Wisconsin Substance Use Prevention Conference

September 10-11, 2025

The 2025 Wisconsin Substance Use Prevention Conference is an event focused on strategies to prevent all types of substance use. The theme for this event is "Prevention Works! Investing in Our Future and Healthy Communities."

Goals and objectives

The 2025 Wisconsin Substance Use Prevention Conference is Wisconsin's only statewide event for the substance use prevention field. People working to prevent the initiation of substance use should attend to:

Enhance knowledge of substance use prevention initiatives and resources: Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of substance use prevention services and initiatives that support connection, safety, and improved quality of life.
Strengthen collaboration and networking among substance use prevention professionals: Attendees will have opportunities to collaborate, exchange best practices, and form partnerships across sectors, including public health, education, law enforcement, and community organizations.
Develop practical substance use prevention strategies: Attendees will leave this event with actionable prevention strategies and evidence-based tools that can be implemented in their communities.

While this event is geared toward people living and working in Wisconsin, people from other states are invited to attend.

Registration

Registration is required for this event. The registration fee covers access to all sessions.

Registration to attend in person at the Chula Vista Resort in the Wisconsin Dells closed August 25, 2025.

Registration to attend virtually is open through September 9, 2025. There is a $250 fee to attend virtually. Virtual attendees must download the Whova app to participate in this event.

If you need help with the registration process, contact the UW-Milwaukee's Center for Inclusive Transition, Education, and Employment at citee-events@uwm.edu.

Single day passes for September 10 or September 11 are not available. Two-day registration is the only option to attend this event. All registrants will have access to recordings of sessions on September 10 and September 11 they were unable to attend.

Refund policy: Refunds will only be issued to registered participants if this event is canceled for any reason. No exceptions. All registered participants have access to session recordings and materials for three months after this event.

Videography/photography: Organizers and attending news media may be videotaping or photographing portions of this event. By attending this event, registrants acknowledge these activities and agree to allow their image to be used by the organizers and news media in any way. Registrants may not videotape or broadcast any potion of this event without written permission from organizers.

Event materials: The Whova app will be used to share event materials with all in-person and virtual participants. Information on how to access the Whova app has been sent to all registered participants. Session recordings and materials will be available to all registered participants in the Whova app for three months after the conference.

Agenda

The agenda for this event includes two keynote presentations and 26 breakout sessions.

The tracks for the breakout sessions include:

The foundations of prevention. Sessions in this track highlight the fundamentals of substance use prevention.
Current and emerging issues. Sessions in this track highlight trends in substance use prevention.
Alcohol. Sessions in this track highlight strategies and tools to address alcohol use in Wisconsin and its impacts.
Tobacco. Sessions in this track highlight strategies and tools to address commercial tobacco use in Wisconsin and its impacts.
Year of the Kid. Sessions in this track highlight strategies to support positive youth development as part of Governor Evers' Year of the Kid initiative.

Agenda details are subject to change.

September 9, 2025 (in-person preconference activity)

10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Chula Vista Resort

Registration for this activity closed August 25, 2025.

Restoring Balance in Prevention through Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Grounding by Returning to the Circle: Centering Healing
This activity will explore how to shift prevention from institutional approaches to community-rooted, relational pathways of healing in the cultural strengths, values, and lifeways of native communities. Participants will engage with the concepts of historical trauma, community mindfulness, and culturally responsive healing practices. Participants will also reflect on how the process of decolonizing prevention—or restoring balance by reclaiming Indigenous knowledge systems—can support stronger community connections and build trust across generations. This session is open to all who are committed to culturally grounded, trauma-informed, and strengths-based approaches in their work.

This activity offers 5 hours and 30 minutes of educational content. You can receive up to 5.5 CEHs if you attend the full activity.

September 10, 2025

9:30 a.m.: Welcome and announcements
10:00 a.m.: Keynote presentation - Carlton Hall, MA ("Prioritizing prevention to address the fierce urgencies of now")
11:15 a.m.: Break
11:30 a.m.: Breakout session 1 (five workshops)
- Old drugs, new threats (Speaker: Melissa Moore, MA, PS)
- Top 10 ways to combat underage drinking (Speaker: Felice Borisy-Rudin, JD, Ph.D.)
- Transformative narrative: commercial tobacco (Speakers: Annie Rosemurgy and Alan Talaga)
- Unfiltered truth: youth-led action action against Big Tobacco (Speakers: Charmaine Swan, Courtney Tvedten, MPH, Luke Witkowski, MS, and Johanna Brotz)
- Finding the perfect match: strengthening logic models through line logic and local conditions (Speaker: Carlton Hall, MA)
12:30 p.m.: Lunch (included with the registration fee for in-person attendees)
1:30 p.m.: Breakout session 2 (five workshops)
- Prevention essentials: building a foundation for impact (Speakers: Tracy Johnson and Albert Gay)
- Alcohol age compliance checks: what do we know, what tools do we have, and how can you get started (Speaker: Felice Borisy-Rudin, JD, Ph.D.
- Zoning for health: redesigning communities to reduce youth substance use and leveraging retailers for harm reduction (Speakers: Hannah Gumina, MPH, CHES, and Laura Stephens, MPH)
- Preventing youth access to Delta-8 THC and other hemp-derived psychoactive cannabis products (Speakers: Erin Brunner, Ashley Normington, and Chris Wardlow, MAT, CPS)
- Connection is prevention: combating social isolation and loneliness (Speakers: Karen Iverson Riggers and Lacey Heward)Bridging substance misuse prevention and mental health promotion (Speaker: Kris Reed, MPH, CPS)
2:30 p.m.: Break
2:45 p.m.: Breakout session 3 (five workshops)
- The intersections of harm reduction and prevention strategies (Speakers: Ashley Borlick, MPH, CHES, Alex Berg, MPH, and Roxy Legge, MPH)
- Influencing change through advocacy: what it means to lobby or educate (Speakers: Maureen Busalacchi and Melissa Moore, MA, PS)
- Successfully engaging the community through youth substance use awareness campaigns (Speaker: Joy Evans, MPH, PS, Kayla Doege, and Sara Tongusi)
- Preparing and supporting youth to be advocates (Speaker: Debra Cady, MSW)
- Bridging substance misuse prevention and mental health promotion (Speaker: Kris Reed, MPH, CPS)
3:45 p.m.: End of day

The State Council on Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse will host an in-person only listening session open to the public at 4:15 p.m. September 10 at the Chula Vista Resort. Conference registration is not required to attend the listening session.

September 11, 2025

9:00 a.m.: Awards ceremony
9:30 a.m.: Keynote presentation - Cedric Hall ("Engaging the power of the youth voice in prevention: creating prevention influencers")
10:45 a.m.: Break
11:00 a.m.: Breakout session 4 (six workshops)
- Got drugs? Now what?! Investing in ‘what works’ (Speaker: Melissa Moore, MA, PS)
- Counterfeit: Investigating the role of fake IDs in youth alcohol access (Speakers: Alison Harder and Kate Torkelson)
- Tobacco and nicotine trends: emerging products and devices (Speakers: Luke Witkowski, MS, and Brian Williams, MD)
- Leading change from within: 12 years of youth-led advocacy and prevention (Speaker: Anthony Alvarado)
- A resilience balance scale: effectively addressing burnout in the workplace (Speaker: Richard Ferrari Traner, MPH, PHSW, CTICP)
- Jewels and the science of pop culture: developing youth leaders for community change (Speaker: Cedric Hall)
12:00 p.m. Lunch (included with the registration fee for in-person attendees.)
1:00 p.m.: Breakout session 5 (five workshops)
- Environmental prevention strategies: going to C.A.M.P.E. (Speakers: Tracy Johnson and Albert Gay)
- Place of last drink going live (Speakers: Maureen Busalacchi, Robert MacKenzie, MA, and Jacob Wagner, MSHS)
- Addressing youth vaping and best practice solutions (Speaker: Tracy Herlitzke)
- Creating media literacy in prevention programs (Speaker: William Hutter, Psy.D., LMFT, NDCCDP)
- Maximize impact, minimize waste: using AI to craft effective social media prevention campaigns (Speaker: Carlos Morales)
2:00 p.m.: End of day

View the detailed agenda for each day

Continuing education hours

Continuing education hours or CEHs will be available for free. One CEH will be awarded for each educational hour of this event. CEHs are available to registrants who attend all creditable sessions live either in person or virtually, the keynote presentation, the plenary session, and the breakout workshops. No CEHs are available for watching session recordings after the event.

This event offers 7 hours and 30 minutes of educational content. You can receive up to 7.5 CEHs if you attend all creditable sessions.

To receive the CEHs, you must complete the conference evaluation survey and indicate the sessions that you attended.

Lodging

The room block reserved for this event at the Chula Vista Resort in the Wisconsin Dells is no longer available.

There are many other lodging options available in the Wisconsin Dells.

This event is organized by the Division of Care and Treatment Services in collaboration with UW-Milwaukee's Center for Inclusive Transition, Education, and Employment.

Send questions about this event to dhsdcts@dhs.wisconsin.gov.