Research Symposium

BIO

Alyssa Abel is a second-year student at Florida State University, pursuing a dual degree in Political Science and Social Work with a minor in Psychology. Alyssa is currently serving as a research assistant for the Collegiate Recovery Program Descriptive Database under Dr. Chelsea Shore-Miller's mentorship. This database serves as a collection of literature for the field of collegiate recovery and is sponsored by the Association of Recovery in Higher Education (ARHE). This project aligns greatly with Alyssa's passions for supportive social welfare programs, and evidence-based practices. Alyssa intends to pursue a Master's in Social Work (MSW) as well as a Juris Doctorate (JD) which will aid her in entering a career in public service, advocacy and macro social work.

Examining Developments in the Field of Collegiate Recovery Through a Descriptive Database

Abstract

Studies approximate that 21% of U.S. college students met diagnostic criteria for substance abuse disorders, giving higher education institutions a unique role in supporting recovery throughout its community. College is a unique environment for those navigating recovery due to a culture of normalized drug use. Collegiate Recovery Programs (CRPs) were created to act as a continuing model of support and community for college students in recovery. The research questions we posed is how is the field of CRPs developing? What trends in research topics and theories have emerged? Our research builds on the existing CRP Descriptive Database (2022) which was created by Dr. Shore-Miller and is sponsored by The Association of Recovery in Higher Education (ARHE). The database is intended to assist researchers, educators, and program administrators in identifying trends, gaps, and best practices, ultimately contributing to the advancement and effectiveness of collegiate support programs. We conducted a literature review of the collegiate recovery field adding 72 articles for inclusion into the database and then coded them by different characteristics such as demographics and methodology. An integrated tagging system allows database users to efficiently filter and analyze studies across thematic areas, methodological approaches, and target populations.To assess how the field of Collegiate Recovery is developing we compared various statistics about the database before and after the articles added by the 2025-2026 cohort. The project aims to strengthen the empirical foundation of CRPs and support the advancement of more effective, evidence-based programming in higher education.

Keywords: Recovery, Substance Use Disorder Recovery, Collegiate Recovery Programs