Primary Project A Proposal for Schools-R-Us Heather Loud & Ashley Wagner

The Prevention Issue 8-22% of young children have social, emotional, and academic adjustment difficulties. Prevention efforts in the first three years of school are beneficial for children’s academic, personal, and social growth throughout their life.

Primary Project School-based early intervention and prevention program K – 3 rd grade Child-led play intervention Developed around six components based on prevention science

Targeted Population

Components of Primary Project Focus on young children for the short term Focus on systematic screening and appropriate selection o T-CRS (Teacher-Child Rating Scale) Child associates in a direct service role with children

Components (Continued) Mental health professional as supervisor, consultant, and leader Use of ongoing outcome and process evaluation Integration into school and community

Level of Prevention Universal Secondary Tertiary

Goals Enhance learning and adjustment skills and other school-related competencies Reduce social, emotional, and school adjustment difficulties

Supporting Research Data consistently finds significant levels of improvement in school adjustment for children who participate in the program. o This includes male and female children from rural, suburban, and urban areas; from all SES and ethnic backgrounds; and from all family types.

Evidence-Based Intervention Recognized as an effective evidenced-based intervention: – First program recognized by NYS Education Department (1988) – Effective prevention program for children with emerging problems or signs of risk (2003) – National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices (2007) – Evidence-based intervention for abused children in a school setting (2009)

Studies on Primary Project 27,000 children demonstrated significant decreases in adjustment difficulties as well as increases in adaptive skills during the school year in CA 1,500 children demonstrated reductions in aggressive behavior and improved social skills and academic performance during the school year in NY

Plan for Implementation Step one : Disseminating information about the program to teachers and parents Step two : School board approval to pursue grant Step three : Apply for grant funding Step four : Interview, select, and train child associate Step five : Start the program

Obstacles Teacher buy-in – Action plan one : Faculty meeting – Action plan two : Meeting about assessment process at grade-level meeting Parent buy-in – Action plan one : Information included multiple times in parent newsletter – Action plan two : Meet with parents of selected students after their parent-teacher conference

References Brassard, M.R., Rivelis, E., & Diaz, V. (2009). School-based counseling of abused children. Psychology in the Schools, 46 (3), doi: /pits Children’s Institute Primary Project: An overview. New York: Children’s Institute, Inc. Crean, H.F. & Lotyczewski, B.S. (1995). An evaluation of the early mental health initiative’s Primary Intervention Program and Enhanced Primary Prevention Program for the academic year. New York: Children’s Institute, Inc. Johnson, D.B., Pedro-Carrol, J., & Demanchick, S.P. (2005). The Primary Mental Health Project: A play intervention for school-age children. In L.A. Reddy, T.M. Files-Hall, & C.E. Schaefer (Eds.), Empirically based play interventions for children (pp ). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Nafpaktitis, M. & Perlmutter, B.F. (1998). School-based early mental health intervention with at-risk students. School Psychology Review, 27 (3), Peabody, M.A., Johnson, D.B., & Hightower, A.D. (2010). Primary Project: An evidenced- based approach. In A.A. Drewes & C.E. Schaefer (Eds.), School-Based Play Therapy (2 nd Ed.) (pp ). New York: Wiley. Power, T. (2003). Promoting children's mental health: Reform through interdisciplinary and community partnerships. School Psychology Review, 32(1), United States Department of Health and Human Services. (2007). Primary project. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services National Registry of Evidenced-Based Programs and Practices. Retrieved from