UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The opioid epidemic continues to hit Pennsylvania hard. Overdose deaths in the state grew by 37 percent last year, and larger segments of the population are at increasing risk for misuse of opioids and other addictive substances.

To help address this growing crisis, the Penn State Summit on the Opioid Epidemic will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 12, at 122 Heritage Hall, HUB-Robeson Center on the University Park campus.

The summit will convene faculty from across Penn State with the goal of developing an interdisciplinary and translational agenda aimed at combating the opioid epidemic.

“The summit is an opportunity for colleagues to talk about their work and learn about one another’s expertise toward developing novel research and community collaborations and to identify a distinctive leadership role for the University in combating the opioid crisis,” said Susan McHale, director of the Social Science Research Institute, distinguished professor of human development and family studies, and professor of demography.

The summit will feature flash talks and roundtable discussions. Registration is required by Jan. 4 to plan for discussion groups and lunch. Commonwealth Campus faculty can apply for travel grants here. For more information, contact Rebecca Shultz at rag212@psu.edu or 814-865-1528.

Organized by the Social Science Research Institute, the Summit is co-sponsored by the Penn State Colleges of Agricultural Sciences, Communications, Education, Health and Human Development, Information Sciences and Technology, the Liberal Arts, Medicine, and Nursing; Penn State Law; the Office of the Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses; Penn State Outreach and Online Education; the Addiction Center for Translation; the Center for Applied Studies in Health Economics; the Center for Health Care and Policy Research; the Center for Education Disparities Research; the Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness; the Child Maltreatment Solutions Network; the Justice Center for Research; the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center; the Population Research Institute; the Clinical and Translational Science Institute; and the Rock Ethics Institute.