Marion Area Coalition for Healthy Communities

School-Focused Activities

School-focused activities include the implementation of model program universal prevention curriculum, a mentor program, a student service club and a youth advisory group.  These efforts building connections between the community and the school, and build the capacity and assets of Marion's young people.

Partners:

• School staff
• Marion Area Family Resource Center staff
• Medical College of Wisconsin staff
• Community adult volunteers that participate in the mentor program

School-focused activites:

• Helping Hands Mentor Program:  The program paces adult community members in elementary school classrooms.  Mentors often remain with the grade level from Kindergarten through 4th grade.
• In-School Prevention Program:  The program is entitled, Too Good for Drugs Too.  The curriculum is implemented in grades K though 6, with some boosters in the middle school.  This is a best practice program, and strong, positive pre-test/post-test data has been consistent.
• Youth Community Service In-Service (CSI):  This program is a community service youth club that involves students from grades 7 through 12.
• Youth Advisory Committee:  The development of this committee is underway.  It will build off of the success of the CSI program.
• Student orientations are provided by the school as young people enter grades 7 (from elementary to junior high) and 9 (from junior to senior high).  Family resource center staff are on the agenda of that meeting to share resources and information with the parents.

Goal of the Activities:

• Increase protective factors for elementary, middle, and high school children, including providing adult role models, increasing the community's valuing of youth, and providing support to families.

Accomplishments to Date:

• The mentors mentor about 200 students each year, and generally contribute between 200 and 300 hours to that effort.
• Elementary students who participate in the Too Good for Drugs Too curriculum consistently show improvement from their pre-test to their post-test.
• The CSI club has about 40 participating members (2005-2006), and generally contributes over 350 hours per calendar year.
• The youth advisory committee will be implemented in 2006.

Current Activities:

Future Activities:

Funding Source:

• Drug-Free Communities Support Program grant, Office of National Drug Control Policy, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
• School Distric of Marion pays for in-school teaching and staffing
• A small grant from Waupaca County provides some support for the CSI Program