Programs & Services : Student Assistance Menu
Menu of Services
Caron acknowledges the many challenges that face our youth today. In response to these challenges, we have chosen outcomes-based, best practices programs, based on the specific needs of each school, to help youth deal effectively with some of these issues.
For more information about Carons Student Assistance Program contact Glorimar Amaro at kfrey@caron.org
Student Assistance Team In-servicing
Legal Updates For Student Assistance Program Teams
This presentation covers important updates for school SAP teams in order to keep current with updates on legal issues pertaining to school law, rights and responsibilities of their liaisons, and rights and responsibilities of students, parents and guardians.
Parent Involvement
Without a parent or guardian's permission, all SAP services stop. This training will review strategies to engage caregivers early in the process, how to motivate and encourage them to remain involved and how this collaboration between caregiver and school builds the bridge for success with their child and the school community as a whole.
Team Maintenance
The PA Commonwealth's Interagency Committee suggests that SAP teams meet at least twice a year for maintenance in order to be kept abreast of current topics and updates; to evaluate their program's effectiveness in the school with students and caregivers; and to bond together as a multi-disciplinary group. This proactive approach includes personal and team evaluation, communication skills, as well as action planning.
Adult Educational Programs
Educational formats for faculty, student caregivers, administrative staff and school boards are designed to meet the individual needs of the school community. Popular topics have included:
Current Trends
A review of the latest drug and alcohol trends, what and how adolescents are using these substances, as well as statistics regarding the increase and/or decrease of use is covered in this presentation.
Parenting for Prevention
Parenting in this day and age can be difficult. Caregivers often have questions such as, "How should I start the conversation?" This workshop addresses these and other concerns and gives participants the tools for assisting the child to be successful in resisting drugs and alcohol.
Enabling
This program offers a discussion regarding enabling and how a child is hindered rather than helped when accountability is overlooked. Discussion includes defining the term "enabling," reviewing how education and caregivers can address and overcome enabling behaviors and why it is important to address this issue at home and within the school.
Bullying Prevention and Intervention
This in-service program reviews the effects of bullying, how to identify bullying behaviors and how to apply healthy intervention and prevention methods in schools.
Student Services - Prevention Programs
A Path to Fuller Living is the menu of prevention services that Caron provides to students in grades K-12. These programs address decision-making; social skills and problem solving techniques; increased personal control; and healthy risk taking. They utilize interactive approaches and experiential techniques to help make the information and concepts more easily understood and applied.
*The National Institute on Drug Abuse selected a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Model Program, or Life Skills, as one of the most effective drug abuse prevention programs.
PATHS: Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies®
This program's focus is on elementary school-aged children. It runs for 8 - 10 weeks and meets once a week/cycle for 30-45 minutes depending on the grade level. It teaches social competency skills; addresses feelings and appropriate expressions of feelings; and bolsters self-esteem by identifying and utilizing compliments.
Positive outcomes include responsible behavior and improved academic performance.
LifeSkills®
Gilbert Botvin, Ph.D. developed this internationally recognized program for middle/junior high school students. The program assists students in developing drug resistance, personal self-management and general social skills. It runs for 8 - 10 weeks and meets once a week/cycle for 45 minutes.
Project Alert®
Project Alert® is geared toward middle/junior high school-aged students. It helps students to develop reasons why not to use chemicals and how to recognize and resist pro-drug messages. The program also promotes self-efficacy, active student involvement, practice, modeling, reinforcement and respect of others and their decisions. It runs for 11 weeks, meeting once a week/cycle for approximately 45 minutes. There are three booster sessions offered in the following year.
Reconnecting Youth®: A Peer Group Approach for Building Life Skills
This program, which runs for one semester, focuses on high school-aged students. It is designed to meet the participants' needs for inclusion and excitement while teaching them how to be "winners," stay in control, make wise decisions and evaluate potential consequences of their choices. Results of this program include an 18% improvement in grades in all classes, a 54% decrease in hard drug use and a 26% decrease in anger and aggression problems.
Assessment/Consultation/Intervention Services
Working as a team with school personnel and parents, our specialists help those students who are using alcohol or other drugs get the appropriate help they need. SAP Specialists act as liaisons between the school and treatment center.
School Health Fairs
Educational, interactive programming is available to small and large groups within the community setting of a health fair. Age appropriate activities are utilized.
Leadership Trainings
Caron specialists can work with your faculty and students to develop, instruct and provide on-going trainings on peer mediation and peer helping. We have recently developed a series of seminars for student leaders entitled, Enhancement of Leadership Skills.
Tobacco Awareness Workshop
This workshop may be utilized in situations where students have violated a school's tobacco policy. The group is intended to impact participants' knowledge, attitudes, intentions and beliefs toward tobacco and strengthen their motivation to change. The workshop also includes learning stations in which participants engage in interactive demonstrations, as well as small group discussion.
Psycho-Educational Support Groups
Anger Management
Opportunities are given to students to learn and practice new methods for dealing appropriately with feelings and expressions of anger.
Dealing With Divorce
Students meet with other students who are experiencing parental separation and divorce to discuss personal concerns and feelings regarding being a child of divorce.
Grief and Loss
Students meet to gain support from peers who are experiencing similar grief or loss of an important relationship in that child's life.
COA (Children of Alcoholics)
This group is open to students who are affected by a parent or guardian's misuse or addiction to chemicals.
Drug and Alcohol Awareness
Students discuss alcohol, tobacco and other drugs and their effects on the mind and body. They are taught the necessary refusal skills and how to resist peer pressure, all while making healthy, informed choices.
Drug and Alcohol Aftercare
This group helps support students returning to school after completing residential or other drug and alcohol treatment.
Teen Issues
Relationship skills, self-empowerment, academic stress, peer concerns and general teen issues are topics covered in this group.
Stress Management
Students discuss areas of stress and gain peer and facilitator support in trying new, healthy methods for managing stress.
Ending Nicotine Dependence (E.N.D.)®
This program was developed by the Utah Department of Health. It is designed to assist students who are mandated to or volunteer for cessation classes. The curriculum involves students' motivation to quit or reduce tobacco use through eight sessions with one, three and six month follow-up sessions.
Bullying Prevention and Intervention
This program consists of small group student presentations that review the effects of bullying, help to identify bullying behaviors and deal with them through healthy intervention and prevention methods.
Concerned Persons Group
This group is tailored for those students who are concerned about a friend or family member's substance abuse. It provides education regarding chemical dependency as an addiction and disease. Strong emphasis is placed on developing coping skills including the identification and processing of feelings.
