Governor John Bel Edwards was born seventh out of eight children to Sheriff Frank Jr. and Dora Jean Edwards. He grew up hunting and fishing in Amite, a rural town in Tangipahoa Parish. He and First Lady Donna Edwards began dating while students at Amite High School. After graduating top of his class, Gov. Edwards attended the United States Military Academy at West Point
The Office of Drug Policy seeks to elicit, motivate and coordinate Louisiana organizations, agencies, entities and individuals toward the goal of eradicating drug and alcohol abuse in Louisiana.
The Office of Drug Policy identifies challenges and provides solutions to address substance misuse and abuse and to make recommendations to the governor and state agencies regarding programs, policies and practices that support and sustain prevention, treatment and enforcement efforts.
Vision: To recognize that alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse is a serious social and public health issue that when addressed will create a climate of healthiness and community wellness for all of Louisiana.
The Drug Policy Board was created through legislation in 1990 to address substance abuse prevention, treatment and enforcement. The board supports prevention efforts, specifically the Louisiana Partnerships for Success (LaPFS). The State Epidemiology Workgroup and the Prevention Systems Committee were formed as subcommittees of the Drug Policy Board using the Strategic Prevention Framework-State Incentive Grant.
Click here for upcoming meetings of the Drug Policy Board.
Through this funding and experience, Louisiana has developed a substance abuse prevention system and state infrastructure that supports communities addressing substance abuse locally. This state infrastructure will support the local efforts of high-need communities to address underage drinking and prescription drug misuse and abuse.
The Prevention Systems Committee (PSC) is a state level advisory committee of the Drug Policy Board. The purpose of this committee is to make recommendations regarding effective programs, policies and practices regarding resource and capacity issues, as well as develop a framework to build an advocacy network for prevention.
The State Epidemiology Workgroup (SEW) is a state level advisory committee of the Drug Policy Board. The purpose of the committee is to advise and make recommendations on issues relating to collecting, housing, analyzing, and reporting consumption and consequence data related to substance use.
The Louisiana SEW Online Data System is a valuable tool for providing data to prevention professionals that would otherwise not have access to data. It was developed by a SEW support contractor, Bach Harrison, LLC specifically for use by prevention professionals. The online data system greatly expands the ability of prevention stakeholders and professionals to utilize data for planning, monitoring and evaluation purposes. It allows state and community planners to view as well as download prevention-related indicators at the parish, regional and state levels. Finally, the SEW Online Data System provides access to other useful SEW products including a series of data briefs that highlight data related to hot topics in the substance abuse prevention and health promotion field.