Rocky Mountain Public Health Training Center Youth Substance-Use Prevention
Building an interactive, youth-centered prevention curriculum and platform that supports schools and communities with culturally relevant alternatives to suspension.
The Challenge
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment team (CDPHE), Community Prevention Early Intervention (CPEI) team, and the Rocky Mountain Public Health Training Center (RM-PHTC) set out to create an online alternative to punitive discipline for middle and high school youth who had violated substance use policies.
The goal was to develop an educational application that could be used by schools and community organizations as part of a broader prevention effort supporting healthier outcomes while reducing reliance on suspension.
RM-PHTC’s team and youth co-designers had already developed curriculum content and scripts. The challenge was translating those materials into an interactive digital experience that would be accessible, engaging, and usable in real-world settings while also navigating complex procurement and funding requirements.
The Partnership
Six Red Marbles partnered with Rocky Mountain Public Health Training Center (RM-PHTC) to design, develop, and deliver an online educational application (modules + platform) that centers young people’s voices and supports alternatives to suspension.
The project brought together RM-PHTC subject matter experts, youth developers, and SRM’s learning experience design and production teams to translate the curriculum into an engaging digital experience.
The Strategy
SRM’s approach combined co-design, structured learning design, and practical implementation:
What SRM Designed & Developed
SRM translated RM-PHTC’s curriculum into a five-module educational application and supported platform development and delivery. Key deliverables included:
SRM also coordinated cross-team communication, hosted regular project check-ins, and adapted scheduling to align with RM-PHTC’s funding and procurement processes.
The Learning Experience
Each module combines short, scaffolded learning activities, reflective action planning, and knowledge checks designed for adolescent learners.
Content is grounded in real-world scenarios and designed to meet learners where they are, encouraging skill building, awareness, and alternative responses to substance-related situations. The experience emphasizes clarity and ease of use so educators and administrators can implement the curriculum in school or community settings.
The Impact
The project resulted in a platform-ready educational application designed for use across schools and community organizations.
By centering youth voice and designing for practical implementation, the solution supports RM-PHTC’s goals to:
- Provide a non-punitive, educational alternative to suspension
- Build skills and delay substance use initiation among young people
- Offer a maintainable digital resource for schools and partners
Across the engagement, SRM delivered the modules on schedule while accommodating funding and procurement timelines, enabling RM-PHTC to move from concept and scripts to an implemented digital solution.
Why It Matters
Alternatives to punitive discipline are a critical lever for supporting positive youth development and reducing school exclusion.
By translating co-designed curriculum into an accessible online application, this platform can be offered to schools and community partners as a practical tool that supports healthier outcomes for young people while expanding access to prevention-focused education.
The relational aspect of working and collaborating with SRM was delightful. There was professionalism as well as authenticity in project calls that created a collaborative atmosphere.
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