September 2023 Newsletter

National Recovery Month:

During September 2023 - National Recovery Month (NRM) - please join us in remembering people who lost their lives to overdose and celebrating people living in recovery. Also, let's celebrate the dedicated workers and organizations who provide prevention, treatment, and recovery support services that make recovery possible for many. In honor of NRM, the Chicago skyline is going PURPLE September 8th-14th.

Help us celebrate that recovery is for EVERYONE- every person, every family, every community- by listing your Recovery Month events or downloading graphics and resources to use from the Recovery Month Website.

SAMHSA also has a great toolkit for additional graphics, guidance, and resources- all found at SAMHSA Recovery Month.

SUPR Staffing Update:

Billy Wilder has joined the SUPR team as the Manager of Grant Management Support for the central and southern region of the state within the Bureau of Business and Fiscal Operations.

Billy has worked for the State of Illinois for the past 9 1/2 years! Five of those years were spent in procurement while the other four were in contract compliance.

Upon graduating high school, he entered the military. After his time in the Marines, Billy attended the University of Nebraska where he obtained his bachelor's degree. Once he obtained his degree, he became a Regional Manager for a Fortune 500 insurance company for 6 years. Billy also holds a master's in business administration!

Roseann Solak has joined the SUPR team as the Administrator of Federal Block Grant and Data Reporting within the Chief of Staff's office.

For the past 9+ years at IDHS, Roseann has served as a PSC manager for 3 Federal substance use service grants and assisted on gambling, ECOVID, and special projects. Her previous behavioral health experience includes Youth Outreach Services as Prevention Coordinator, Kenneth Young Centers as Program Manager, and Prevention First as a Technical Assistant.

Prior to IDHS, Roseann performed an array of roles at the National Safety Council (NSC) over 20 years!

Upcoming Trainings:

This training focused on the vital convergence of problem gambling and suicidality. In this training, Dr. Thomas Joiner's model will be examined, which dissects the fundamental factors driving suicidal tendencies, enabling us to spot individuals at risk and provide appropriate assistance.

SUPR is pleased to offer the opportunity to attend training and become certified in the Community Reinforcement Approach (CRA). CRA is an evidence-based treatment for substance use disorder and stimulant use disorder, especially in combination with MAT. CRA training includes contingency management training.

SUPR is covering the cost of training, certification, coaching, and on-demand support and assistance to your clinical staff who participate in the training process. Continuing education credit from NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals, is available to those who attend the training in its entirety.

Save the Date

  • Problem Gambling and the Latinx Community
  • When: September 26th, 2023; 1:00pm (CST)
  • Register: Coming Soon - Stay up to date at Illinois Council on Problem Gambling
  • IDHS/SUPR has partnered with Faces and Voices of Recovery to assist in the expansion of recovery community organizations (RCO) across the state. Part of this expansion involves providing free trainings to providers and community stakeholders on recovery topics. For more information about upcoming trainings, visit Faces and Voices of Recovery.
  • Please share these trainings widely within your agencies and communities.
  • If you have questions or would like to discuss starting a recovery community organization in your community, please contact Kim Sriner at Kimberly.Sriner@illinois.gov
  • Cannabis Resource Guide:
  • The SUPR funded Cannabis Policy Resource Center at Prevention First has developed a resource guide on Cannabis: THC, Delta-8, and Other Cannabinoids to shed light on the plethora of unregulated cannabis products that are available for purchase to the public. These are unregulated products that are marketed widely and people who use them may experience unintended effects.
  • Please share this resource with your stakeholders and members of the communities you serve to inform them of the potential dangers of using these products. SAMHSA Equity Challenge: SUPR would like to congratulate Prevention Partnership and the West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force for being one of 10 awardees of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Equity Challenge. The West Side of Chicago has been one of the areas hardest hit by overdoses driven by racial disparities in Illinois. The West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force is one of two racial equity task forces funded by SUPR!
  • Recovery Residences Registry

    The IDHS/SUPR Recovery Residence Registry has been moved to the Illinois Helpline for Opioids and Other Substances to simplify public inquiries for Recovery Residence. Information in the registry helps IDHS/SUPR better understand recovery residences' capacity and support for Medication Assisted Recovery. If you partner with a residence that is not listed, please invite them to register and/or contact Kimberly.Sriner@illinois.gov to list the organization. Search the Recovery Residences Registry at any time

    Overdose Response Funding Updates:

    SUPR publishes a quarterly report summarizing funded projects in response to the overdose crisis. We invite you to review the Overdose Response Funding Report at your convenience.

    Smart Alerts and Other Communications:

    DHS Coronavirus

    SAMHSA COVID-19: The health, safety, and well-being of all those we serve are amongst our highest priorities. Please visit the State of Illinois Coronavirus page.

    Summary of SUPR Resources During the COVID-19 Pandemic

    Smart Alerts

    SUPR COVID-19 Communications