SPF SIG PLANNING GRANT – 2010 – 2011 SPF SIG IMPLEMENTATION GRANT – Lifeways Inc. Rapid City Program

SPF SIG Strategic Plan – Key Findings Using the Risk and Protective Factor Model from Hawkins, Catalano and Miller (1992), the data indicates the presence of several risk factors and lack of several protective factors in the Individual, Family, Community and School Sectors. As outlined below, the Rapid City Area School community has the following risk factors:  Individual - Attitudes favorable to alcohol use  Individual - low perception of risk of alcohol use  Individual - Need for good coping styles / social competence skills  Individual - Perception of peer approval of alcohol use  Family - Parents or family members have an attitude that favors alcohol use  Family - Need for parental monitoring with clear rules of conduct about underage alcohol use  Community / Family – Easy access to alcohol (mainly through home, family, friends)  Community - Perceptions of approval of underage alcohol use in community  Community – Extreme economic deprivation  School - Ineffective school policies and norms regarding alcohol use

When youth drink alcohol, they drink excessively (5+ drinks) Binge Drinking – Rapid City

Binge Drinking – Southern Hills

Rapid City youth are less likely to see binge drinking as risky compared to national data Rapid City youth associate risk with what you do when you are drunk, not the act of getting drunk itself In Rapid City, there is a low perception of harm associated with binge drinking.

In the Southern Hills Excessive Alcohol Use is Viewed as Acceptable

Many students who are drinking alcohol, are using it to deal with depression and other issues. Students Use Alcohol for Coping

Lifeways Plan for the 2011 – 2012 School Year Implement Project Success in the middle and high schools Address low perception of harm through the Project Success Education Component which includes universal awareness activities, 4 topic prevention education series, individual sessions and group sessions. Address school norms / peer approval through the Project Success Student Substance Abuse Task Force. Address youth protective factors through individual education and mentoring, group education and support, and opportunities to participate in safe, healthy, supportive groups such as peer led groups (SADD, Youth to Youth or other supportive pro-social groups) or support groups (Children of Alcoholic Groups, New Student groups, etc.) Address social availability, community norms, and the lack of parental monitoring through the Project Success Parent Component, which includes parent education sessions (Staying Connected with Your Teen), parent advisory groups and parent support groups targeted toward parents with students in middle school and high school. Address school norms and policies through the Project Success School Staff Component which includes teacher training, and developing a staff substance abuse task force.

Project Success Education Component Planned to provide the 4 topic education series to all 7 th and 9 th grade students in RCAS  All 7 th grade students received the education series at North MS, Southwest MS, and West MS. Half of all 7 th grade students received the education series at Dakota MS and South MS.  All 9 th grade students received the education series at Lincoln Academy and Stevens HS. Half of all 9 th grade students at Central HS received the education series.  All 8 th grade students at West MS and one quarter of 8 th grade students at Dakota MS and South MS received the education series. Provided the 4 topic education series to all 7 th and 9 th grade students in Custer and Hill City School Districts

Project Success Individual and Group Education Provide individual education sessions to 255 HS students and 161 MS students in the Rapid City Area School District and 22 HS students and 22 MS students in the Southern Hills Children of Substance Abusing Parents (COSAP) groups meet regularly in Central HS, Dakota MS, North MS, and Custer MS.

Student Substance Abuse Task Force Student groups to address substance use in their schools have formed at all the high schools and Dakota MS, North MS, West MS, Custer MS, and Hill City MS. These groups participate in awareness activities in their schools to address the social norm of substance use. Feedback from these student substance abuse task force groups are brought to the Lifeways coalition to improve the groups work and focus.

Community Outreach Staying Connected with Your Teen parenting classes started. Four sessions have been held in the community with 35 parents. Lifeways advisors have provided training to school staff regarding synthetic drugs and other drug and alcohol issues.

Lifeways Coalition Lifeways Coalition sponsored 4 community outreach events in the Black Hills focused on prescription and synthetic drug abuse and alcohol use. Several committees have been formed to address issues brought up at these events.

Education: This committee’s goal is to raise the overall level of community awareness surrounding the issue of synthetic availability and abuse in our community, and to provide opportunities for education on new developments as they arise. The committee will help various professional groups link to educational sources and protocols to handle individuals under the influence, after they are developed by the protocol committee. The committee coordinator for this group is Leatha Roland at North Middle School. For more information or to get involved in this group, contact her at

Protocol development: This committee will look at development of protocols for dealing with the immediate problems of individuals under the influence of synthetic drugs of various types. The outcome of their development should result in a list of symptoms of concern, and indicators for when the person should be brought to an emergency room for treatment, for example. This team needs input from medical professionals, as well as those interested in utilizing the final protocols, such as school nurses, school liaison officers and administrators, as well as counselors and anyone who could encounter individuals under the influence in the course of their jobs. The coordinator for this committee is EMT Bev Cole. For more information or to provide your input to this committee, contact her at

Prevention & support systems for youth: This committee has an interest in strengthening support systems for youth, providing affordable positive activities, expanding mentorship opportunities and similar types of prevention strategies. Some of the ideas that the group has considered include a teen crisis center, a place for teens to hang out, sports/open gym facilities, and others. The group is researching other services and programs and hoping to identify gaps, then find ways to fill those gaps. They will also be recruiting teens to guide the planning, by having them provide their input on current programs and what they consider to be lacking in the community. The coordinator for this committee is Chris Butt at Volunteers of America. For more information or to get involved, contact him at