Wow! Our 2026 annual fundraiser was a huge success. Thanks to our amazing donors, we raised 139% of our goal of $100,000! We are using some of the extra funding to supply TEN $1500 TRAVEL SCHOLARSHIPS for spring semester 2027 (January through June events). You may remember a now-defunct program called the National Marijuana Initiative through the ONDCP that covered travel scholarships for a group of cannabis education speakers. I remember how helpful it was to many organizations to have speaker travel covered and only pay the speaker fee. So, we want to recreate something similar!
Our education focus at Johnny’s Ambassadors is primarily two-fold:
Providing Evidence-Based School Assemblies to Educate Students About the Science and Impacts of Youth Cannabis (THC) Use
We teach middle and high school students (6th to 12th grade) how the active ingredient in marijuana (THC) harms their developing brains using a non-scary, non-judgmental approach. Our evidence-based, data-driven talk gives students the knowledge and skills they need to avoid using cannabis products (THC, vapes, dabs, edibles, marijuana). We use current research as the foundation for our youth substance use prevention presentations.
Providing Parent Nights, Keynote Presentations, and Breakout Sessions at Prevention, Mental Health, and Suicide Prevention Conferences to Educate About the Harms of Youth Cannabis (THC) Use
We provide education about the harms of youth THC misuse to parents, prevention professionals, medical and behavioral health professionals, suicide prevention professionals, school resource officers, teacher in-services, safety professionals, and employers.
Our message to teens and adults is clear and evidence-based:
- Potent Products: Today’s cannabis products (THC, vapes, concentrates, edibles, flower) are far more potent than the marijuana plant from 20 years ago.
- Brain Development: The impact of high-potency marijuana on the developing teenage brain is significant.
- Mental Health: There is a direct and dangerous link between use of today’s high potency THC products and mental illness in youth.
- Prevention: Education is the most powerful tool for both parents and students to prevent negative life outcomes and tragedies.
Where can you use your scholarship? Johnny’s Ambassadors provides evidence-based cannabis (THC) prevention education primarily to four target audiences:
- Students and teachers (assemblies)
- Parents and community members (parent nights)
- Prevention professionals (suicide prevention and mental health conferences)
- Clinicians (grand rounds and clinical conferences)
Focus: Youth cannabis education
Target audience: teens/students
For: school assemblies, youth leadership conferences
Focus: Preventing use in teens
Target audience: parents and those working with teens on a daily basis
For: parent nights, community events, staff professional development
Focus: The link between adolescent cannabis use and suicide
Target audience: prevention professionals
For: suicide prevention conferences
Focus: The link between adolescent cannabis use and Cannabis-Induced Psychosis
Target audience: health professionals, medical personnel, practitioners, counselors
For: Grand Rounds, pediatric and clinical conferences
How do you get a scholarship? Easy! Just send me at email at [email protected]. I look forward to visiting your community!