Leading the conversation on alcohol and drugs.

In May 2023, PreventEd was designated as a Recovery-Friendly Workplace by the state of Missouri. This designation recognizes PreventEd as a workplace that promotes employee safety, health, and well-being through strategies that provide support for managers and employees, including reducing stigma and providing recovery resources related to the challenges surrounding substance use disorders.

In 2021, PreventEd introduced a Certified Peer Specialist program serving Franklin County residents through a HRSA Rural Communities Opioid Response Program Grant. This program has been expanded to serve Lincoln County, with plans to grow into other Eastern Missouri Counties.

With over 50 years experience, formerly under the name NCADA, PreventEd is committed to guiding all people through tough conversations around alcohol and other drugs. This work is rooted in experience, knowledge of best practices and evidence-informed programs.

In 2019, the Sans Bar nationwide tour teamed up with PreventEd to bring an alcohol-free event to St. Louis. Over 300 people attended, making it the largest Sans Bar pop-up to date! PreventEd then licensed with Sans Bar to become the owner of Sans Bar St. Louis, and regularly hosts alcohol-free pop-ups all over the area. Learn more at www.sansbarstl.com.

Formerly known as the Transitional Counseling Program, GuidEd was created as an early intervention program for teens who don’t need treatment, but are beginning to develop the early signs of substance misuse.

PreventEd’s central focus in programming is K-12, in-school prevention education. These programs were started in 1980 with the hiring of “The Princess of Prevention,” Harriet Kopolow. They have since been a cornerstone in the organization’s mission to prevent substance misuse and substance use disorder in Eastern Missouri.

In conjunction with in-school prevention education is PreventEd’s youth leadership programming. Teen Institute empowers local teens to provide peer-to-peer prevention education and emerge as leaders in their friend groups, schools, and communities.

Founded in 1965, PreventEd was originally a regional chapter of the National Council on Alcoholism. The mission was to change the stigma surrounding alcohol use disorder and help those struggling to find recovery. This idea remains central in PreventEd’s Assessment and Referral program, community strategy, advocacy efforts, and public health campaigns.