Prevention in Virginia: Ten years of progress

Speaking to the participants of Virginia's First Prevention Institute in 1988, Stephen Goldston, previous Director of NIMH'S Prevention Division asked, "Why is it that as I go from state to state learning about their prevention programs I hear that fewer and fewer dollars are going into prevention, but in Virginia prevention seems to be growing at a steady pace"? Goldston's perception of Virginia is quite accurate. Moreover, 1988 will probably be seen as a major benchmark in the growth of prevention services in the Commonwealth because the Virginia Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services (VA DMHMRSAS) established specific priorities for prevention services and a separate funding stream so that these priorities could be offered by the localities. These actions represent major strides for Virginia's prevention community, strides that began with the Legislature in 1980.