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S.E.T.T. 26-Year Run May Come to an End due to Lack of
Funding
Sojourner’s Truth Staff
After 26 years of after-school programs and
summer sessions, the Self Expression Teen Theater may be
forced to close its doors due to lack of funding.
In the past years the Lucas County Board of
Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities LCBMRDD)
has been the main source of funding for the agency whose
mission is to use theater and other programs to prevent teen
violence and drug abuse. S.E.T.T. was recently informed that
those funds have dried up.
“The decision of the Mental Health Board is
misguided,” said Keith Mitchell, local attorney and
president of the S.E.T.T. board of directors noting that
S.E.T.T. and the Urban Minority Alcoholism and Drug Abuse
Outreach Program (UMADAOP) are the only two certified
substance abuse prevention programs in the central city and
LCBMHDD has denied funding to both agencies.
S.E.T.T.’s problem in staying afloat will be
acute since it received upwards of $180,000 from LCBMRDD
which accounted for virtually all of its operating funds.
S.E.T.T. has filed a request for mediation
with the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction
Services (ODADAS) in an effort to get the local decision
reversed. Failing that, the S.E.T.T. board sees very little
alternative but to cease their efforts in working with
youth.
S.E.T.T’s mission is to offer a “holistic
approach to family life education.” Rather than taking the
passive approach of “just saying, no” the programs are
geared to activities that present a range of positive
choices.
A Summer Education Camp reaches out to
students from age 11 to 17 to participate in and convey
relevant information about substance abuse, violence
prevention, community services and developmental
opportunities to thousands of area high-risk youth.
During the school year, in school and after
school programs promote non-violent norms and healthy
lifestyles for students.
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