For Immediate Release
Friday, August 26, 2016

Contact:         Christina Butterfield
                        News and Media Relations
                        Galloway, N.J. 08205
                        Christina.Butterfield@stockton.edu
                        (609) 626-3845
                        www.stockton.edu/media

Galloway, N.J. – Stockton University’s Wellness Center and Office of Residential Life are collaborating with Atlantic Prevention Resources (APR) to offer 100 free medicine lockboxes for residential students in need at the university during the upcoming fall semester. The medicine lockboxes provide students control and limit outside access to medications.

Locking medicine within the box reinforces the mindset that prescription drugs can be dangerous and that they should not be left out in the open, explained representatives from APR, a non-profit agency which provides a variety of services including substance abuse prevention, education and counseling.

The boxes can also be used to store non-prescription medicines, such as cough syrup, over-the-counter medicines and vitamins - commonly abused substances which also pose health risks.

 “Awareness about where one leaves medication, and to whom access is allowed, is essential in a close-knit residence hall community. A lockbox can help our students safeguard their medications in their new home,” said Denise O’Neill, director of Residential Life at the university.

Students can reserve a lockbox by visiting a check-in table on move-in day, or by sending a request to housing@stockton.edu. First-year students move into residence halls on Friday, Sept. 2, 2016. Upper-class students arrive Sept. 3-5, 2016. The boxes will be distributed on loan from APR during opening week.

“The preventative initiative encourages responsibility and awareness around an important topic,” said representatives from Stockton’s Wellness Center. “As with any disease, taking preventative steps is a huge part of ensuring the health of individuals, and in our case, the Stockton University community.”

Atlantic Prevention Resources’ comprehensive substance abuse programs are designed to help individuals faced with addiction find the path to recovery. For more information on the non-profit agency, visit www.atlprev.org.

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