Palo Alto Unified School District
What is your agency’s connection to PADACC?
Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) has been a member of the Drug and Alcohol Committee since its inception in 2002. The original project direction was facilitated by a PAUSD administrator and PAUSD administrative staff continue to be involved in some aspects of project direction. Many PAUSD staff members participate in the committee meetings, and a number of activities involve PAUSD students.
In the fall of 2005, the district along with other committee members wrote a grant for funding to expand the committee’s effort and to develop the Palo Alto Drug and Alcohol Community Collaborative (PADACC). The successful grant allocation from the Santa Clara County Department of Alcohol and Drugs Services (DADS) provided funding for many grant activities and for a Project Director. PAUSD became the fiscal agent for the grant and employed the Project Director. DADS funding ends June of 2008 and PADACC/PAUSD are actively seeking funding from other sources.
In their first year, PADACC adopted the Social Norms theory or Power of the Positive to help focus the substance abuse prevention activities. This work continues to this day with PAUSD’s five secondary schools involved in the Palo Alto Reality Check Survey (PARCS) and subsequent educational efforts to align what are presently misperceptions our teens have of substance use and abuse to “what is really happening” in Palo Alto. Staff at each secondary school are responsible for managing the efforts on their sites.
What does your agency contribute to PADACC regarding drugs, alcohol, bullying & harassment?
As PAUSD staff embarked on their work with Social Norms, they identified bullying and harassment as issues as critical as substance abuse. In the Summer of 2006 eight members of the collaborative and the Project Director attended a Social Norms Conference in Montana conducted by the “Most of Us” project staff. At this conference, PAUSD staff refined their mission, vision and work plan to move the project in Palo Alto forward.
What are your agency's top 3 goals for 2008- 2009 - as related to underage drinking and drug use?
The major goals for PAUSD’s involvement in PADACC are:
- Increased student and staff awareness of the true norms for substance use/abuse and bullying and harassment.
- Decreased student involvement in substance abuse and bullying and harassment
- Continued focused efforts in this area including helping to administer the PARCS, bringing engaging speakers into the schools, helping teachers and parents feel better prepared to support their teens through stress they encounter in today’s world.
What services does your agency provide to the community in relation to drugs, alcohol, bullying &harassment?
- Each school administers the PARCS and California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) .
- Secondary school staff, counselors and assistant principals participate on committees to address substance abuse
- PAUSD has been the fiscal agent for the DADS grant and has contributed in- kind administrative, counseling and accounting support, meeting the DADS grant funding requirements.
- PAUSD has helped with the data analysis of PARCS.
- PAUSD provides help to students and families requiring substance abuse counseling and
support.
- PAUSD has provided space for meeting, assemblies and parent nights
- PAUSD provides office space for the PADACC Project Director.
How is your agency measuring progress?
- PAUSD conducts a California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) every other year as well as conducting the PARCS survey.
- Day to day progress is measured by student participation, educational activities,administrative involvement, ACS referrals, parent and student feedback and focus groups.
What resources do you think your agency needs in order to achieve its goals?
- Continued funding
- A drug and alcohol committee at each secondary school that includes parents, teachers, students and an administrator.
- A commitment to the ‘Power of the Positive’ ( social norms theories of environmental change) throughout PAUSD.
- A time and a place in each school for our teens to dialogue and learn about making safe and healthy life choices.
Contact the Palo Alto Unified School District
PADACC Members
Karin Bloom - Project Director PADACC
E-mail: kbloom@pausd.org
Carol Zepecki - Director Student Services
E-mail: czepecki@pausd.org
Linda Lenoir - District Nurse
E-mail: llenior@pausd.org
Todd Feinberg - PALY Assistant Principal
E-mail: tfeinberg@pausd.org
Susan Shultz - PALY School Counselor
E-mail: sshultz@pausd.org
James Lubbe - Gunn Dean of Students
E-mail: jlubbe@pausd.org
Sharon Ofek - JLS Principal
E-mail: sofek@pausd.org
Gerry Larvey - JLS Assistant Principal
E-mail: glarvey@pausd.org
Christine Wang - Jordan Assistant Principal
E-mail: cwang@pausd.org
Bhavna Narula - Terman School Counselor
E-mail: bnarula@pausd.org
Mary Ganshow - Terman Nurse Technician
E-mail: mganshow@pausd.org
Website: www.pausd.org
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