Prevention Education

Program Curriculum

The prevention education program in the FWISD enhances student achievement by delivering programs and providing services that encourage self-responsibility and full realization of potential. The prevention education program is funded by the Safe and Drug-Free Schools Title IV Grant. The purpose of which is to support public and private schools in the development and implementation of educational programs for all students to prevent violence in and around schools and the illegal use of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs.

These programs and services are delivered in accordance with six principles of effectiveness: (1) Conducting a needs assessment; (2) Setting measurable goals and objectives; (3) Utilizing effective, research-based programs; (4) Program evaluation; (5) Analysis of risk and protective factors; and (6) Parental and community involvement.

There is one prevention educator assigned to each of our thirteen high school pyramids. The prevention educator is responsible for the delivery of the programs and services that address issues that may put students at risk of academic failure or dropping out of school throughout the feeder schools of each pyramid. The programs and services delivered by the prevention educator include, but are not limited to prevention education, social skill development, referral to community resources, parent involvement, and community awareness.

In order to fulfill the essential mission of the prevention education program in the Fort Worth ISD, prevention educators deliver the following researched based curricula - deemed exemplary by the US Department of Education's Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program - in the classroom. Listed below are the curriculums that are used:

Botvin's Life Skills
Life Skills is a program developed by Dr. Gilbert J. Botvin, Cornell University Medical School. It has distinct elementary and middle school curricula that are delivered in a series of classroom sessions over three years.

The Life Skills middle school curriculum is intended to run for fifteen 45-minute class periods. The booster intervention has been developed and is taught over 10 class periods in the second year (Grade 7) and 5 class periods in the third year (Grade 8).

The Life Skills elementary curriculum runs for 24 class sessions, each 30 to 45 minutes long, to be conducted over 3 years. Year one (Level 1, Grade 3/4) is composed of 8 class sessions and covers all skill areas. The remaining booster sessions are divided into 8 class sessions for Level 2 (Grade 4/5) and Level 3 (Grade 5/6), which provide additional skill development.

The sessions for both elementary and middle school programs use lecture, discussion, coaching, and practice to enhance students' self-esteem, feelings of self-efficacy, ability to make decisions, and ability to resist peer and media pressure. The three components Life Skills focuses on are drug resistance skills, personal self-management skills, and general social skills.

Botvin's Life Skills
National Health Promotion Associates, Inc.
141 South Central Avenue, Suite 208
Hartdale, New York 10530
Phone: 914/421-2525
Fax: 914/683-6998
www.lifeskilltraining.com

Second Step: A Violence Prevention Curriculum
Second Step is a classroom-based social skills program for preschool through junior high students developed by Barbara Guzza from Committee for Children. It is designed to reduce impulsive, high-risk, and aggressive behaviors; and increase children's social-emotional competence and other protective factors.

Second Step lessons are based on interpersonal situations depicted in 11x17 inch black and white photos and/or videos. The accompanying scripted lesson is used to guide the class discussion and skill practice. The pre-K level curriculum includes puppet scripts and sing-along tapes, and the middle school includes homework assignments.

Group discussion, modeling, coaching, and practice are teaching techniques used in order to increase students' social competence, risk assessment, decision-making ability, and positive goal setting. The program's lesson content varies by grade level and is organized into three skill building units: (1) Empathy, (2) Impulse control and problem solving, and (3) Anger management.

Second Step: A Violence Prevention Curriculum
Committee for Children
Client Support Service Department
2203 Airport Way Suite, Suite 500
Seattle, Washington 98134
Phone: 800/634-4449
Fax: 206/343-1445
www.cfchildren.org

Project ALERT
Project ALERT is a program developed by Phyllis L. Ellickson and colleagues at RAND. It is a two-year, fourteen lesson drug prevention curriculum for middle-school students, which focuses on alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and inhalants. Project ALERT uses participatory activities and videos in order to teach adolescents the skills and strategies needed to resist pro-drug pressures and to establish non-drug using norms.

Guided classroom discussions and small group activities encourage peer interaction and challenge student beliefs and perceptions, while intensive role-playing activities help students learn and master resistance skills. Homework assignments that also involve parents extend the learning process by facilitating parent-child discussions of drugs and how to resist using them.

Project ALERT
G. Bridget Ryan
725 S. Figueroa Street, Suite 1615
Los Angeles, California 90017
Phone: 800/253-7810
Fax 213/623-0585
www.projectalert.best.org

Volunteers
Volunteer opportunities available!!! Parents, retired teachers, college students, and community individuals have the opportunity to be trained in one of our research-based exemplary programs. Once trained, you will be able to facilitate 8-11 week classroom sessions at an assigned campus or campuses. It is a wonderful opportunity to improve academic achievement for students by addressing the issues that may put them at risk of academic failure or school drop out.

Other initiatives and activities in the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities program include: Red Ribbon Week (October 25-29, 2004), teacher training, consultation, and Teen Court.

Arlington Heights Pyramid
817/298-5934
[email protected]
Carol Waller, Prevention Education Specialist

Carter Riverside Pyramid
817/838-1540
[email protected]
Jarvis Walker, Prevention Education Specialist

Diamond Hill Pyramid
817/740-4848
[email protected]
Leticia Castaneda, Prevention Education Specialist

Dunbar Pyarmid
817/531-6350
[email protected]
Lettie Cooley, Prevention Education Specialist

Eastern Hills Pyramid
817/496-7651
[email protected]
Delain Sandifer, Prevention Education Specialist

North Side Pyramid
817/740-3871
[email protected]
Kathryn Sohne, Prevention Education Specialist

Paschal Pyramid
817/207-6700
[email protected]
Melissa Siu, Prevention Education Specialist

Polytechnic Pyramid
817/531-6238
[email protected]
Paula Matthews, Prevention Education Specialist

South Hills Pyramid
817/922-6840
[email protected]
Raul Duran, Prevention Education Specialist

Southwest Pyramid
817/370-5767
[email protected]
Sharon Johnson, Prevention Education Specialist

Trimble Tech/Paschal Pyramid
817/377-7240
[email protected]
Carolyn Turner, Prevention Education Specialist

Western Hills Pyramid
817/570-4070
[email protected]
Jeanne Humble, Prevention Education Specialist

OD Wyatt Pyramid
817/531-6498
[email protected]
Nelder Stewart, Prevention Education Specialist