In The Public Eye

DRUG-PREVENTION WORKER IS COMMITTED TO STUDENTS

Jim Snider admits that when he was younger, he made some choices
that negatively affected his life and his future.

But now, he has built a career on attempting to prevent young people
from walking down the wrong path in life.

Mr. Snider, 57, has been the on-site prevention specialist in the
Rossford school district through the Wood County Educational Service
Center for five years.

Before coming to Rossford, he had interacted with students of all
ages in the Eastwood, Elmwood, Lake, and Otsego school districts
during his nearly 25-year tenure of working in the field of
adolescent chemical dependency and prevention.

For efforts in trying to keep students drug-free, Mr. Snider was
given statewide recognition when he accepted the 2006 Enrique
Camarena Award earlier this year.

"It was humbling because as far as prevention goes, it's the highest
honor in the state," Mr. Snider said. "I knew there was a lot of
prestige in the award."

The award is named in honor of Enrique Camarena, an undercover U.S.
Drug Enforcement Administration agent who broke up several drug
trafficking bands around the world before he was murdered in 1985 by
drug dealers in Mexico.

Though Mr. Snider said he was honored to be nominated and receive
the award, that's not the focus of his daily work. "I really do what
I do because I want to make a difference," he said. "It's not about
receiving awards."

Mr. Snider, of Reno Beach in Jerusalem Township, said he discovered
how much he enjoyed working with children when he began volunteering
at Toledo Hospital. So, he went on to get the training he needed to
become a treatment technician at the hospital, a licensed
independent chemical dependency counselor, and a state-certified
prevention specialist.

As the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs (ATOD) prevention
specialist at Rossford schools, Mr. Snider is responsible for
coordinating prevention programs for children in most grade levels -
from the Beginning Alcoholism and Addiction Basic Education
Studies (BABES) program for second graders to the Teen Institute
peer-prevention program at the senior high school level.

He also coordinates the Hooked on Fishing, Not on Drugs program for
fourth graders; the Botvin's Life Skills researched-based prevention
curriculum for seventh and ninth graders; the Junior Teen Institute,
and the Stay Tobacco-Free Athletes Mentoring Program (STAMP), among others.

"He's a good role model for the kids, and they really respect him,"
Rossford High School Principal Ron Grimm said. "He takes the bull by
the horns and isn't afraid to go out there and be proactive. He's
pretty low-key, but he can get the job done."

Mr. Snider said he believes that prevention needs to be addressed
throughout the course of adolescence so it becomes a part of a
child's belief system.

"My philosophy is, prevention is a puzzle - there's a lot of things
that need to be in place," he said. "The more pieces we put in, the
more we help our young students. You just do what you do and hope
you are successful in impacting children's lives."