ABOUT CACTC

Cortland Area Communities That Care engages the community to promote a healthy culture for positive youth development.

OUR VISION

A community where all youth have the opportunity to be healthy and successful.

OUR HISTORY

CACTC was founded in 2002 by a group of community residents committed to the health and well-being of youth in our community. Recognizing the many issues young people face, they created a community coalition focused on the prevention of youth substance abuse, school dropout rates, teen pregnancy, delinquency, and youth violence. They chose to use the Communities That Care operating system in order to formulate a community-wide plan to reduce and prevent these behaviors. The initial creators of CACTC chose this model because it includes all sectors of the community, including: parents, youth, schools, human service agencies, the justice system, faith community, local government, health care, and businesses.

From its beginning, CACTC has employed a process for data drive decision making. At the same time, it only implements community level strategies known to increase positive outcomes and behaviors (protective factors) and reduce negative outcomes and behaviors (risk factors).

CACTC's focus is, and always will be, based on a data driven approach to prevention across all areas that affect the health and success of youth in our community.

OUR STRATEGIES

Environmental-level strategies aim to reduce problem behaviors at the population level by changing the content (i.e., places, settings, occasions, and circumstance) in which problem behaviors occur.

Providing Information

Educational presentations, workshops or seminar or other presentations of data (e.g., public announcements, brochures, dissemination, billboards, community meetings, forums,

web-based communication.

Changing Consequences

Increasing or decreasing the probability of a specific behavior that reduces risk or enhances protection by altering the consequences for performing that behavior (e.g., increasing public recognition for deserved behavior).

Modifying/Changing Policies

Formal change in written procedures,

by-laws, proclamations, rules or laws with written documentation and/or voting procedures (e.g., workplace initiatives, law enforcement procedures and practice, public policy).

Enhancing Skills

Workshops, seminar or other activities designed to increase the skills of participants, members and staff needed

to achieve population level outcomes (e.g., training, technical assistance, distance learning, strategic planning retreats).

Changing Physical Design

Changing the physical design or structure of the environment to reduce risk or enhance protection (e.g., parks, landscapes, signage, lighting, outlet density).

Enhancing Access/Reducing Barriers

Improving systems and processes to increase the ease, ability and opportunity to utilize those systems and services (e.g., assuring healthcare, childcare, transportation, housing, justice, education, safety, special needs, cultural and language sensitivity).

Providing Support

Creating opportunities to support people to participate in activities that reduce risk or enhance protection (e.g., providing alternative activities, mentoring, referrals, support groups or clubs).

OUR MODEL

CACTC is a community coalition - not just one organization - made up of nonprofit organizations, government agencies, law enforcement, schools, volunteers, youth, and community members working together for a common cause. CACTC is a hub of communication and is essential for a small community like our to have success. CACTC's experience and success since its founding in 2002 shows that the coalition model works.