DEA Agent to Discuss Drug Rates, Fentanyl Prevalence in Panhandle at WT Event

Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, [email protected]

CANYON, Texas - A regional leader of the Drug Enforcement Agency will speak at a community forum sponsored by the Criminal Justice program at West Texas A&M University.

John Beasley, the DEA resident agent in charge in Amarillo, will speak during "Getting High? Let's Talk Drugs," scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 2 in Legacy Hall in the Jack B. Kelley Student Center on WT's Canyon campus.

"Agent Beasley frequently puts on training for law enforcement agencies, physicians and educators to help them identify signs of drugs abuse and how to proceed in those cases," said organizer Jeanette Arpero Bissoni, instructor of criminal justice. "The community at large would also tremendously benefit from this education, so we're glad that he can make this presentation at WT. He is a passionate, informative speaker who is originally from our area and wants to continue working with the community on harm-reduction strategies and to prevent and stop the proliferation of illegal narcotic use."

Beasley will speak about prevalence rates of drugs in the Panhandle, will provide resources and recommendations on ways to reduce the fatality rate of fentanyl, and provide tips on how to identify drugs.

Beasley began his law-enforcement career with the Abilene Police Department in 1996. After attending the DEA Academy in 2006, he was assigned to posts in Eagle Pass; Kabul, Afghanistan; San Antonio; and Oklahoma City before arriving in Amarillo.

Also scheduled to appear at the forum is Heath Dodgen, who lost his son Kaiden Taylor Dodgen to an acute fentanyl overdose in 2020, and Cenikor, a behavioral health treatment center in Amarillo.

"This will be a powerful presentation full of information for WT students and the community at large," Apero Bissoni said. "Fentanyl is a particularly lethal drug, and this area is in acute need of more information to prevent further deaths."

The Criminal Justice program is part of the Department of Political Science and Criminal Justice in WT's Terry B. Rogers College of Education and Social Sciences.

Serving the top 26 counties of the Texas Panhandle is a key principle of the University's long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign's new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised nearly $160 million.

About West Texas A&M University

WT, a Regional Research University, is redefining excellence in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of more than 9,000 and offers 58 undergraduate degree programs, one associate degree, and 44 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor's and master's degree, a specialist degree and two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest's finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men's and women's athletics programs.

-WT-

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.