CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — More teenagers in Central Virginia suffering from opioid or substance use issues could receive help through a regional partnership.
About 60 students have graduated from the Chesterfield Recovery Academy year-round program that serves high school students who are recovering from drug addiction.
“Transportation is a barrier for a lot of students in every county,” said Justin Savoy, the academy’s program coordinator. “Coming from Richmond City to Midlothian is a huge issue.”
Currently, 14 students are enrolled in the academy out of 50 available spots.
Thursday afternoon, Richmond City Council’s Education and Human Services Standing Committee will consider a resolution creating a regional partnership with Henrico and Chesterfield to use grant money from the Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority (OAA) to fund and operate the Chesterfield Recovery Academy Outreach and Transportation Project.
The project would help more teenagers across 15 districts travel to the free school in Midlothian and pay for a part-time outreach coordinator to reach students who are struggling with opioid or substance use issues.
“Chesterfield Recovery Academy brings a lot of joy and play and fun and excitement into the recovery space, which I think is so key in keeping young folks involved and engaged,” said Anna Jones, Richmond’s opioid response strategist.
Charlie Lintecum, director of operations at OAA, said recovery high schools have routinely demonstrated increases in the probability of high school graduation and sobriety and decreases in substance use and mental health symptoms among the attendees.
“The OAA's award to the regional partnership of Chesterfield, Henrico, and Richmond supports outreach and transportation for the Chesterfield Recovery Academy. This project will enable the academy to remove barriers to attending the academy for youth with substance abuse issues across the region (15 school districts), allowing more youth to have a stable place to recover and continue their education,” Lintecum said in a statement.
Virginia’s first recovery high school located on Hull Street Road opened in August 2022. Students attend school each day in person and have access to all credits needed for graduation along with counseling and therapy.
“We had some kids that came in directly from middle school who are using and they're starting younger and younger,” Savoy said. “It’s time to erase the stigma behind drug use. It’s in every community and everybody's family, so the dirty little secret is no longer a secret anymore.”
Waynesboro, Loudoun County and Virginia Beach have since opened their academies and Savoy said more school districts are seeking his advice to start their own programs.
Financial assistance offered through the OAA consists of settlement funds paid to Virginia by prescription opioid manufacturers and companies in the prescription opioid distribution network.
“On June 18, 2025, the City of Richmond was notified by the VOAA that the cooperative project proposed by Chesterfield County was approved with a locality match of $8,519.98 from Richmond’s individual distribution (at no fiscal impact to the City of Richmond),” according to the resolution.
The committee meets at 2 p.m. Thursday in Richmond City Hall.
Students from Charles City, Chesterfield, Dinwiddie, Goochland, Hanover, Henrico, New Kent, Powhatan, Prince George, Surry and Sussex, as well as the Cities of Colonial Heights, Hopewell, Petersburg and Richmond are allowed to participate in the academy.
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