UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Pennsylvania is one of the states most

impacted by the growing opioid epidemic, with one of the highest

overdose death rates in the country — but a new initiative bringing

together experts from across Penn State aims to combat this crisis

through data-driven, evidence-based innovation.

The Penn State Consortium to Combat Substance Abuse

(CCSA) will draw on the expertise of researchers, educators and

practitioners from across Penn State. The group plans to develop and

implement effective programs, policies and practices aimed at preventing

and treating addiction and its spillover effects on children, families

and communities.

The CCSA will be housed in Penn State’s Social Science Research

Institute, one of seven cross-University research institutes within the

Office of the Vice President for Research. One of the consortium’s

signature efforts will be the strategic hiring of 12 new tenure-track

faculty members over the next four years, who will bring additional

expertise in this critical field to the University and lead the charge

to research and develop data-driven solutions to this public-health

crisis.

“Across the University, individuals have been working in their labs,

communities and elsewhere to identify this epidemic’s causes, pursue

solutions and address systemic substance-abuse issues,” said Penn State

Executive Vice President and Provost Nick Jones. “As Pennsylvania’s only

land-grant institution, Penn State has a vital responsibility to lead

the way in fighting this battle. By forging connections across our

colleges and campuses and working with community leaders, we can tackle

this epidemic head-on and work toward a world free from the disease of

opioid addiction.”

The CCSA will provide seed-grant funding for new interdisciplinary

teams aimed at combating opioid and other substance abuse and sponsor an

annual conference to bring together substance abuse prevention experts

from across the nation.

“The faculty within the Penn State Consortium to Combat Substance

Abuse will join with our current faculty to conduct innovative,

interdisciplinary and translational research to illuminate risk factors

for substance use, abuse and addiction; to educate their students and

the public; and apply their knowledge to prevent and treat addiction,”

said Penn State Vice President for Research Neil Sharkey.

The CCSA will be led by interim director Stephanie Lanza, professor of biobehavioral health and director of the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center at Penn State.

A Penn State faculty member since 2004, Lanza has devoted her career

to advancing research on the prevention of substance abuse through

innovative quantitative methods. She has served as the principal

investigator on research grants from the National Institute on Drug

Abuse and the National Cancer Institute, and is an interdisciplinary

researcher with an extensive network of collaborators both within and

beyond the Penn State community. In her role as interim director, Lanza

will be supported by the CCSA advisory board, comprised of

representatives from Penn State centers and institutes whose missions

encompass the systemic problems of substance abuse.

“Pennsylvania and the nation need more research into this troubling

epidemic,” Lanza said. “I believe that the Penn State community can

create lasting impacts through educating one another, our students and

the public, and by undertaking research that advances evidence-based

programs, policies and practices to better understand, prevent and treat

opioid and other substance misuse and addiction.”

A national search for a permanent consortium director will be launched this fall.