Riley Regan, Pioneer And Advocate In Alcoholism And Drug Treatment

SEABROOK, N.J., Dec. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Seabrook House would like to share the following notice. 

Riley W. Regan, a nationally recognized authority on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Public Policy, died peacefully at his home on December 7, 2012, after a short bout with primary liver cancer.  He was 77.

Mr. Regan, who had a life-long personal and professional relationship with the field of alcoholism and drug abuse, was the founding director of the New Jersey Division of Alcoholism where he was credited with implementing the Alcoholism Treatment and Rehabilitation Act, which decriminalized public drunkenness and established a statewide county planning system for alcoholism treatment and prevention.

He also was instrumental in developing legislation that established the nationally recognized Intoxicated Driver Resource Center (IDRC) program aimed at reducing drunken driving in New Jersey.

Mr. Regan subsequently served as the Executive Director of the New Jersey Governor's Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse (GCADA), an agency responsible for prevention efforts statewide. For more than 20 years he was on the faculty of the Rutgers University Center for Alcohol Studies and taught at numerous colleges and universities throughout the country on alcoholism and drug abuse topics.  Earlier in his career, he served as Deputy State Director of the Maryland Alcoholism Control Administration and Deputy Director of the National Center for Alcohol Education.

"Riley was a passionate advocate for those struggling to overcome substance abuse.  His monument is all those who he helped back to useful lives," said former New Jersey Governor Thomas H. Kean, one of four governors under whom he served.

Mr. Regan was a past president of the National Association of State Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Directors and served five years as a member of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism's National Advisory Council. He was the New Jersey Social Worker of the Year, the Newark Star Ledger's "Jerseyan of the Year," the New Jersey Human Services Administrator of the Year and received numerous other recognitions. He also was honored on five occasions by resolutions from the New Jersey General Assembly for his ongoing work in the alcoholism and drug abuse field. Mr. Regan was one of five state employees in the nation honored by the National Governor's Association. A long-time advocate for compulsive gambling treatment and prevention, Regan was instrumental in the creation of the New Jersey Council on Compulsive Gambling.

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