons" program. This program aims to educate middle and high school students in Alexandria about the risks associated with fentanyl. The grant will fund training for at least two AHD staff members, Zayda Morales and Kirstin Sievers, and allow them to deliver the evidence-informed lesson to an estimated 620 youth between January and August 2026. The lessons will be provided in health classes at two Title I middle schools and through afterschool programs targeting vulnerable youth populations, including those experiencing housing instability, court-involved youth, and pregnant/parenting teens. This initiative addresses a local need, as Alexandria has seen 79 opioid-overdose emergency department visits among youth under 19 from 2020-2024, with Black and Latino youth disproportionately affected.