Drug Free Workplaces: Benefitting Employees, Families & Communities is approximately an hour-long broadcast that focuses on what a drug free workplace can do for businesses, their employees and families, as well as the community as a whole. Experts will provide valuable information about how businesses gain the tools and assistance necessary to implement a successful drug-free workplace program. Experts in prevention, treatment, and recovery will also discuss substance abuse and addiction as it relates to the workplace.

Key Points:

  • Learn the basics of a drug-free workplace and why they are important
  • Find out about the cost savings and benefits to becoming a drug free workplace
  • Identify the tools needed to implement a successful program
  • Learn why drug free workplaces are vital to businesses and communities
  • Become familiar with the best practices in establishing healthy, recovery oriented workplaces
  • Discover what services are available to employers including FREE drug free workplace training plus programs that are available to community coalitions to promote awareness.

Originally Aired: December 10, 2009

Host & Panelists

Calvina Fay

(Host) Executive Director, Drug Free America Foundation and Save Our Society from Drugs

Calvina Fay is the Executive Director of Drug Free America Foundation and Save Our Society From Drugs (S.O.S.). Drug Free America Foundation provides education to the public about the dangers of drugs of abuse and efforts to legalize drugs. S.O.S. conducts political activities to combat drug legalization efforts. Professor Fay is also the Director of the International Scientific and Medical Forum on Drug Abuse, a brain-trust of the world’s leading physicians and scientific scholars dedicated to advancing research on drug use and drug abuse. Professor Fay is the former Executive Director of the Drug Free Business Alliance (DBA), a Houston-based nonprofit coalition of member businesses involved in attacking the drug problem in the workplaces of the Texas Gulf Coast area. DBA has served as a model program for other U.S. cities and in several other countries.

Professor Fay has been an outspoken advocate against the legalization of drugs for over 20 years. She was a founding board member of S.O.S. and was president of Drug Watch International, a network engaged in combating the drug legalization movement globally. Professor Fay has served as an advisor to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy as well as several political leaders, including President Bush, on drug policy issues.

In August 2008, Professor Fay won the Tampa Bay Business Journal’s Nonprofit Businesswoman of the Year award for her tireless efforts and leadership in the drug prevention and policy field.

Professor Fay has over 25 years of experience in the drug prevention field and is considered a pioneering expert on workplace drug abuse prevention programs. She has authored several books, including The Supervisor’s Handbook For Preventing Drug Abuse in The Workplace and Starting a Drug Free Business Initiative, as well as numerous newsletters and publications in the field on regional and national levels. She was the managing editor and co-author of A Report on Employer Attitudes and the Impact of Drug Control Strategies on Workplace Productivity. She also served as the managing editor of a monograph titled Drug Abuse in the Decade of the Brain.

Professor Fay holds a master’s degree in business administration, and she has founded, built and sold two successful businesses. She is a professor at the Argentina Universidad del Salvador.

Donna Smith, Ph.D

Regulatory Affairs and Program Development Officer, FirstLab, Inc.

Dr. Smith currently serves as the Regulatory Affairs and Program Development Officer for FirstLab, Inc. where she provides consultation, education and training to employers regarding drug free workplace compliance. She also conducts training for industry professionals and employees on a variety of topics.

Dr. Smith credits over 40 years of experience in the social work, psychology, substance abuse counseling & treatment, prevention and drug testing fields. She has worked for public and private health care facilities, higher education, the U.S. military, government departments and small business organizations.

Among her accomplishments, Dr. Smith coordinated the development, implementation and enforcement of the policy and procedures for the transportation industry workplace drug and alcohol testing programs. She also was the principal author of the Department of Transportation (DOT) drug and alcohol testing regulations and numerous government publications on drug and alcohol testing procedures.

She has been active on the boards of many national advisory committees and is currently on the Board of Directors for the Substance Abuse and Program Administrators Association (SAPAA). She has served in several faculty positions and presently is on the faculty of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and American Society of Addiction Medicine. She has received numerous awards and honors for her work in the field of social work, education and civil service. She also has authored or contributed to over 80 publications including textbook chapters, manuals, technical papers and research publications.

Dr. Smith received her Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Ball State University and her Masters of Social Work (Clinical) from Hunter College. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Capital University.

Karen Belanger

Program Manager, National Drug Free Workplace Alliance

As Program Manager for Drug Free America Foundation, Ms. Belanger directs the marketing, operations and programming for the National Drug-Free Workplace Alliance (NDWA) including networking, training and resource referral for drug free workplace providers and businesses across the country. She also works with Florida employers to implement comprehensive programs.

Her accomplishments include development and implementation of an online- drug free workplace training course for supervisors, employees and parents; development of multiple social marketing campaigns aimed at 18-25 year old college students; and planning and hosting an educational conference providing prevention tools and best practices on college campuses. Ms. Belanger has partnered with a number of state and local organizations to provide presentations, workshops, educational displays and articles.

Ms. Belanger has a diverse career background with experience in human resources, training and administration in a variety of industries. She has been an avid volunteer for her sorority, Phi Mu, where she held national level volunteer positions. She currently volunteers for the Boy Scouts of America and serves as Board Secretary of the LiveFree! Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Pinellas County.

She has a BA degree with a major in American Studies from the University of Florida and completed additional course work in education, psychology and sociology towards certification as an addiction professional. She holds certification in supervisory management from the Institute of Financial Education.

Jackie Griffin-Doherty

Vice President of Development Operation PAR, Inc. and Executive Director, LiveFree! Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Pinellas County, FL

Her professional career includes 15 years experience in project management, project design, grant development for non-profit agencies and coalitions. Since joining Operation PAR in 1996, Mrs. Griffin-Doherty has lead the grant team in securing more than $34 million in competitive grant awards. As the Vice-President of Development for Operation PAR and serve as Project Coordinator for several SAMHSA grants targeting women and children’s services. In 2005, Mrs. Griffin-Doherty worked with key leaders in Pinellas County to form the LiveFree! Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Pinellas County. As Executive Director, the coalition’s budget has grown from $55,000 to more than $285,000.

Currently, Mrs. Griffin-Doherty shares her expertise and knowledge on local and state boards. For instance, she serves as the Vice President of the Florida Coalition for the Homeless; Former President of the Pinellas County Coalition for the Homeless and is a member of the Florida School of Addictions Studies Board of Directors. Mrs. Griffin-Doherty is an adjunct professor at Springfield College School of Human Services and is a coach for Florida’s coalitions working with the Florida Department of Children and Families, Strategic Prevention Framework, State Infrastructure Grant.

Richard W. Neubert

xecutive Vice President of Human Resources Operation PAR, Inc., Pinellas County, FL

Rich Neubert, BA, serves as Executive Vice President of Human Resources for Operation PAR, Inc. He has more than 22 years experience in human services, specifically working with non-profit organizations and administering Employee Assistance Programs statewide. Mr. Neubert has worked in the behavioral healthcare field for 20 years.

A 1976 Cum Laude graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Communications Management from Ithaca College, Mr. Neubert started his career as an advertising executive in the mid 1970s. He later co-founded the Tampa-based Bennett and Neubert, Inc. agency with billings in excess of $2 million. Mr. Neubert oversees human resources functions and staff development, including recruitment and retention, employee benefits, development of legally sound policies and procedures, employee compensation programs and agency representation on EEOC/AA and labor law issues. He is a member of the Operation PAR Performance Improvement Council and its Risk Management Committee.