Tygarts Valley Middle/High, Elkins Middle and Elkins High Schools to become GameChanger Schools
West Virginia Press Association
FAIRMONT, W.Va. – A Public/Private Partnership between GameChanger, Randolph County Schools, the city of Elkins, the Randolph County Commission and MegaCorp is responsible for bringing the GameChanger Opioid and Substance Misuse Prevention Education Initiative to Tygarts Valley Middle High, Elkins Middle and Elkins High Schools for the 2024-2025 school year. The announcement was made at a press conference at the Randolph County Board of Education offices in Elkins on Wednesday.
GameChanger Founder and Executive Director Joe Boczek says this is a prime example of what can happen when everyone joins together.
“We are facing a monumental challenge both as a state and a nation. Fentanyl and Opioid and substance misuse is killing our kids and tearing at the very fiber of our communities however, it’s days like this that provide a reminder what we can accomplish when the public and private sectors join together for a common goal.”
Elkins Mayor Jerry Marco echoed Boczek’s thoughts.
“I feel proud to be a part of such a fantastic collaboration and I thank our City Council, Superintendent Shawn Dilly, the Randolph County Commission and of course MegaCorp for stepping up and helping bring GameChanger to Elkins and Randolph County. There is nothing more important than our kids. They are our future, and we owe them the opportunity of a future.”
Dilly, who is in his first year as superintendent, welcomes GameChanger to Randolph County Schools.
“Our youth are given the opportunity almost daily to make a bad choice and unfortunately a bad choice these days can mean their life. GameChanger certainly has proven it can help educate our youth on the consequences of making a bad choice. I hope this is just the start of a relationship with GameChanger.”
Commissioner Cris Siler, speaking on behalf of the Randolph County Commission, says the commission is firmly committed to do whatever it takes to not only address the deadly Fentanyl and Opioid and substance misuse, but to meet it head on and put an end to it.
“We applaud GameChanger for having such a multi-faceted, student-centered approach to this crisis and give our full and unequivocal support to do whatever we can and provide whatever assistance we can.”
Dave Kubichek, sales director for MegaCorp (founded by Ryan and Denise Legg in 2009, it has emerged as one of the nation’s leaders in building long-term strategic partnerships with clients by providing customized solutions for their freight needs), says the GameChanger approach is both innovative and effective.
“GameChanger helps bring peer leadership, trust and self-empowerment back into the lives of our children. This program will help us promote healthy environments for them to learn in and peer leadership will help develop Randolph County’s future leaders. At MegaCorp, we are so pleased to be an integral part of such a progressive time in Randolph County. We must make sure this progress we are seeing in our neighborhoods and businesses is mirrored in our schools and health systems.”
GameChanger is a student-powered substance misuse prevention movement focusing on building school environments that curb drug use by implementing monitoring and sustaining GameChanger Student Peer Leadership Programs, while empowering youth to make healthy choices as they prepare to be our leaders of tomorrow.
Learn more about GameChanger: www.gamechangerusa.org
