New York, NY- April 4, 2011– the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, in cooperation with the Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH), announced today that Join Together has become part of the 25-year-old nonprofit organization based in New York City.

Join Together is a leader in bringing effective alcohol and drug prevention and treatment programs to communities nationwide. It publishes online daily news and research reports to a national readership, operates widely used self-screening and brief intervention websites for alcohol and drug problems and advocates for evidence-based public policy.

“Today’s action is an exciting milestone in the work we started in 1991. I am proud of the accomplishments our team has made over the years to improve prevention, treatment and policy in America’s communities and delighted that the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids will carry on these efforts,” said David Rosenbloom, Professor of Public Health at Boston University and founder of Join Together.

“We believe this shift secures a strong future for Join Together that will enable even more leaders and communities to have access to the timely, high-quality information and services that have made Join Together the nation’s leader in addiction prevention, treatment and policy information,” explained Robert Meenan, Dean of the Boston University School of Public Health. “We look forward to a long-term relationship with the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids as it assumes this new leadership role.”

“The opportunity to sustain and grow the invaluable resources of Join Together further exemplifies a decade of evolution in our programs and services that help people effectively address drug and alcohol abuse in their families and at the community level,” said Steve Pasierb, President and CEO of the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids. “From our origins as a research-based drug abuse prevention organization, we have evolved to become a true partner to parents when they need drug and alcohol prevention, intervention, treatment and recovery support. With Join Together, we add advocacy to our offerings, as well as the ability to disseminate timely news and research, while providing support for professionals working at all levels throughout the addiction field.”

The transition phase is funded, in part, through grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati. Join Together will continue to provide current news, research and resources for prevention and treatment professionals, policy makers, community leaders, public officials, teachers, parents and families. Its highly utilized resources, alcoholscreening.org and drugscreening.org, will remain stand-alone websites and will be integrated into the deep intervention and treatment resources found at drugfree.org.

Join Together provides daily and breaking news, research briefs and in-depth feature articles on drug and alcohol issues free to more than 50,000 subscribers in every state in the country. The service will now be available at drugfree.org/jointogether. Individuals can sign up to receive Join Together daily and weekly e-newsletters at drugfree.org/enewsletters.

the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids and BUSPH will collaborate further to significantly increase utilization of resources on Join Together by professionals in a number of allied health fields. In the coming months, the organizations will re-launch Join Together’s popular continuing education offerings, expand its online screening programs and distribute a journal for those working in addiction treatment. To learn more, please visit drugfree.org.

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About the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids
The Partnership at Drugfree.org is a nonprofit organization that helps parents prevent, intervene in and find treatment for drug and alcohol use by their children. Bringing together renowned scientists, parent experts and communications professionals, this public health nonprofit translates current research on teen behavior, parenting, addiction and treatment into easy to understand resources at drugfree.org. The organization also reaches families through its community education programs which focus on local drug and alcohol issues of concern for parents, youth and the Hispanic community. the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids depends on donations from individuals, corporations, foundations and the public sector and is thankful to SAG/AFTRA and the advertising and media industries for their ongoing generosity.

About the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF)
RWJF focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, meaningful and timely change. For more than 35 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. Visit www.rwjf.org.

About The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati
The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati is an independent foundation dedicated to improving community health and access to health care for vulnerable populations. The Foundation awards grants to non-profit and governmental organizations for selected health programs and activities in Cincinnati and 20 surrounding counties in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. Since 1998, the Health Foundation invested $121 million to support local health care programs that address the objectives of the Foundation’s four focus areas and general community health. Visit the Health Foundation at www.healthfoundation.org.