Mollie Melvin: Prevention, Partnership & the Power of Youth - Episode 49
In this week’s conversation on The Town Square Podcast, Trey Bailey sits down with Mollie Melvin, Executive Director of the Newton Community Partnership, for a compelling deep dive into prevention work, community capacity building, and the vital role youth play in shaping Newton County’s future.
Although co-host Gabriel Stovall was away covering a breaking story, Trey and Mollie held nothing back in this “messy middle” episode. They covered the roots of the Newton Community Partnership, the evolution of youth empowerment in our county, and the crucial and often unseen work that fuels early literacy, suicide prevention, mental health support, and inter-agency collaboration.
What is the Newton Community Partnership?
Originally founded in 1989 to tackle teen pregnancy, the Newton Community Partnership (or “the Partnership”) has evolved into Newton County’s official advocacy body for children and families. Mollie explains how the Partnership now focuses on prevention, coalition-building, and community capacity development. With just two paid staff members and a host of volunteers, the impact of their work is far-reaching and deeply rooted in collaboration.
From supporting youth-led initiatives to helping seniors navigate online government applications, the Partnership shows up wherever there’s a gap—even when there’s no funding.
“If one person is doing the work, you’re not going to make a difference. It takes partners pitching into the pot.” – Mollie Melvin
Youth Action Team: Peer Power in Action
Mollie shares stories of local teens involved in the Partnership’s Youth Action Team—a voluntary group of students committed to substance misuse prevention, suicide awareness, and peer-to-peer education. These youth aren’t just checking boxes for community service hours; they’re learning to lead, adapt content for age-appropriate audiences, and even forming campus organizations.
One story highlights a student who, after engaging with the Youth Action Team, co-founded a suicide prevention club at Oxford College—a legacy in the making. These teens are tackling the hard stuff and connecting directly with families at community events.
Prevention as a Tangled Web
Mollie illustrates how prevention work intersects with everything: mental health, substance use, early literacy, and economic stability. She likens the challenges to a plate of spaghetti—you can’t pull on one noodle without shifting the whole plate. Prevention isn’t about one-off programs; it’s about long-term resilience built through relationships, education, and layered support systems.
“You can’t eat the whole elephant at once. But you can eat a forkful.”
Early Literacy and the Birth-to-Work Pipeline
A significant portion of the conversation highlights early literacy as the foundation of workforce development. Mollie emphasizes the importance of reaching families before children enter school, with programs like the Dolly Parton Imagination Library and a revival of the Family Literacy Coalition.
She explains how third-grade reading scores can predict long-term educational outcomes and societal impacts like dropout rates and incarceration. It all comes back to prevention: read, sing, talk to your baby.
Mental Health, Suicide Prevention & Social Media
Mollie and Trey also navigate the sensitive but necessary topic of suicide prevention. With alarming trends among both youth and adults, Mollie describes the QPR method (Question, Persuade, Refer) and the mental health training offered through community partnerships.
She underscores the role of social media in both perpetuating isolation and offering a place for affirmation. Building empathy and real-world relationships are critical to helping young people cope, connect, and reach out.
Partnership, Planning, and the Power of Connection
Mollie’s role often looks like the middle of the tangled web. She moves between agencies, committees, and community groups connecting people who might not otherwise talk to each other. Whether it’s the opioid task force, the Archway Partnership, or helping seniors fill out online applications, Mollie and the Partnership step in where systems fall short.
She calls this community capacity building: helping others do their jobs better by filling in the gaps, brokering relationships, and finding funding when no one else can.
“We’re not trying to compete with other agencies. We’re just trying to connect the dots.”
The Biggest Challenge: Sustainable Funding
Despite its wide reach and critical work, the Newton Community Partnership faces a precarious funding environment. Federal and state grant programs are in flux, private donations can be unpredictable, and prevention—by nature—is a hard thing to fund because success often looks invisible.
But Mollie remains hopeful, driven by stories like the student speaker at Legion Field who could articulate the organization’s mission as a high school sophomore.
“What we do has value. You don’t grab that as a young person unless you see it in action.”
How You Can Help
Want to support the work of the Newton Community Partnership?
Visit newtonpartnership.org
Sign up for their newsletter or parent email list
Volunteer your time or expertise
Make a donation to help fund the next generation of prevention work
They also maintain a community resource database accessible via mobile and updated regularly to help connect families to needed services.
Important Links from This Episode
Newton Community Partnership: newtonpartnership.org
Youth Mental Health Resources: Guide Inc.
Opioid Prevention Education: CDC DFC Grant Program
Dolly Parton Imagination Library: imaginationlibrary.com
The Town Square Podcast: thetownsquarepodcast.com
Donate to support the show: thetownsquarepodcast.com/donate
Like, Subscribe, and Share
If you found this episode inspiring, challenging, or helpful in any way, please like, subscribe, and most importantly SHARE it on your social media platforms. The more our community hears stories like Molly’s, the more we can build toward unity, not uniformity.
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