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Our Collaborative Members

Addictions Institute
Adolescent Counseling Services
American Red Cross-Safe Rides
Midpeninsula Community Media Ctr
Office of Anna Eshoo
Palo Alto Family YMCA
Palo Alto Library
Palo Alto Medical Foundation
Palo Alto Police Department
Palo Alto PTAs
Palo Alto Recreation Department
Palo Alto Unified School District
Palo Alto University Rotary Club
Trauma Service Stanford Univ.
Youth Community Service

Funding Support From:
Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund 09
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2009 Palo Alto Reality Check Survey Overview

PARC Survey HIghlights
Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School (JLS)
Jordan Middle School
Terman Middle School

Palo Alto High School (PALY)

• Highlights

Gunn High School

• Highlights
  

2008 Palo Alto Reality Check

PARC Survey Reports
Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School (JLS)
Jordan Middle School
Terman Middle School

Palo Alto High School (PALY)

• Selected Highlights
• In Depth Report
• Corresponding Family Conversation Starters
• Power Point Presentation

Gunn High School

• Selected Highlights
• In Depth Report
• Corresponding Family Conversation Starters
• Power Point Presentation

Over the years, PADACC members have carefully listened to our community needs at town meeting nights, local drug and alcohol committee meetings, past surveys, and student led assemblies. We heard the shared concerns of our youth and their parents regarding binge drinking, driving under the influence and other risky behaviors associated with substance use and abuse.

Using this core insight, a team of well trained, committed and seasoned local professionals created the Palo Alto Reality Check Survey (PARCS). The Survey is specifically designed for our community as a barometer to show where we are in achieving our mutual goal of reducing underage substance use and abuse.

In early October 2008, all PAUSD secondary school students took the PARCS. Confidentially and anonymously they shared information about their behaviors, attitudes and perceptions concerning bullying and substance use and abuse.

Reality vs. Perception
Social norms theory assumes that much of our behavior is influenced by how other members of our social groups behave. Our beliefs about what others do often is incorrect. Social norms theory predicts that individuals overestimate the degree to which peers have permissive attitudes or behavior with respect to alcohol and other drugs or other health problems and underestimate the extent to which peers engage in healthy, health-promoting behavior and risk-reducing behavior.

Misperception is where risky behaviors can start. If a person believes the misperception that “everyone is doing it”, their chances of joining that perceived as the normal group is far greater.

Trying to fit in and be normal is a very natural part of wanting to belong. Fortunately, the norm in Palo Alto is that most teens are not engaging in substance use or abuse. Using substances is a risk they don’t have to take to fit in. Now we need to let them know!

Getting the Word Out
We need to share the PARCS results with our teens so they can see for themselves that a vast majority of their peers are “not doing it.”

Getting the truth of your teen’s own behaviors and their peers’ behaviors is where our community work starts.

Let’s get the truth out there to our kids. They have the right to know.

*The PARCS results also validate the reality that a small percentage of teens are using and abusing substances. We do have a real problem that we need to address. Meanwhile, we don’t want our healthy teens to feel that this smaller group (which can often stand out) are in the majority. They are not.

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