A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

"Brevard Prevention Plus"
Melbourne, Florida

Brevard County is located on the east central coast of Florida, near the Kennedy Space Center. Twelve percent of the population lives below the poverty level. The Brevard County School District serves approximately 69,000 students in K-12. Nearly 30% of students receive free and reduced lunches; 25% are on ADC. The district?s Safe and Drug Free Schools Needs Assessment show that out of 800 eighth graders, 50% reported use of alcohol, 40% use of tobacco and 30% use of marijuana. Fourteen percent of sixth graders reported polydrug use. Middle school students evidenced below norm levels of cooperation, empathy, academic self-esteem and parental self-esteem. The number of youth referred for delinquency has risen 110% in six years. The county has also found minimal family involvement in the lives of children at risk for violence, substance abuse and mental health problems and minimal and delayed identification, referral and treatment of mental health and substance abuse problems. The proposed program will serve approximately 13,000 students in elementary, middle, and high school.

In addition to the primary partners, the Brevard Prevention Plus (BPP) program will be placed administratively under the Office of Public Safety. Other partners include Circles of Care, Inc., a non-profit organization that implements programs addressing mental health and substance abuse, and Crosswinds Youth Services, a non-profit organization that provides a continuum of services to prevent and reduce juvenile delinquency.

The core of the BPP program is the development of four multidisciplinary, intervention teams—one for each area of the district—made up of Drug/Alcohol/Truancy Liaisons; Intervention Specialists; and Family Intervention Specialists. Their goals will be attained by providing teacher training on standardized reporting techniques on violence and substance abuse; reducing the number of unexcused absences and incidents of alcohol and drug use; developing programs on topics ranging from social skills and feelings, to anger reduction and conflict resolution. The program plans more referrals to be made to partner agencies, standardized screening, assessment, and referral systems to be created, as well as follow-up procedures. Outside agency interventions will be used and school facility design related to safety and security will be assessed. Each site will have a program manual documenting all phases, strategies, and problem solutions of the program and allow for easy replication by any community with similar risks and needs. These programs, integrated with an existing program called the District?s Safe Schools/Healthy Students Comprehensive Plan, will address all six elements outlined.

The evaluation plan will be conducted by Rain & Brehm Consulting Group, Inc.

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