T.A.C.O.
/'täkō/ #TACOboutit
(noun) 100% volunteer 501(c)3 charity combatting Accidental Overdoses among students through data-backed education & accessible harm reduction supplies.
(verb) Neither encourages nor condemns substance use.
THE TEAM’S MISSSION
is to combat drug overdoses among young adults by building a peer-to-peer culture of well-informed decisions with comprehensive access to neutral, scientific data and subsidized tools to keep each other safe.
290+
STUDENT VOLUNTEERS
STAFF
💪
🛴
29
DISTRIBUTION ZONES
IN 16 STATES
📍
🤝
The Problem
Thousands of college students and young adults die due to drug overdose each year in the United States (7,653 individuals ages 18-25 in 2021 per CDC WONDER). The most common causes are accidental fentanyl intake and mixed use of 2+ drugs, including alcohol, simultaneously.
Each one of these fatalities could have been prevented. The irreparable tragedy for thousands upon thousands of families could have been prevented. Yet, the failure of previous approaches to substance use education means these young lives were lost before they were able to reach their full potentials.
These preventable deaths are so much more than the young adult who did not survive - they each mark dozens of parents, siblings, friends, class and team mates whose lives are forever scarred by these losses.
There is a solution - The TACO Team has prevented over 1,000 student overdose deaths since launching in 2020.
T.A.C.O. Executive Leadership 2024-25
-
REEM ALHARITHI
-
CHARLENE HUANG
-
GRACE SCHWARTZ
-
ALISON KELLER
-
TYLER VONDRISKA
-
AMAN SHARMA
-
SERENA MAHENDRU
-
PRAT MAMIDI
Director of Finance
-
AVERY SCHULTZ
-
SARAYU JALADANKI
-
TACO CHAPTERS
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The TACO Board
“When dealing with potentially addictive drugs, we must leave behind the idea that ignorance is bliss. In our modern society we must realize that ignorance is a risk and knowledge is bliss.”
Dr. Sherrell Howard, UCLA Molecular Pharmacology
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