Example of Coordinators' Training

The workshops start with a discussion of the schools' role in effective prevention: Schools should serve as the hub of community prevention activities for youth, rather than try to solve these problems on their own. To illustrate the concept of school-linked approaches, the trainers offer a collection of scenarios like this one:

"Most parents only think about prevention issues at the time of a crisis, but typically prevention coordinators are not working in crisis situations," said Yvette Lamb, former director of training for the National Training Center for coordinators. "The coordinators can raise awareness about prevention and help improve school and community connections. What better place for schools and communities to come together than on creating safe and drug-free schools?"

In helping the coordinators prepare for their job, the training manual lists three levels of change:

• Social and thinking skills education for all students

• Early identification, referral, and intervention for students and parents at risk

• Safe and supervised alternative activities for students at risk

• Classroom restructuring for more engaging and interactive education environments

• School-community collaboration in program design and delivery

• Clear school policies to deter substance use and violence that can be integrated into more general school reform efforts

• Enforcement of school policies, with clear reward structure and unambiguous sanctions

• Schoolwide communication campaigns to influence school norms about substance use and violence

• Community policies to limit availability of alcohol, tobacco, other drugs, and weapons in the community

• Enforcement of community policies to limit youth access to alcohol, tobacco, other drugs, and weapons

• Community-wide communication campaigns to influence community norms about substance use and violence

Source: Bridging Schools and Communities: National Training Center for middle school drug prevention and school safety coordinators. (Fall 2001). Mosaic, Education Development Center, Newton, Mass. 3, (2).