The Martinsburg Initiative Trauma Informed Prevention Services

The City of Martinsburg, West Virginia is applying to the FY23 COSSUP
grant for category 1b in the amount of $1.3 million. Martinsburg with partnership of the
subrecipient, The Martinsburg Initiative (TMI), will expand its substance use prevention and
police social work program. The purpose of this project is to develop a comprehensive, multidisciplinary,trauma informed approach by building upon the mission of The Martinsburg
Initiative: prevent substance use, build strong families, and empower the community. The
proposed project will create a position of project coordinator and add two social workers to the
police department to cover all shifts. It will add a peer support specialist to the team to help with
recovery services and add two school-based social workers to North and South Middle School.
Additionally, a Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) will also be created, trained, and implemented to
address individuals with substance use and unmet needs leading to substance use. The project
will have three components as primary activities covering prevention, intervention, and
treatment. In prevention, school social workers will provide prevention education using the
evidence-based curriculum Too Good for Drugs and TMI prevention programs, identified
individuals and families will be provided Naloxone, and overdose risk screenings and education
will be provided. In intervention, law enforcement referrals will be received at Intercept points 0
and 1 of the Sequential Intercept Model for justice involved individuals at risk for substance use
or overdose due to unmet behavioral health or socio-economic needs; case management of
identified individuals; referrals, screenings, and evidence based interventions of identified at risk
students in the middle schools; and connection to proper community resources to address the risk
factors of substance use and overdose. In treatment, access to treatment will be expanded due to
a coordinated referral system to local treatment centers and connections from the peer support
specialist to help navigate the system and recovery services. This project is expected to have
numerous expected outcomes to include the creation of CIT, improved response to substance use
and mental health calls, reduced overdoses and overdose deaths particularly juveniles, reduced
rates of recidivism, reduced stigma, more diversion into treatment, and increased resiliency in
children. The service area is Martinsburg and intended beneficiaries include individuals and
children struggling with substance use and their families. By addressing substance use as a
public health issue, it aims to improve health and wellbeing of all members of the community.