How a Health Coalition Built a Foundation for Meaningful Prevention Education in Schools across the County

October 23, 2025  | By Hannah Gilbert

Spencer County Tobacco Prevention & Cessation Program in Indiana partners with CATCH Global Foundation and local middle and high schools.

Key Highlights

• Local strategies that worked for a public health coalition partnering with CATCH Global Foundation to integrate meaningful prevention education and build a culture of health in middle and high schools across a county.
• Why building relationships is key in meaningful prevention work and foundational in empowering students to take ownership of their health and future.

Jessica Kincaid, Co-Coordinator and Youth Coordinator for Spencer County Tobacco Prevention & Cessation Program in Indiana, recently spoke with CATCH Global Foundation to share how her coalition is making strides with the CATCH My Breath Youth Vaping Prevention Program.

Every community’s success in youth vaping prevention offers great insight for all communities in their unique journey to building a culture of health. CATCH is proud to spotlight Jessica and her county’s collaborative efforts to support youth in thriving.

Why Spencer County Took Action on Youth Vaping

“We have to do something to make a difference. We have to start somewhere. That’s why we jumped on CATCH,” said Jessica.

Spencer County, Indiana, is a rural community of about 20,000 people, with over 30% of the population considered low-income. The area faces challenges common to rural counties: limited access to healthcare, no local hospital, and a lack of youth programming outside the school day. These barriers contribute to broader health disparities, including vape and substance misuse among young people.

When local school administrators began reaching out to Jessica and her coalition asking what they could do for school communities, Jessica and her coalition knew they needed something evidence-based that could fit into already-packed school schedules and still make a real impact. Soon they found CATCH My Breath.

Jessica and her coalition started implementing CATCH My Breath three years ago. Today, 10 out of 11 schools in the county are implementing the program.

A classroom of students and adult facilitators in Spencer County engaged in a CATCH My Breath lesson.

Building a Culture of Health: Local Strategies That Worked

Over the past three years, Jessica and her coalition have built strong relationships with school administrators who recognize the value of youth vaping prevention. The coalition began implementing CATCH My Breath even before the Indiana Department of Health started to offer grant funding, initially using local grants to train facilitators. Being able to offer small stipends helped her coalition incentivize adoption of the program.

Once CATCH My Breath was in place, the coalition worked strategically to expand the program across the county. Their approach included:

• Training four facilitators countywide – a principal, social worker, school resource officer, and physical education teacher – who could then train others in implementation.
• Adapting to time constraints in schools by integrating CATCH My Breath lessons across subjects. In some middle schools, Jessica has seen different teachers each delivering one lesson during their class period, rather than one teacher teaching the program multiple times in a day.

This flexible, relationship-driven approach has allowed Spencer County to overcome common barriers and foster a culture of health in schools.

Student Impact: Fostering Relationships and Empowering Youth

Jessica shared that one of the most positive outcomes of the initiative has been witnessing the relationships built between facilitators and students. She highlighted how these connections go beyond the classroom:

Jessica emphasized that building relationships is at the heart of meaningful prevention work:

These relationships are not only key in prevention they’re foundational in empowering students to take ownership of their health and their future.

Spencer County students complete a year of the CATCH My Breath program.