Nominations are being accepted through December 1st for a new award to be presented by the Governor’s Office of Drug Control Policy. It’s called the Innovation, Determination and Excellence in Action — or IDEA — award. Iowa Drug Policy Coordinator Gary Kendell is hoping the award will lead to a reduction in substance abuse around the state.
“Without recognizing those innovations and new ways of doing things, we’ll never find the next best practice,” Kendell said. “So, we want to be able to recognize folks that might be doing something unusual and new because that may be our next best practice.” Nomination forms are available on the Iowa O-D-C-P website. There are few eligibility requirements.
Kendell says people can nominate a group of people, an individual or an organization. “It’s the first year we’ve done it, so it’s going to grow as we do because we’ve not been through the process before,” Kendell said. “Really, we’re just interested in hearing about new and innovative things that are happening in the area of drug control policy and programs.” The inaugural IDEA award will be presented in January.