End Overdose's chapter program is vital to our success in equipping young people with lifesaving education and resources. Rather than proselytizing from a soapbox to Gen-Z and Millennials, we trust young people in cities and on college campuses to spread the word through a true peer-to-peer model. Our members and volunteers are committing endless hours to End Overdose's cause, so we want to highlight a chapter every week.

Today, we're proud to highlight our Mizzou chapter! We spoke with president McKenna Mozingo about what inspired her to start her chapter, her goals for the Mizzou chapter on campus, and much more.

What sparked your interest in overdose prevention/response and End Overdose in particular?

I started following End Overdose on social media years before I applied for the chapter program. End Overdose stood out to me because they go beyond simply providing life-saving resources: They take active steps to dismantle stigma and create community. After growing up in Columbia, going to Mizzou and seeing how overdose-related death and drug use has affected my community, I decided to apply to create a chapter at Mizzou. I knew college students in my area would benefit from End Overdose and the various resources it brought.

Can you describe your experience as chapter president of Mizzou?

My experience as chapter president of Mizzou has been humbling and also incredibly thrilling. What started as an idea 1 year ago, has grown into a passionate community of Mizzou students who are dedicated to creating a safe space for their peers. It’s been very rewarding watching my vision evolve into a collective vision. Volunteering has taught me a lot about myself and my community. While I’m consistently learning and growing, I'm fortunate to have a team that is also passionate about public health and overdose prevention. I’m incredibly grateful for our team and their passion, and am excited to watch the chapter develop in the coming years.

How have you developed authentic connections within the community?

Through tabling on campus, we’ve been able to meet various other student organizations and people in the community. Naturally when you’re talking about such a serious issue, you meet with people who have experienced difficult things and recognize you as a safe space to have these conversations. This has allowed our chapter to really expand into the community in a meaningful and intentional way. I love being able to share our organization with people who we’ve just met, and I believe that working together to mitigate this crisis has created a sense of unity throughout the community!

What’re the major highlights from your chapter’s work to date?

We’re still a relatively new chapter (celebrating our first birthday on July 18th!) so this year our main focus was building our chapter up. Despite getting a slow start, I’m very proud of our team and what we’ve been able to accomplish. We’ve trained 450 people, and distributed 568 doses of naloxone, and held 6 events in the past year!

What do you envision for the future of your chapter?

I look forward to seeing how our chapter grows and expands in the coming years. In the future, I hope that our chapter creates a lasting relationship with Greek life at Mizzou, and is eventually able to train all Greek organizations on campus! Additionally, I would love to see our chapter expand our outreach into high schools. I think it’s incredibly important to bring these resources to youth and provide them with life-saving knowledge.