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Marijuana Subcommittee Information

Join Us!

​​Meetings are currently held the second Thursday of the month, from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. at the Coulee Recovery Center (933 Ferry St., La Crosse, WI 54601)
We are available for presentations!

For more information, please contact...

Judi Zabel
7 C's Coalition (formerly La Crosse Area Health Initiative) tobacco coalition Leader (more information here).
Health Educator
La Crosse County Health Department
300 4th Street N.
La Crosse, WI 54601
608-785-9855
jzabel@lacrossecounty.org

Goals & ​Objectives

Goal: Reduce youth past 30-day marijuana use.

Objective: By September 29, 2019 educate at least 200 parents/caregivers, teachers, coaches, health professionals, business leaders, and other community residents in La Crosse county about the risks and consequences associated with marijuana use.  

Strategy 1: ​Enhance Skills/Provide Information

Strategy 2: Modify/change Policies

Meeting Agendas & Minutes

About Us

The National Institute on Drug Abuse calls marijuana the most commonly used illicit drug in the U.S. Just under 1 in 6 people 12 years of age or older report using marijuana in the past year. Teens’ perceptions of the risks of marijuana use have steadily declined over the past decade.  In 2014 the La Crosse County Prevention Network identified youth marijuana prevention has a priority. In 2016 the initiative was funded through the Drug-Free Communities Support Program grants. 

This work group is made up of people from our community who share a common concern about marijuana use and an interest and commitments towards youth marijuana prevention.  The work group is an excellent forum for parents, students, educators, clergy, youth influencers, media, medical community, law enforcement and local government. 

Members of the marijuana work group plan educational events (listed below), town hall meetings, and Wake Up Call. 

Meth & Marijuana:  October 2016 Viterbo Tom Johnson, Investigative Coordinator, West Central Metropolitan Enforcement Group, MEG, La Crosse County Sheriff’s Department, Nick Passe, Passe Law Office, Anne Patton, Drug Treatment Court Coordinator, Justice Support Services. 

Today’s Marijuana April 2017 La Crosse County, UW-L and Viterbo Ed Shemelya:  National Coordinator of the National Marijuana Initiative. This is an initiative within the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) that is responsible for assisting and improving the capabilities of the 28 High Intensity Drug Trafficking (HIDTA) areas nationwide in carrying out the National Drug Control Strategy objectives of disrupting domestic trafficking and production of, and reducing demand for, marijuana and derivative products.

Boot Camp on Marijuana November, 2017 Stoney Creek Inn Tony Coder Director of State and local Affairs, Smart Approaches to Marijuana

Marijuana:  The Latest Research March 2018 Gundersen Health System & Viterbo Dr. Bertha Madras, Professor of Psychobiology at Harvard Medical School.
Gundersen Health System Presentation
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Wake Up Call:  a life size exhibit of a teenager’s bedroom with more than 50 red flags that can signal substance abuse. Our goal is to educate parents and other adults who are influential in the lives of youth so they know what seemingly innocent items can actually be an indication of substance abuse, provide resources and encourage positive communication styles. Tours are provided by trained guides.
Members are available to speak on a variety of topics:
  1. recognize the different forms and potencies of today’s marijuana;
  2. understand how today’s high potency marijuana effects the body and mind;
  3. know how marijuana can impact your child’s learning and future academic success;
  4. learn what is happening in states who have legalized medical and recreational marijuana;
  5. realize what the marijuana industry has learned from the tobacco industry;
  6. and learn how to start the conversation early.
For more information regarding this mobile experience OR to host wake up call, contact: Judi Zabel, 608-785-9855 or JZabel@LaCrosseCounty.org
Also, Wake Up Call is featured on our events page!

Belief Statement

In terms of our work with marijuana, LCPN:
  • Believes in an approach that neither legalizes, nor demonizes, marijuana.
  • Understands that marijuana use and the policies surrounding it are not black and white- such as "incarceration versus legalization" - and require multi-layered solutions based on reputable science and sound principles of public health and safety.
  • Champions smart policies that decrease marijuana use - and do not harm marijuana users and low-level dealers with arrest records that stigmatize them for life and in ways that make it even harder for them to break free from cycles of substance dependence.
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Click the image to acces the LCPN Marijuana Belief Statement Document
We will utilize a Four Pillars Approach, modeled after SAM's approach:
1. To inform public policy with the science of today's marijuana
  • Marijuana use directly affects the brain-specifically the parts of the brain responsible for memory, learning, attention, and reaction time.
  • Science confirms that the adolescent brain is not fully developed until the early to mid-20's. Developing brains are especially susceptible to all of the negative effects of marijuana and drug use.
  • Particularly the part of the brain that regulates planning for complex cognitive behavior, personality expression, behavior and social behavior.
  • Marijuana contains about 500 components, most of which we know little about.
  • Marijuana has shown to be harmful to the heart, lungs, mental health and pregnancies.
2. To have honest conversation about reducing the unintended consequences of current marijuana policies, such as lifelong stigma due to arrest
  • Possession of small amounts of marijuana should be civil offenses with referrals to treatment and social services if needed.
  • Fair and proportionate penalties for production, distribution, dealing and sales of marijuana.
  • Keeping roadways safe for drivers- any traces found in someone's system results in misdemeanor (no level of marijuana impairment has been determined).
  • Increased education and prevention.
  • Increase Brief Interventions and treatment.
4. To promote research of marijuana's medical properties and produce pharmacy-attainable medications.
  • Rapid expansion of research into the components of the marijuana plant for delivery via non-smoked forms
  • Establishment of an emergency or research FDA investigational New Drug program that allows seriously ill patients to obtain non-smoked components of marijuana before final FDA approval.
  • The end of "cannabis clubs" and so-called "dispensaries" that are fronts for marijuana stores and do not follow appropriate standards of medical care.
3. To prevent the establishment of big marijuana that would market marijuana to children, and to prevent big tobacco from taking over big marijuana.