As a new school year has begun, there is a new executive director for the Fountain Hills Coalition.

Coalition board member Mike Scharnow and long-time coalition director Shelly Mowrey are reversing roles.

Scharnow becomes the new executive director and Mowrey will replace him on the group’s board of directors.

An initial announcement was made right before the 2020-21 school year ended, but the formal transition took effect July 1.

“I definitely will have some huge shoes to fill,” Scharnow said. “But the most important thing is that the coalition continues to move ahead and remains an impactful resource in the communities of Fountain Hills and Fort McDowell.”

Officially known as the Fountain Hills Youth Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition, the non-profit was formed more than 11 years ago with the intent of working with local youths and parents in preventing the onset of drug, alcohol and tobacco use.

Through the use of student surveys and focus groups, the coalition has statistically shown that usage by teens of marijuana, alcohol and other drugs has decreased over the years.

Mowrey has served as coalition director for the past six years, and she is a well-known professional in the prevention world, according to Scharnow.

“We are going to miss her tremendously as our director,” he added, “but I’m so thankful I can still lean on her as a board member for her expertise and hands-on knowledge of everything the coalition did and continues to enact.

“I cannot overstate the positive impact that Shelly has had in Fountain Hills and among our students, parents and others.

“We cannot thank her enough for her leadership and professional knowledge of the prevention world and grant administration.”

Mowrey said about the move, “It was an honor and a privilege to serve as the executive director of the coalition for nearly seven years.

“Fountain Hills residents and students are like a second family to me. While I’ll no longer be the executive director, you’ll still see me around participating in coalition activities.”

The coalition has been successful in securing federal and state grants over the years to fund most of its efforts, though as a 501(c)3 non-profit it can also accept tax-deductible donations.

The coalition loosely consists of 12 “sectors” from the community that come together on a regular basis to share best practices, programming and other efforts aimed at drug prevention.

Some of those sector participants include law enforcement, Town of Fountain Hills, the School District, Chamber of Commerce, faith community, teens, PTO and more.

Mowrey still works within the prevention sector, serving as a demand reduction specialist with the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas of Arizona.

The Arizona HIDTA coordinates and supports the efforts of 631 full-time and 185 part-time participants from 73 federal, state, local, and tribal agencies to combat drug use and trafficking.

For more information about the local coalition and how one can help prevent drug use initiation, visit fhcoalition.org.