Heritage Hall News

Richard Ryan to Provide Strategies for Parents to Help Their Children Navigate America's Growing Chemical Culture

Heritage Hall welcomes back Richard Ryan, co-founder and president of Creative Drug Education and founder of the Center for Personal Responsibility, as the second speaker of the 2016-17 installment of the School’s Distinguished Speaker Series on Tuesday, November 1, at 7:00 pm in the Heritage Hall Middle School Howard Theatre. This event is free and open to the public.
 
A nationally renowned speaker on adolescent issues, Ryan has provided services to more than 600 schools and communities nationwide. His presentation, “Epidemics Shouldn’t Define Us,” will address how concerns over the growing epidemic of opiate and prescription drug use among U.S. high school and college students should not eclipse a much greater cultural issue of experimentation with more commonly known drugs, alcohol and marijuana. Ryan will share new insights about use and dependency, discuss updated teenage brain research and new treatment protocols, and how parents may dialogue with their children.
 
“For the past 30 years, I have worked with families who have struggled to keep their children safe as they navigate the growing chemical culture in America. Whereas once parental concern was limited to their children’s use of alcohol and marijuana, today our children are exposed to a myriad of drugs in even the most innocuous settings,” Ryan warned. “Alcohol and marijuana aren’t the only drugs readily available to our adolescent populations. Amphetamines, benzodiazepines (for anxiety), and Alprazolam (Xanax) have become common on college campuses and they are finding their way into more and more high schools,” he concluded.
 
According to Ryan, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has sounded the alarm over opiate use in the United States. Important though it may be, Ryan cautions losing focus on adolescent use of any mood-altering drug and experimentation at any level. “Perhaps if we could resolve the ‘alcohol and pot issues,’ our children would be better served and ‘epidemics’ would take care of themselves,” Ryan stated.

Ryan’s appearance is presented by Heritage Hall as an extension of the School’s commitment to supporting wellness locally and throughout the greater Oklahoma City community. Heritage Hall is located at 1800 NW 122nd St. in Oklahoma City. For more information, call 405.749.3001.
 
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About the Distinguished Speaker Series
Heritage Hall’s Distinguished Speaker Series features eminent speakers and performers who share their fine arts and academic passions with our students, patrons, and the community at large. Open to the public, this program reflects Heritage Hall’s commitment to a rich education that includes fine arts appreciation and discussions regarding current and historical events.  
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