CHALLENGE

There is limited access to substance use and mental health education in rural Great Lakes communities.

APPROACH

The Great Lakes ROTA-RC project addresses this challenge by creating a virtual learning community. Through partnerships with Cooperative Extension in U.S. Health and Human Services Region 5, the initiative hosted live webinars featuring specialists in prevention, treatment, recovery, and harm reduction. These events are tailored for professionals, para-professionals, volunteers, and students across various fields. To ensure continuous access, the webinars are archived in a virtual library on the project’s website and shared through social media platforms. 

Social Media Outreach

A successful social media campaign to support Great Lakes ROTA-RC and advertise events and resources on topics related to substance use disorders and mental health had a reach of 265,679 individuals across Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. It garnered 3,059 link clicks to the Great Lakes ROTA-RC’s website.

OUTCOME

In its first year, the program hosted 22 virtual education events, bringing critical education and sustainable resources that support both immediate and long-term learning needs, to 1,142 individuals in rural areas with topics including substance use prevention and recovery, mental health recovery topics (youth focus), general organization and resource information, and cultural outreach programming.