Pre-Implementation

• Create a change team of key stakeholders that will be involved in selecting and implementing the prevention program. This can be your advisory board.

• Identify prevention needs with your advisory board. (See the online event Using Existing Data in Your Needs Assessment for suggestions on how to do this.)

• Develop a vision, set realistic goals, and create a plan for implementing the prevention program. (See the online event Identifying Prevention Priorities and Strategies for Success for some helpful guidelines.)

• Select an effective prevention program. (See the online event Selecting Research-Based Programs for Your School for a discussion of the selection process.)

• Create a positive climate for change and advocate the need for prevention programs. (See the online event Promoting Prevention Through School-Community Partnerships for specific suggestions on how to achieve this. Also see Day 3: Promoting Effective Implementation in the online event Implementing Research-Based Prevention Programs in Schools.)

• Anticipate possible barriers to change and develop strategies to counter them. We will discuss how to do this in Day 3 of this event.

• Provide ongoing professional development for implementers; communicate your high expectations.

Implementation

• Facilitate implementation of the prevention program. (See the online event Implementing Research-Based Prevention Programs in Schools for valuable tips.)

• Provide technical assistance that is matched to your implementers' needs.

• Be a proactive problem-solver; anticipate problems and solve them before they become crises.

• Monitor the progress of the implementation toward your goals. (See Day 4: Monitoring the Implementation of Your Program, of the online event Implementing Research-Based Prevention Programs in Schools, for a discussion of monitoring.)

• Maintain a positive environment, where open communication and exchange of ideas are supported.

• Identify concerns and deal with resistance.

• Recognize, reward, and celebrate successes.

Post-Implementation

• Facilitate sustaining the prevention program. (See the online event Sustaining Your Prevention Initiative for some effective sustainability strategies.)