The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration ( SAMHSA) approved programs selected by ARP/Phoenix Prevention services have been nationally tested in communities, schools and social service organizations. Research has proven that they have prevented or reduced substance abuse and other related high-risk behaviors. SAMHSA's National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP) rigorously reviews each program before approval is given.

Education Programs

The SAMHSA and State of North Carolina approved programs we select for implementation in communities include universal offerings (U) that apply to all children, selective offerings (S) for at-risk children, and indicated offerings (I) for children acting out in various ways including pre-clinical use of substances (see codes below for each program).

We arrange for trainings and purchase materials from various professional organizations who "own" the programs, e.g. Channing Bete and Hazelden. We also provide various degrees of funding to implement the programs in the community, and monitor outputs and formative and summative outcomes. Monitoring formative or process outcomes means staying involved through the life of each program, providing supervision to ensure program fidelity and maximizing benefits to children, families and the community.

More information about each program, unless otherwise noted, can be found at:
NREPP: SAMHSA's National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices

Programs facilitated by ARP/Phoenix:

• AllStars (U, S) is a school- or community-based program designed to delay and prevent high-risk behaviors in middle school-age adolescents (11 to 14 years old), including substance use, violence, and premature sexual activity, by fostering development of positive personal characteristics. It is a highly interactive program designed to reinforce positive qualities that are typical of youth at this age; it works to strengthen five specific qualities that are vital to achieving preventive effects: Developing positive ideals and future aspirations
  • Establishing positive norms
  • Building strong personal commitments
  • Promoting bonding with school and community organizations
  • Promoting positive parental attentiveness

• Children in the Middle (S) is a skills-based program that helps children and parents deal with the children's reactions to divorce. Divorcing parents may use their children to manipulate and/or control each other around a variety of personal, social, and financial issues. These tactics increase the stress and anxiety typically experienced by children of divorce and can increase children's risk for behavior problems, depression, delinquency, substance use, teen pregnancy, school failure and dropout, and suicide. The parent video teaches parents the skills needed to avoid putting children in the middle of their conflicts. The child video helps children understand why parents divorce. It dispels common myths that children have about divorce (e.g., "It's my fault" or "I can get my parents back together") and teaches children stress and anger management and problem-solving skills.

• Good Touch Bad Touch (U, S) is a comprehensive child abuse prevention curriculum designed for pre-school and kindergarten through sixth grade students, which works as a tool to teach children the skills they need to play a significant role in prevention or interruption of child abuse/sexual abuse in their own lives. Children are taught what abuse is; are given prevention skills including personal body safety rules (“tools” they can put into their tool bags to draw on if needed); and are motivated to action if threatened or victimized. Number and length of sessions vary by age.
  For more information, visit http://www.goodtouchbadtouch.com.

• Guiding Good Choices (U, S) is a multimedia program that gives parents of children in grades four through eight (8 to 13 years old) the knowledge and skills needed to guide their children through early adolescence. Over the last 20 years, research has shown that positive parental involvement is an important protective factor that increases school success and buffers children against later problems such as substance abuse, violence, and risky sexual behaviors. This program aims to:
  • Strengthen and clarify family expectations for behavior
  • Enhance the conditions that promote bonding in the family
  • Teach skills to parents and children that allow children to successfully meet the expectations of their family to resist drug use

• Nurturing Parenting (U, S) programs are family-centered and designed to build nurturing skills as alternatives to abusive parenting and child-rearing attitudes and practices. Thirteen different programs address specific age groups (infants, school-aged children, teens); cultures (Hispanic, South East Asian, African American); and needs (special learning needs, families in alcohol recovery, military families).

• Parenting Wisely (S, I) is a self-administered, computer-based program that teaches parents and their 9- to 18-year-old children important skills for combating risk factors for substance use and abuse. The Parenting Wisely program uses a risk-focused approach to reduce family conflict and child behavior problems, including stealing, vandalism, defiance of authority, bullying, and poor hygiene. The highly interactive and nonjudgmental CD-ROM format accelerates learning, and parents use new skills immediately.

• Positive Action (U, S, I) teaches positive actions for the physical, intellectual, social, and emotional areas. Lessons and activities bring the intuitive concepts to a conscious level through the Thoughts-Actions-Feelings Circle: positive thoughts lead to positive actions, positive actions lead to positive feelings about yourself, and positive feelings lead to more positive thoughts. There are six focus units for the K–12 Instruction Curriculum, Climate Development, Counselor, Family, and Community components which are effective by themselves or can work together seamlessly in any combination.

• Project Alert (U, S) is a drug prevention curriculum for middle-school students (11 to 14 years old), which dramatically reduces both the onset and regular use of substances. The 2-year, 14-lesson program focuses on the substances that adolescents are most likely to use: alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and inhalants. Project Alert uses participatory activities and videos to help:
  • Motivate adolescents against drug use
  • Teach adolescents the skills and strategies needed to resist pro-drug pressures
  • Establish nondrug-using norm

• Project Toward No Drug Abuse (S, I) is a highly interactive program designed to help high school youth (14 to 19 years old) resist substance use. A school-based program, TND consists of twelve 40- to 50-minute lessons that include motivational activities, social skills training, and decision-making components that are delivered through group discussions, games, role-playing exercise, videos, and student worksheets. Project TND teaches participants increased coping and self-control skills.

• Safe Dates (U, S, I) is a school-based program designed to stop or prevent the initiation of psychological, physical, and sexual abuse on dates or between individuals involved in a dating relationship. Intended for male and female middle and high school students 12 to 18 years of age, the Safe Dates program can stand alone or easily fit within a health education or family or general life skills curriculum. Because dating violence is often tied to substance abuse, Safe Dates also may be used with drug and alcohol prevention and general violence prevention programs. The Safe Dates program includes a curriculum with nine 50-minute sessions, a 45-minute play to be performed by students, and a poster contest.

• Second Step (U) is a classroom-based social skills program for preschool through junior high students developed by Barbara Guzza from Committee for Children. It is designed to reduce impulsive, high-risk, and aggressive behaviors, and increase children's social-emotional competence and other protective factors. Group discussion, modeling, coaching, and practice are teaching techniques used in order to increase students' social competence, risk assessment, decision-making ability, and positive goal setting. The program's lesson content varies by grade level and is organized into three skill building units:
  • Empathy
  • Impulse control and problem solving
  • Anger management

• Strengthening Families (S, I) trains children age six to 14 years old and their families. The program guides participants through family systems. It shows them ways to reduce risk factors and avoid behavioral, emotional, academic and social problems. Participants learn to build upon protective factors by improving family relationships, parenting skills and children's social and life skills.

Other programs under consideration:

• Passageways (U,S, I): The PassageWays Institute, founded and directed by Rachael Kessler, is dedicated to transforming the culture of classrooms, schools and districts so that the inner life of students and teachers is safe, nurtured and welcomed. By “inner life” we refer to that essential aspect of human nature that yearns for deep connection, grapples with difficult questions about meaning, and seeks a sense of purpose and genuine self-expression. For twenty years, our model for supporting these yearnings in young people has fostered the development of compassion and character, humility and excellence, and skills for collaboration and dialogue that are essential for a just democracy and a sustainable world.
  For more information, visit http://www.passageways.org.

• Ripple Effects (U, S, I) is a research-based software application that addresses the related issues of academic success, health, and social behavior. It can be used effectively for three levels of programming:
  • Individualized intervention for specific problems
  • Comprehensive prevention to address risk factors in five domains
  • Universal promotion of positive youth development
  Peer narration, 200 videos, diverse cultural imagery, interactive games, peer modeling, and instant feedback enable every student to succeed. Ripple Effects is accessible to students who are ELL, hearing impaired, or have ADHD or dyslexia. Content relevant to students who have emotional disabilities.
  For more information, visit http://www.rippleeffects.com.