1. education
2. school

OMB No. 1890-0004
Exp. Date: OMB Approved
U.S. Department of Education
Grant Performance Report
Cover Sheet
1.) PR/Award No
See Block 5 on the Grant Award Q184L030147
Notification.
2.) Project Title
Enter the same title as on the
84.184L SAFE SCHOOLS/HEALTHY STUDENTS GRANTS
approved application.
Repeat from Block 1 on Grant
Award Notification. If address
has changed, provide the current
address.
Provide the name of the project
director or the contact person
who is most familiar with the
content of the performance
report.
3.) Recipient Information
Name: Stephen-Argyle Central Schools
Address P.O. Box 68
City: Stephen
State: MN
Zip+4: 56757
4.) Contact Person
Name: Colleen MacRae
Title:
Project Director
Telephone Number: (218) 281-3940
Fax Number: (218) 281-6261
E-mail Address: [email protected]
5.) Performance Reporting Period
Include the interval for the
information requested in the
performance reporting period.
See instructions on page 2 for
details.
__03__/_01___/2004____ - _07___/_31___/_2004___ (mm/dd/yy)
6.) Cumulative Expenditures
Report actual budget
expenditures for the above
performance reporting period.
See instructions on page 2 for
details.
Federal $
Current Budget Period
$356,024.20
Previous Budget Period
$45,631.05
Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate: __1___%
Exp. Date: ____/____/____
Non-Federal $
n/a
n/a
7.) Annual Certification of Institutional Review Board (IRB)
Approval
If applicable, see instructions on
page 2 for details on annual IRB
approval (Please circle one).
Yes ____
No ____
NA __X__
Authorized Representative:
To the best of my knowledge and belief, all data in this performance report are true and correct.
Name (typed
or printed): Chris Mills
Title: Superintendent, Stephen-Argyle Central
Schools
Signature:
Date: August 26, 2004
ED Form 524-B
Northwest Minnesota
Stephen-Argyle Safe Schools/Healthy Students’ Initiative
Grant Performance Report
March 1, 2004 – July 31, 2004
“Roger Beiswenger has really been an asset in the development
of school safety and crisis response planning.”
Chris Mills, Superintendent, Stephen-Argyle Schools
“By combining efforts between the Stephen-Argyle Safe
Schools/Healthy Students’ Initiative and other opportunities, the
NorthStar Summer Program provided intensive social skills
training to 250 youth who are at-risk or have severe emotional
disturbance. The intent of the program is to provide services to
youth over the summer so when they transition back into the
school setting, behaviors become less of an issue and leaves
them better able to concentrate on their academics. This is a
good fit for families, child-serving agencies and school districts.”
Brenda Anderson, Director, Family and Children’s Services,
Northwestern Mental Health Center
“…The scope of the grant activities in the NW Minnesota – StephenArgyle Safe Schools/Healthy Students’ Initiative includes a consortium of 11
school districts working with public health, social services, law enforcement,
corrections and mental health agencies in Kittson, Marshall, Norman, Polk and
Red Lake Counties. In addition to the designated participants and service
providers in this grant, there is additional support provided by the Northwest
Minnesota Council of Collaboratives (NMCC); an organization of 38 school
districts and service agencies working together to improve services to youth
and families in the five-county area. Grant strategies carried out in this proposal
represent a model for rural communities to develop and promote region-wide
collaboration leading to safe, orderly and drug free learning environments…”
An excerpt from the original Northwest Minnesota
– Stephen-Argyle Safe Schools/Healthy Students’ Initiative grant application - 2002
1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Executive Summary ............................................................................................................. 3
Element 1: Safe School Environment ................................................................................. 5
Element 2: Alcohol, Drugs, Violence Prevention/Intervention ........................................... 11
Element 3: School/Community Mental Health .................................................................. 22
Element 4: Early Childhood Psychosocial/Emotional Development ................................. 31
Element 5: Educational Reform ........................................................................................ 34
Element 6: Safe Schools Policies ..................................................................................... 37
Evaluation .......................................................................................................................... 40
Budget – ED Form #524..................................................................................................... 45
Budget Narrative ................................................................................................................ 48
Appendix A: Evaluation (The Improve Group)
2
Grant Performance Report – August 1, 2003 – February 28, 2004
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Children in 11 school districts in Northwestern Minnesota continue to deal with a range
of problems which impede learning, reduce social and emotional well being, contribute to an
unhealthy school environment and threaten their futures. The Northwest Minnesota –
Stephen-Argyle Safe Schools/Healthy Students’ Initiative addresses the economic and
natural challenges faced by the region through increased service capacity, streamlined and
coordinated activities and elimination of duplicated services. This Initiative provides us the
opportunity to implement key strategies that create safe and drug-free schools and promote
healthy childhood development for all our children.
The Executive Committee met monthly throughout the first year of the Initiative to plan,
develop, implement and oversee proposed activities. They will continue regular meetings
throughout the tenure of the grant. Grant staff carried out their activities and strategies to
achieve outlined goals and objectives for the first year, as well as assisted with data
collection and planning for the second year of activities.
Grant staff had ongoing meetings with school district staff, administrators and students
to determine issues currently being faced in order to assess needs against proposed
strategies. In response, students received services addressing bullying, self-defense, use of
restorative practices, tobacco and other drug use prevention and skills building. Extensive
work was completed with school building safety reviews and crisis response plans.
Between March and July of 2004, twelve newspaper articles appeared about Safe
School activities covering prevention topics such as graduation and alcohol use, bullying,
drinking and driving, Ghost Out Day, True Players and Kick Butts Day. Additionally, students
3
from Kittson recorded drug free and peer pressure messages for Clear Channel Radio. A
song about coping was written and recorded by students from Norman County. The web
page content continued to grow with progress reports, resource articles and links posted with
an approximate readership of 1,000 unique users each week.
The first round of data collection occurred and findings of the preliminary evaluation
report from our external evaluator show that substantial progress towards goals and
objectives were achieved (see Appendix A). From our Staff Reporting Forms and Population
Served Worksheets completed by staff we see that there was a significant increase in the
numbers of children, staff, parents and the public served between August 2003 – February
2004 and March – July 2004. Service contacts were measured by element. A total of 9,196
service contacts of school-aged children and a total of 20,452 contacts with staff and
community were reported. A service contact was defined as an individual receiving services
in a combination of one-on-one, group participation and/or via distribution of mass
information.
Activities were fully operational by January of 2004. The majority of expenditures were
incurred between January and July totaling $401,655.25 (40% of the budget). There were
approximately $286,896.60 in cost savings from delay in implementation and another
$115,000 in incurred expenses yet to be billed and drawn down. The remaining $194,177.16
represents budgeted amounts for activities not yet carried out, due to some staff turnover and
difficulty hiring consultants as originally planned.
The following narrative highlights progress on grant activities, by element.
4
Northwest Minnesota – Stephen-Argyle Safe Schools/Healthy Students’ Initiative
Project Status Report
Element 1: Safe School Environment
Objective 1: To develop/strengthen the partnership and working relationships among school
districts and local law enforcement, mental health, social services and public
health agencies.
Activities:
1. Steering Committee and Management Team will meet regularly with participants from all
agencies.
Status: Accomplished. A Steering Committee, comprised of CEOs and Superintendents
from each participating agency meets annually to review grant progress. An Executive
Board, made up of representatives of the partnership (CEOs and Superintendents) meets
monthly to make programmatic and fiscal decisions and review all aspects of the grant’s
progress to determine if changes in goals, objectives, strategies or activities are
warranted. The Management Team is comprised of grant staff from each agency and is
responsible for day-to-day operations, monitoring of strategies and integrating activities
into the service sites. Both groups meet monthly and meeting minutes are regularly
posted on the Council of Collaboratives’ website.
Update: An annual meeting will occur with the Steering Committee in October 2004.
The Executive Board plans to continue monthly meetings for ongoing oversight and the
Management Team also plans to meet monthly for monitoring, resource sharing and data
collection activities.
2. Planning/implementation of communications/information and social marketing concept
through use of the Northwestern Minnesota Council of Collaboratives’ website.
Status: In process (ongoing). Progress reports on grant activities, resources and
communiqués are posted to the Council of Collaboratives’ webpage. The website is also
used to send information via e-mail which is an effective communication tool, given the
5
6,147 square mile service area. It allows us to send up-to-the-minute information to grant
staff and partners. Work is underway on the development of information for parents,
teachers and students and will begin appearing on the site in the next several months.
Update:
We have measured an average of 1,000 unique users to our website each
week with a total viewing time of 20 hours. Redesigning the website was necessary to
improve the layout and continuity in preparation for use by parents and youth. This took
longer than originally anticipated, therefore, actual content development for parents and
youth is still underway. We anticipate incorporating a significant portion of information in
this area by year’s end.
3. Develop a strategy to address mental health issues for very high risk served by law
enforcement, community corrections and mental health.
Status: In process. Beginning July 1, 2004, all adolescents entering the Juvenile Justice
system will have a mental health screening using either the POSIT or MASI. The results
of the screening will be used to determine appropriate referrals for mental health services
(individual or group counseling). Additionally, a variety of team meetings comprised of
social services, mental health, corrections and law enforcement staff are held monthly in
each county to discuss individual case management and treatment issues. Mental health
professionals are planning training sessions for law enforcement officers related to mental
health screening and referral. A training timeline is expected to be fully developed by
June 30, 2004.
Update:
As planned, the implementation of POSIT and MASI aided in the referral
process for mental health services and will continue into the future. Monthly staff
meetings continued and are planned as an ongoing strategy. Training sessions for law
enforcement officers related to mental health screening and referral will occur in October
2004.
6
Objective 2: To develop and document community crisis response plans for each community
with schools participating in the project that specifies roles and responsibilities
for key participants in the community, i.e.: law enforcement, mental health,
social services, public health agencies, school districts and other emergency
services.
Activities:
1. Law enforcement training in crisis response related to schools (spread across three
years).
Status: In process. The Special Response Team (SRT) is developing a training plan to
be approved by participating school districts. It is expected that final arrangements will be
in place by April, 2004.
Update:
A contingent of SRT members conducted an in-building training at the Fisher
School involving students as actors to conduct a building search for an intruder in March
2004. Red Lake Falls and Kittson County have plans to conduct in-building training in the
fall of 2004. Additionally, a training session of 25 officers throughout the five county
region is planned for August 2004 with staff from Final Option INC to cover a wide range
of basic tactical skills. Kittson County developed its own Special Response Team with a
neighboring county near the Canadian border. Officers are scheduled to attend the Basic
Tactical Skills training in August 2004.
2. Regional Safety Coordinator recruited and hired.
Status: Accomplished. Roger Beiswenger, a sworn Peace Officer, was recruited and
started with the project in December, 2003. He has met with staff and administration in
each of the 11 school districts to discuss his role and develop a timeline of activities.
Update:
Officer Beiswenger applied to, was accepted and attend the Homeland Security
Multi-Hazard Crisis Planning for Schools in Emmitsburg, MA in May 2004.
7
3. Risk assessment of physical environments for school district facilities (four districts
completed in first year, four in second year, three in third year).
Status: In process. Roger attended local training on risk assessments and is actively
working with Superintendents to develop a timeline. He expects to have four
assessments completed by July 30, 2004.
Roger is scheduled to attend an Emergency Management Crisis Planning workshop
offered by FEMA and Homeland Security in April, 2004. He is working with the Project
Director to develop a Crisis Management template for use in each school district and
expects to have four crisis management plans reviewed, with recommendations to four
school districts completed by July 30, 2004.
Update:
Roger completed building inspections in Oklee, Plummer, Argyle, Fisher and
Climax School Districts. He attended the Emergency Management Crisis Planning
workshop offered by FEMA and Homeland Security in April 2004. The Crisis response
template is completed and will be used to complete the remaining assessments in each
school district.
4. Results of risk assessments will be shared and integrated into existing or developing
plans for each community.
Status: In process. The risk assessment results for the first four school districts will be
shared and integrated, where appropriate, by July 30, 2004.
Update:
Roger completed risk assessments in the Argyle, Climax, Oklee and Plummer
School Districts. Each crisis plan was written in accordance with the mandated
procedures of the Minnesota State Department of Education. He also completed four
Crisis Response plans. He will follow-up with district administration at the beginning of
the 2004 school year for further assessment and training needs for faculty, staff and
students pertaining to their crisis response plans. He will then conduct at least four more
risk assessments and crisis plans in the 2004-2005 school year.
8
5. Roles and responsibilities of agencies including schools, law enforcement, mental health
and social services are included in crisis management plans.
Status: In process. The information outlining roles and responsibilities is currently being
drafted and will be integrated into the first four crisis plans by July 30, 2004.
Update:
This was completed and included in the first four crisis plans discussed above
and will be incorporated into future plans in the remaining seven school districts.
Objective 3: To improve the physical environment of school district buildings as it pertains to
safety issues.
Activities:
1. Law enforcement and school officials will complete a risk assessment of their physical
environment and determine locations, conditions and times when violent/aggressive
behavior is more likely to occur (four districts completed in first year, four in second and
three in third year).
Status: In process. The Regional Safety Officer is scheduled to attend a Federal
Emergency Management and Homeland Security training on Emergency Management
Crisis Plans in April, 2004. He will use this training to help establish appropriate
components for the risk assessments. He is also actively working with the Polk County
Sheriff’s office and will partner with an officer from that department in conducting the risk
assessments. He is developing a timeline for the assessments with each of the 11 school
district superintendents and will provide a plan of action by April, 2004.
Update: Roger attended the training and incorporated lessons into the four completed
risk assessments and will utilize the same principles in the remaining seven school
districts.
9
2. Changes will be made, as appropriate, based on risk assessment results.
Status: Pending. Potential changes will occur upon completion of risk assessments as
determined by timeline adopted by Superintendents (four by July 30, 2004, four by July
30,2005 and three by July 30, 2006).
Update:
The four risk assessments were completed at the end of the school year.
Officer Beiswenger will follow-up with school administrators on needs for modifications
and work with them to develop their timeline for the 2004 school year.
Population served update: Between March and July 2004 there were 380 service contacts
with elementary, 354 with Jr. High and 732 with High School students through a variety of
presentations on drug and alcohol use. Additionally, training sessions for the Special
Response Teams (averaging 25 officers) was coordinated and work occurred with
administrators from four districts in the risk assessment and crisis response planning.
Officer Beiswenger was an important facilitator for the collection of data from the students
and staff in Fisher. He also worked as a staff member of the NorthStar Summer Program
which served 250 students at-risk or diagnosed with severe emotional disturbance.
Strengths update: The strength of Element 1 continues to be in the ability of our Safety
Coordinator to integrate law enforcement concepts and culture into a school setting. He has
been instrumental in assisting with program training for the Special Response Team and in
coordinating activities between law enforcement agencies across the five counties.
Challenges update: There were no major challenges or budget issues experienced in this
element.
Sustainability update: The extensive training that our Safety Coordinator is receiving will
position us to provide ongoing training to other law enforcement officers beyond the tenure of
the Safe Schools Initiative. The partners continue to be invested in ongoing coordination and
addressing school safety issues and are developing plans that can be replicated with minor
revisions each year. The completion of four crisis response plans in the first year is a positive
sign for sustainability as permanent school staff will be trained in maintaining the plans from
year to year.
10
Element 2: Alcohol and Other Drugs, Violence Prevention, and Early Intervention
Objective 1: To increase students’ level of knowledge and awareness about the impacts of
drug and alcohol use on self and others (reviewed and evaluated annually) and to learn
applied skills in drug abuse prevention.
Activities:
1. Recruit, hire and train Drug/Alcohol Prevention Specialists.
Status: Nearly there! There are Prevention Specialists in nine of eleven school districts.
Kristi Bitz is a ½ time Prevention Specialist for Norman County West; Rhodah Habedank
is ½ time for Norman County East; Sarah Ganyo serves ½ time in Climax-Shelly and ½
time Fisher; Ginger Alby serves ½ time in Red Lake Falls; Andy Fougner is ½ time in
Oklee and ½ time in Plummer; Leslie Swanson serves ½ time in Greenbush/Middle River
and ½ time in Stephen-Argyle. Most were hired in December, 2003. The two school
districts in Kittson County requested that their positions not be filled until the spring of
2004.
Update: Nicole Nordin was hired to work in the Kittson County districts and began
activities in February. Sarah Ganyo resigned her position in Climax/Fisher in December
2003 and was replaced by Amy Trudeau in May 2004.
2. Implement Prep for Change Program.
Status: In process. The Prep for Change Program involves training of staff. The model
involves an early intervention “preparation” to the cognitive skills-based outpatient
chemical dependency treatment program for adolescents who have been occasional
drug/alcohol users and may have experienced negative consequences. A timeline for
providing this training to the Prevention Specialists is being developed and will be
available by April 1, 2004.
Update:
Training of staff is planned for October 2004.
11
3. Expansion of chemical awareness program.
Status: In process. The Prevention Specialists have provided an array of activities in
nine school districts surrounding school and community awareness of chemical health
related issues. The planning of activities will continue and be adapted to the everchanging needs of the school districts throughout the duration of the grant, and beyond.
Update: Services were expanded to 11 school districts with the hiring of a Prevention
Specialist in Kittson County. There were 9,196 total service contacts with 3,858
Elementary, 2,370 with Jr. High and 2,895 with Senior High students. Staff participated in
Student Assistance Teams and provided coordination for events and training such as Kick
Butts Day, Ghost Out, Suicide Prevention, Teen Pregnancy/HIV Prevention, Veterans
Appreciation, Respect, Alcohol and Meth.
4. Supportive individual counseling and follow-up.
Status: Ongoing. Prevention Specialists make referrals to Mental Health Practitioners
and the CHANGES (Licensed Adolescent Chemical Health Outpatient Program), when
appropriate.
Update:
Staff made referrals to Social Services, Corrections (Changes and Restorative
Practices) and Mental Health for youth needing ongoing or longer term services .
Objective 2: To decrease the level of student drug/alcohol use/abuse in participating
communities.
Activities:
1. Recruit, hire and train Drug/Alcohol Prevention Specialists.
Status: See Objective 1, Activity 1 – status update.
2. Implement Prep for Change Program.
Status: See Objective 1, Activity 2 – status update.
12
3. Continuation/expansion of DARE Program
Status: Not implemented. Due to the controversy at the national and local level regarding
the efficacy of DARE, we have eliminated this component from our activities. We believe
the drug abuse awareness elements of DARE for 6th grade students will be covered
through other activities in this element.
4. Supportive individual counseling and follow-up.
Status: See Objective 1, Activity 4 – status update.
Objective 3: To reduce the number of youth referred to residential treatment for chemical
dependency and related problems.
Activities:
1. Implement Prep for Change Program.
Status: See Objective 1, Activity 2 – status update.
2. Supportive individual counseling and follow-up.
Status: See Objective 1, Activity 4 – status update.
3. Mental health counseling.
Status: The Prevention Specialists work directly with the Mental Health Practitioners to
identify and refer at-risk youth who may benefit from individual mental health and
chemical health counseling.
Update:
In addition to referrals to Mental Health, staff also made referrals to Social
Services, Corrections (CHANGES and Restorative Practices) and Public Health for those
youth needing longer term services. They also assisted in identifying students for
participation in the NorthStar Summer Program. The Children and Adolescent Functional
Assessment Scale (CAFAS) was administered to children receiving mental health
services. The results of the CAFAS will be presented in our next report.
13
Objective 4: Target programming for high-risk adolescent females exhibiting self-destructive
behavior, including violence.
Activities:
1. Provide group therapeutic programming for 30 high-risk female adolescents per year.
Status: Not implemented in its original format. Due the small amount of dollars budgeted
for this activity, ($5,000 for services throughout 11 communities in five counties), it was
determined a more effective strategy than providing a new service would be to provide
training to grant and school staff in identifying high-risk behaviors and having staff make
appropriate referrals to existing programs and services. Training plans are being
developed and should be available for review by April 1, 2004.
Update: Training for staff will occur in October 2004.
Changes to planned activities update: There were no changes to planned activities in the
period covered by this report.
Population served update: The chart on the following pages represents service contacts by
areas addressed (by topic and age group) throughout eleven school districts. Topics covered
include Ghost Out, Kick Butts Day, Alcohol Use Prevention, Eating Disorders; Drug Use; First
Aid, Drug Dogs, Minor League, Meth, Sexual Behavior, Students Against Drunk Driving,
Suicide Prevention, etc.
14
Element
2
Kindergarten
0
Grade
1
0
Grade
2
0
Grade
3
0
Grade
4
0
Grade
5
0
Grade
6
0
Grade
7
35
Grade
8
31
Grade
9
85
Grade
10
86
Grade
11
93
Grade
12
89
Preschool
0
Elementary
0
Middle
School
66
High
School
353
Total # of Kids
Served
419
2
119
202
195
198
214
205
158
137
282
240
267
211
253
0
1133
577
971
2681
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
26
28
0
0
0
0
0
26
28
54
2
2
0
38
0
25
0
18
0
22
224
36
160
60
112
0
152
0
200
0
184
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
384
199
464
0
184
0
1032
228
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
36
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
36
0
36
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
36
0
45
4
28
2
35
14
15
0
20
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
36
0
108
20
35
2
179
22
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
18
0
0
0
18
2
81
68
65
39
65
60
25
0
0
0
0
0
0
40
378
25
0
443
26
28
0
26
28
54
2
Program
Strategy/Act
ivity
"Ghost Out"
"Kick Butts
Day"
"Not a Drop"
presentation
PCSO Phile
Juuie
"Talk to Your
Child
About___"
newsletters
Bullying
7th grade
girls group
Alicia
Haviland
presentation
on eating
disorders and
media
Basic Skills
Child Abuse
information Kindergarten
round-up
Classroom
Presentations
Drug Use in
Polk County
15
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
28
37
38
34
0
0
0
137
137
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
45
28
35
0
0
0
0
0
0
108
0
108
2
8
5
6
3
8
5
3
2
1
0
0
0
0
15
35
6
0
56
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
23
27
0
0
0
0
0
0
50
0
50
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
40
0
32
18
29
18
54
0
35
0
37
0
0
0
0
0
72
18
155
18
227
36
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
23
0
18
0
21
0
25
0
23
0
27
0
28
0
26
0
25
23
0
0
0
0
62
0
75
23
79
23
216
2
18
29
22
24
24
22
24
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
139
24
0
163
Erica
Benson's
presentation
on suicide
Exploratory
day, helps
kids learn
hobbies or
professions.
I assisted in
tiedye, roping
cattle, and
scarf making
Family Health
Fair booth distributed
info - see
staff reporting
form
First Aid to
Health Class
For your
Information
Day, students
moved from 1
session to
another,
listening to
Cliff
speakers.
Girls Group
Graduation
prep
Grant survey
Interquest
Canines
Presentation
16
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
73
70
64
0
0
0
207
207
2
18
29
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
47
0
0
47
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
2
18
1
17
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
4
35
1
35
5
2
2
0
33
0
43
0
72
0
143
0
122
0
0
0
64
0
0
0
11
0
0
2
0
4
0
6
0
0
0
0
413
0
75
12
0
12
488
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
35
0
0
0
0
0
35
35
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
43
0
0
0
43
43
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
25
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
25
0
25
2
46
40
46
48
39
29
28
24
32
29
29
31
29
0
248
84
118
450
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
28
0
0
1
2
0
1
0
0
28
4
32
Jim shearer
presentation
on drinking
and driving
Keeping your
body safe
presentation
Meth and
other Drugs
info by RLSO
Minor League
Misc.
orientation
NorthStar
Observed
Health
Program/
Classes
Powerpoint
and
information
for Senior
Night
Presentation
to the 6th
grade on
sexual
behavior and
harrassment
by Jill
Johnson
Quest for
Respect
Reality
Check grade
6 session 7
of 7
17
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
39
2
2
7
6
3
0
0
41
18
59
2
0
0
0
0
0
28
19
0
0
0
0
0
20
0
28
19
20
67
2
2
5
0
5
0
3
0
6
0
4
0
4
135
0
135
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
27
135
0
135
0
0
27
270
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
8
0
0
0
0
0
8
8
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
9
0
0
0
0
0
9
9
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
22
0
0
0
0
0
0
22
22
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
8
4
12
0
0
0
0
0
0
24
0
24
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
15
12
11
8
0
0
0
46
46
2
18
29
22
24
24
22
24
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
139
24
0
163
2
70
95
98
63
65
35
23
58
72
60
72
64
30
0
426
153
226
917
SADD
(Students
Against
Drunk
Driving)
Safe School
Survey
Sent parent
information
about
summer
program
Time to Talk
Sophmore
girls group #1
Sophomore
girls group
interest
meeting
Suicide
Prevention
PresentationAssisted
Summer
School
TARGET
Team
MeetingIntroduction
and Ideas
Tobacco
Free Wall Displayed for
7 days
True Players
skit on
Bullying
18
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
18
0
0
0
0
0
18
18
2
0
0
570
0
547
0
593
0
843
0
822
0
795
0
633
0
885
0
831
2
776
3
593
0
640
0
0
3829
0
5
2840
5
454
73
2313
9196
Weekly
Student
Assistance
Went to GF
for Clear
Channel
radio- drug
and alcohol
free
announceme
nts
Totals
19
Strengths update: The strength of Element 2 includes the variety of information and
opportunities that grant staff bring to students, parents, teachers, and the community on
bullying, tobacco use prevention, and chemical awareness in general. Additionally the
integration of grant staff directly into the school setting allows for a direct service delivery
model which improves communication, increases access to services and eliminates
duplication. Staff are able to provide school districts with resources they would not otherwise
have the ability to access. A comprehensive team approach has occurred between the
various service providers of the grant and cross training of staff from one discipline to another
occurs which increases our capacity for long term sustainability of activities.
Challenges update: No significant challenges or budget issues were experienced in Element
2. The late hiring and turnover of one staff member delayed implementation of some
activities in four of our districts but we are on track for full implementation for September
2004.
Sustainability update: We are developing as many training opportunities for school staff as
possible to address areas of alcohol, tobacco and other drug use. We anticipate introducing
these trainings beginning in the 2004-2005 school year. This will allow school districts to
retain their ability to continue with the work once the Prevention Specialists have left the
districts in 2006.
20
INSERT ELEMENT 2 PICTURES HERE
Alcohol, Drug, Violence Prevention/Intervention
2004
21
Element 3: School and Community Mental Health Prevention and Treatment
Intervention Programs
Objective 1: To increase the ability of schools and allied provider organizations to identify,
screen and refer seriously at-risk or severely emotionally disturbed children and adolescents.
Activities:
1. Recruit, hire and train children’s Mental Health Practitioners.
Status: Nearly there! Mental Health Practitioners were recruited and hired for eight of the
eleven school districts by February, 2004. Rich Mosher serves ½ time in Red Lake Falls
School District; Sara Iverson serves ½ time in Oklee and ½ time in Plummer; Marilou
Bade is serving ½ time in Norman County East and ½ time in Norman County West and
Heather Taylor is serving ½ time in Climax-Shelly and ½ time in Fisher. Most staff came
on board by December, 2003. Three positions remain unfilled. The school districts in
Kittson County did not feel ready to engage the Mental Health Practitioners at the
beginning of the grant and requested the positions not be filled until the new year. Jim
Schober, a Clinical Psychologist is a mental health consultant to the grant.
Update:
Staff were in place for all school districts by February 2004. Denise Kramer is
working in the Kittson school districts and Cheri Luczak works in Stephen-Argyle.
2. Referral process described to and implemented by key referral staff in each school as
taught by Northwest Mental Health Center staff.
Status: In process. The Mental Health Practitioners and Clinical Supervisor have met
with each school district’s administrative staff to outline roles, responsibilities and
procedures to engage mental health services. A Mental Health Services Referral
Agreement is in place with each district. Grant staff are developing a timeline for
orientation within each districts for other school staff to learn about the referral process
and work is expected to be completed by April 1, 2004.
Update:
Mental Health staff met with school staff from all eleven school districts to orient
them on the mental health referral process by May 2004.
22
3. Information on services and referral process distributed to all schools/designated school
personnel on hard copy and through the Northwestern Minnesota Council of
Collaboratives’ website.
Status: In process. The hard copy Referral Agreement has been distributed amongst all
grant partners and will be introduced to school staff through the orientation process
described above. The Referral Agreement has also been posted on the website.
Update:
Completed by May 2004 as part of the orientation process described above.
4. Comprehensive mental health screening carried out in one or more districts.
Status: In process. Mental Health Professionals are designing a pilot study for
implementation in one school with replication in other districts after evaluation of the pilot.
It is anticipated that the study will be fully developed and ready to implement by
September, 2004. Additionally, the Children and Adolescent Functional Assessment
Scale (CAFAS) was administered to children receiving mental health services. The
results of the CAFAS will be presented in our next report.
Update:
Red Lake Falls School District is identified as the pilot site and it is anticipated
this will begin by the end of October 2004.
5. Training in early identification provided.
Status: Mental Health Professionals are currently receiving training in appropriate mental
health screening practices. They will then provide training for teachers and administrators
through staff meetings and Student Assistance Meetings. It is anticipated that the training
will lead to an increase in mental health referrals and individual treatment for youth
needing services.
Update:
Ongoing. Mental health staff participate in Student Assistant Team meetings,
and meet with school staff to discuss individual youth referrals.
6. Planning meetings led by Northwestern Mental Health Center to develop and document
referral process for at-risk children and adolescents.
23
Status: Completed. The Mental Health Professionals in each school district provided
training on the appropriate referral process to teachers and administrators through staff
and work team meetings. A written referral process is available to staff and posted on the
Council of Collaboratives’ webpage. The referral process for at-risk children is outlined
frequently, and as youth are identified by school staff, appropriate referrals for mental
health services are made. A “Consent to Provide Services to a Minor” is completed at
which time a Licensed Psychologist is then scheduled to meet with the student at the
school. The Northwestern Mental Health Center utilizes a standard Client Registration
Form and Client Information Update Form which are HIPPA compliant (for individuals
receiving ongoing mental health counseling). Parents of individuals participating in group
activities are required to complete a Permission to Participate in Group.
7. Web site content expanded to include range of information on children’s mental health.
Status: In process. A variety of mental health related topics are being addressed through
web-based content and hard copy distribution to school staff. Content includes ageappropriate signs and symptoms, risk and protective factors and contact information on
depression, suicide, stress, ADHD, Asperger’s Syndrome, Date Violence, Chemical
Abuse, and Eating Disorders. It is anticipated that information on these topics will be
posted by May 1, 2004. Additional topics will be added through feedback from
stakeholders.
Update: 19 resource links and 29 mental health related articles are currently posted on
the website on a variety of topics. Plans include incorporating more parent and youth
related materials in this area in the near future.
Objective 2: Expand the current array for school-based and school affiliated mental health
services to include all participating districts in need of specialized appropriate services.
Activities:
1. After school, in-school and summer school skills building groups for severely emotionally
disturbed (SED) and at-risk children provided.
24
Status: In process. After school and in-school skills building groups are occurring in each
school district other than in Kittson County (due to the spring hiring of the Mental Health
Professional and Prevention Specialist). The summer program is currently under
development and is expected to serve 150 K-6 children in nine sites covering students
from the 11 school districts in the summer of 2004.
Update:
250 students were served in fourteen sites throughout five counties in the skills
building NorthStar Summer Program. Each child referred to the program was either atrisk or diagnosed with severe emotional disturbance. After school and in-school groups
were offered throughout the school year in all but two districts (due to the late of hiring of
the Mental Health Practitioner).
2. School based mental health assessments provided.
Status: Ongoing. Jim Schober, a Licensed Psychologist is assigned to the project to
provide on-site assessments. He has received 15 referrals from a variety of sites since
January, 2004. After each assessment, Jim makes recommendations for treatment and
further meets with parents and school staff to develop an implementation strategy to
address behavioral challenges demonstrated by the child(ren). Issues reported include:
aggression, non-compliance with school regulations, hyperactivity, depression, truancy,
academic underachievement/failing in school and relationship issues.
Update:
Jim Schober was an active member of the NorthStar Summer Program. He
provided on-site clinical supervision and feedback on student behaviors. He also made
recommendations on how to intervene with poor behavior. Jim made recommendations
to school staff on how students could benefit from services that will positively impact them
going back to school in the fall.
3. Mental health consultation on mental health prevention strategies.
Status: Ongoing. Mental Health Professionals provide training to teachers and school
administrators on a variety of mental health prevention strategies and resources available.
They also provide training in classrooms, on age-appropriate behaviors.
25
Update: Ongoing. A training schedule will be developed from feedback of school staff at
the start of the 2004 school year.
4. Mental health crisis consultation by Mental Health Professionals.
Status: Ongoing. When a crisis consultation is required, Mental Health Professionals are
available to respond immediately in the district(s). Approximately 15 crisis consultations
have occurred since January, 2004 with appropriate follow-up and referrals for ongoing
treatment, when necessary.
Update:
Ongoing. Another nine crisis consultations occurred between February and
May 2004 which were addressed by Jim Schober.
5. Training of mental health, school and allied service provider staff in culturally competent
service delivery.
Status: Ongoing. Staff currently utilize information on poverty and its impacts on youth as
a training tool on culturally competent service delivery. The work is modeled on Ruby
Payne’s (a nationally recognized expert) work addressing the needs of service delivery for
children and families in poverty. Additional methods of addressing cultural competency in
a mental health setting are currently being researched in conjunction with the
development of staff training opportunities. It is anticipated that training dates will be
offered to all grant staff, teachers and administrators by the fall of 2004.
Update:
Training sessions are planned for November 2004.
Objective 3: To increase the ability of parents to identify mental health needs of children at
risk for mental health problems, and to respond to their children’s needs through increased
parental participation in service planning and delivery.
Activities:
1. Information posted on the website including on mental health topics, identification of
mental health problems, services available, etc.
26
Status: In process. Information for parents is being coordinated with the information for
staff as mentioned above. It is anticipated that materials for parents will be on the website
by May 1, 2004.
Update: We are a little behind in this area. Information for parents continues to be in the
development stages and will be launched on the website specific to parents and youth by
November 2004. To further parental involvement, we established and utilized a policy
whereby all parents are required to sign permission forms for their child(ren) to participate
in group or individual sessions with mental health practitioners prior to the child(ren)
receiving services. Either the Mental Health Practitioner or the School Teacher contacts
the parent(s) to obtain permission before services are given and to aid parents in making
decisions about their child(ren’s) treatment options.
2. Participation of parents in aspects of program and service planning.
Status: In process, and ongoing. A six-county children’s mental health system of care is
currently being developed and relies heavily on parent participation in planning and
service delivery. This work is being led by Brenda Anderson, the Director of Children’s
Mental Health at the Northwestern Mental Health Center. There are Local Advisory
Councils in each county with at least 51% of the membership made up of parents. The
purpose of parent participation is to ensure family-centered services emphasizing a parent
driven system of care. Every aspect of care delivery is being designed and delivered in a
way to reach people who bring a unique cultural heritage, expectations and potential.
This approach to service delivery will also help us accomplish another of our goals to
“train mental health, school and allied service provider staff in culturally competent service
delivery.”
Update:
Ongoing. Mental health professionals continue to strive for parent participation
and representation from a variety of communities to meet the needs of children and
families in our area. Additionally the policy described above aids in furthering parental
involvement and providing them with opportunities for decision making about their
child(ren’s) treatment options.
27
3. Sponsoring “parent information nights” for parents of children in programs.
Status: In process. Mental Health Professionals provide information to parents at the
Local Advisory Council meetings each month in all five counties. Additionally, staff
participate in Parent/Teacher Conferences and have a variety of materials on mental
health and behaviors readily available as handouts. There are Parent Communication
Networks set up in a number of communities in Polk County and the hope is to replicate
this model in surrounding communities where activities and strategies are youth and
parent led, and supported by the service providers.
Update:
Parent Information Nights are scheduled to occur by October 2004.
Changes to planned activities:
To date, there are no changes to planned activities or budget allocations.
Population served update: A total of 1,867 service contacts occurred in this area with 1,093
in Elementary, 469 in Jr. High and 305 in Sr. High school. Two hundred and fifty (250)
students participated in the NorthStar Summer Program to develop social skills aiding them in
their transition into the start of the 2004 school year. Some of the social skills development
included team work, respect, cooperation, problem solving, identifying feelings, anger
management, friendship, diversity, responsibility, prevention and safety, bullying and teasing.
Mental Health Professionals participated in Student Assistance Meetings, teacher and staff
meetings and provided individual, group and crisis counseling for students in Kindergarten
through Grade 12. A 10 week girls group was provided throughout the summer months to
work with girls in the Climax district who were at-risk of failing in school. The issues covered
in this girls group covered self-esteem, body image, eating disorders, health lifestyles,
relationships, bullying, conflict resolution, differences and stress management.
Strengths update: The major strength in Element 3 continues to be the level of experience
and quality of services offered by the Mental Health Professionals hired for the project. The
team benefits professionally from excellent supervision provided by Brenda Anderson and
Rich Mosher. An overall strength continues to be the delivery of services directly in the
school districts. It provides increased access to timely services, reduced duplication of efforts
28
and further strengthens the relationship between schools and the mental health service
providers.
Challenges update: There were no major challenges or budget issues in this area.
Sustainability update: The proposed training of school staff in the fall of the 2004 school year
will allow us to sustain mental health activities. Staff will become more familiar and have
knowledge of mental health disorders, the referral mechanisms and the types of services that
are available throughout the communities being served.
29
INSERT ELEMENT 3 PICTURES HERE
NorthStar Summer Program
2004
30
Element 4: Early Childhood Psychosocial and Emotional Development Services
Objective 1: To improve the ability of parents and prospective parents to provide positive
parenting to infants, preschool children and school aged siblings.
Activities:
1. Expand the capacity of county public health services to provide outreach services
including pre-natal care, infant care, early identification of emotional/behavioral problems
and child development education including social/emotional development by serving at
least 100 at-risk teen and adult mothers.
Status: In process. Through a training model incorporating WrapAround concepts Public
Health Nurses will be able to act in the capacity of Wrap Facilitators. This process is used
to help develop individualized plans of care for children and families. The actual
individualized plan is developed by the family, child and family care team. The team
consists of professionals and individuals the family and child feel will best support a
strengths-based plan of values, preferences and support. Phylis Harrington, the
WrapAround Coordinator from the Northwestern Mental Health Center is working with
Public Health Agencies in each of the five counties to plan training and implementation
opportunities. It is expected that the first training will occur in the summer of 2004.
Update:
60 Public Health, Social Service and School District Professionals attended the
WrapAround training in March of 2004.
2. Provide consultation on social/emotional development and parent support/education
seminars in cooperation with health, education and child care services provided to at-risk
children and their parents.
Status: In process (ongoing). Dr. Jodi Boerger, Clinical Child Psychologist at the
Northwestern Mental Health Center provides ½ services to the grant. She initiated
monthly meetings of Public Health Representatives to discuss capacity, existing services,
needs assessment, planning and concepts for trainings. Due to some logistical factors of
time and distances, it was determined that the best approach for providing training in the
early childhood setting is on a county by county basis rather than regionally. Phylis
31
Harrington is planning workshops on the WrapAround model for implementation in the
summer of 2004.
Update:
60 community professionals attended the WrapAround training in March 2004.
Additional trainings included an ITV presentation on Observing Infants; a presentation on
early childhood mental health issues at a Foster Care banquet (50 attendees) an early
child mental health issue presentation at Early Childhood County meetings in Polk,
Norman, Red Lake, Kittson and Marshall counties with approximately 25 people at each
meeting; participation in the University of Minnesota Attachment Based Strategies for
Working with Overburdened Families and Depressed Parents; a training at Red River
Valley Corrections on Attachment Theory and Implications for Later Development to
licensed mental health therapists, home-based county workers, county-based and schoolbased social workers and public health nurses throughout the region (40 participants);
coordination of training on intervention techniques with infants and toddlers for home
visitors (60 attendees) and; participation in a conference aimed at developing a
community-wide system of care for early childhood populations.
Objective 2: Improve the capacity of county public health nursing, head start staff, early
childhood educators, and childcare workers to identify and provide early identification of
mental health problems in young children.
Activities:
1. Provide mental health consultation and training to early childhood educators, public health
nurses, Head Start staff and child care workers in identification and early intervention to
address social and emotional problems in young children.
Status: In process. Dr. Boerger is developing a survey for distribution to all early
childhood service providers throughout the five county area. The survey will allow us to
put together an inventory of all related early childhood services and help identify areas of
training need. Once completed (summer, 2004), survey results will be compiled and
appropriate training needs and opportunities identified for implementation in the fall of
2004. Initially, an identification and referral process for families with young children who
are considered to be at-risk of mental health problems will be developed and distributed to
32
every Early Childhood service provider throughout the five county service area.
Additionally, information on risk factors for those children 0-5 is also being developed and
is expected to be available by June, 2004.
Update:
We are a bit behind here but expect to have this completed by October 2004.
Changes to planned activities: The initial grant application proposed utilizing ½ time Child
Clinical Psychologist and ½ time Coordinator to assist with the development of needs
assessments and training opportunities. After consideration, the Public Health Agencies in
each of the five counties preferred to have the ½ time Coordinator position allocated out
equally to each agency. Public Health nurses in each county are now acting in the capacity
of a 10% appointment as Coordinator to the grant. This change allows us to work on a
county by county basis creating a better response to the individual community needs rather
than taking a larger, region-wide approach. It does not impact the budget.
Changes update:
No other changes are proposed at this time.
Population served update:
•
60 community professionals attended the WrapAround training in March 2004.
•
50 attendees at an ITV presentation on Observing Infants
•
125 attendees for early childhood mental health issues in Polk, Norman, Red Lake,
Kittson and Marshall counties
•
40 participants for training on Attachment Theory and Implications for Later Development
•
60 attendees for coordination of training on intervention techniques with infants and
toddlers
•
The Public Health Directors and Public Health Nurses continue to meet monthly with Dr.
Boerger to discuss Early Childhood concepts and plan training events.
Strengths update: The strength in Element 4 continues to be the skills of the staff involved in
the project. Dr. Jodi Boerger has done an excellent job in involving a variety of service
providers in a coordinated effort to address early childhood mental health issues. She has
provided an array of trainings for professionals, paraprofessionals and parents. The regular
33
monthly meetings with Public Health officials continues to strengthen relationships and
provides a coordinated approach to service delivery.
Challenges update: There are no major challenges in this area.
Sustainability update: Through the variety of trainings already provided, we are providing a
level of knowledge to professionals, paraprofessionals and parents previously unavailable.
Through continued training efforts and ongoing development of the overall children’s system
of care, we anticipate a stronger, early response in addressing early childhood mental health
issues. Data collection methods for identifying and referring children for mental health
services are in development and will aid us in our sustainability efforts specific to program
design, communications and funding opportunities.
Element 5: Educational Reform
Objective 1: To promote socially appropriate behavior within the schools and community in
which students learn and live.
Activities:
1. Expand or implement character education curriculum (Respect and Protect) in
participating school districts.
Status: In process. We are in the process of obtaining a consultant through a local public
health agency to provide orientation and planning of Respect and Protect. It is anticipated
that training of Prevention Specialists and Mental Health Professionals will occur in
August, with implementation starting in several school districts by September 2004.
Update:
Our consultant in this area resigned his position in July 2004 before training
was scheduled to occur. We are revisiting this planned activity and developing some
alternatives for implementation in the fall of 2004.
2. Train teachers in Respect and Protect curriculum.
Status: Pending. Once the training of grant staff occurs in August, training of teachers
will begin in several districts in the fall of 2004.
Update:
Plans temporarily suspended due to the situation described above.
34
Objective 2: To identify high-risk students for specialized caseload of male/female
adolescents for placement in Transition Program.
Activities:
1. Hire, recruit and train Transition School Probation Specialist.
Status: Completed. There are two school-based Specialists. Janelle Cheney works parttime in the East Grand Forks’ Transition School and Shelby Ramirez is part-time in the
Fertile Transition School. Each of these schools provides services to youth from other
school districts throughout the region. Both Specialists continue to work in collaboration
with other agencies from mental health, social services, public health, chemical
dependency, schools, community violence intervention, workforce center, corrections and
law enforcement.
Update:
Janelle Cheney and Shelby Reitmeier continued their work with other service
providers throughout the remainder of the school year. Janelle also participated in the
NorthStar Summer Program and provided youth with opportunities to enhance their social
skills.
2. Work with schools and agencies to identify high risk students.
Status: Ongoing. Each Specialist works with school staff, administrators and service
providers through weekly team meetings to discuss potential high risk students. They aid
in the development of service intervention and case management, where appropriate.
Update: This continued throughout the school year and will resume in September 2004.
3. Provide ongoing support and supervision to students through accountability measures,
i.e., curfew setting, drug testing, and supportive counseling.
Status: Ongoing. Both Specialists provide informal counseling to students within the
schools and address behavioral concerns such as violence, family issues, peer pressure,
classroom disruption, hygiene, and drug and alcohol issues. Services are expedited in a
timely fashion, as there is immediate contact with the student and other agencies when a
student is under supervision or a referral is required. Referrals are completed to address
35
a variety of individual needs. Some referrals are made for family based services from
social services or to the mental health center.
Positive reinforcement is resulting in increased and improved student attendance and
behavior as well as the completion of homework on a daily basis.
Both Specialists attend Individual Education Plan meetings for students in the transition
schools as well as attending meetings for children being considered for placement. They
also complete urinalysis testing, as needed, and provide home visits to meet with families
on an individual basis. Early intervention and prevention is considered a key part of job
duties. In some cases, the agents have made child abuse/neglect reports to social
services.
Update:
This continued for the duration of the 2003-2004 school year and will resume in
the fall of 2004.
Population served update: There were a total of 133 service contacts with 50 in Jr. High
and 83 in Sr. High. Eight students participated in conflict management classes. These
are students who attend the Northwest Valley Transitional Program and the Alternative
School. A chemical education class was conducted with one session monthly for five
months. One-on-one informal counseling with students suspected of drug and alcohol
use occurred. Random drug testing was offered with parental consent and referrals made
to appropriate programs based on those results. A Victim Impact Panel was held in the
Fisher School District where 9th-12th graders were instructed on abusive chemical use and
consequences. Other topics included peer pressure, personal strengths and community.
Participants celebrated the graduation of two students from the Transition School. Staff
participated in a Girls Group in Red Lake Falls to address the effects of alcohol,
advertisements and self-esteem.
Changes to planned activities: There are no planned changes to activities in Element 5, nor
any changes to the budget.
Strengths update: The strength in Element 5 continues to be the experience and expertise of
the staff in place. Tri-County Community Corrections has a solid reputation in Northwestern
36
Minnesota for delivery a high caliber of services that especially aid those students in the
Transition and Alternative school settings. Shelby Reitmier’s skills in Restorative Practices
add continuity in an area where resources previously offered by the state have drastically
diminished. Janelle Cheney has a positive history of work with school administrators and is
able to provide an array of services to some of the highest at-risk population to succeed in
school.
Challenges update: No challenges have been reported.
Sustainability update: The Polk County Collaborative has again made a financial contribution
to the continuation of the School-based Probation Agents for the 2004-2005 school year,
based on the success established from previous years in this area.
Element 6: Safe Schools Policies
Objective 1: To promote congruency of school policies and procedures related to student
behavior, disciplinary action, etc., with disciplinary/treatment approaches used by law
enforcement, corrections, mental health and social service agencies.
Activities:
1. Create review teams of selected agency personnel, school personnel and parents to
assess the status of current policies and procedures of school districts and agencies.
Status: Not implemented. The Restorative Practices Consultant initially hired by the
grant resigned from the project in September, 2003. Due to few numbers of qualified
consultants in the area, we were unable to get a replacement. This has put us behind in
our initial implementation. However, we do expect to have a new consultant hired by
June, 2004 at which time activities will begin in earnest! Although the Consultant is not
active on the grant at this time, Restorative Practices are already being utilized by the two
School-based Probation Specialists in Element 5. They are using Restorative Justice
Circles in both schools to address classroom issues and to resolve conflicts that have
occurred outside of the classroom but which still affect the school environment.
In March, students from the Fisher School District will participate in a Victim Impact Panel
(a Restorative Practices approach). Two mothers will speak to students about how they
37
lost their children in drunk driving crashes. Another mother will discuss the impacts of
drug and alcohol use on her son who is currently disabled as a result of his chemical use.
After the program, students will participate in a Peace Circle to discuss what they heard.
The Circle will help them to process some sensitive and often emotional information about
the impact of chemical use on their own lives.
Update:
The Victim Impact Panel did occur in the Fisher School District. We are still in
the process of securing a consultant for our Restorative Practices approach and hope to
have this person in place by the fall of 2004 or design an alternate strategy to meet this
goal.
2. Make recommendations to Initiative Steering Committee.
Status: Not implemented. See information above. After the Consultant has time to
develop a workgroup, it is anticipated that recommendations will be available for
presentation to the Steering Committee and/or Executive Board by September, 2004.
Update: See note above.
3. Take action on recommendations through Northwestern Minnesota Council of
Collaboratives to promote revisions.
Status: Not implemented. See information above. Action on recommendations is
expected to occur by December, 2004.
Update: See note above.
Objective 2: To increase parent knowledge and awareness of school district policies and
related approaches used by various agencies.
Activities:
1. Include parent representatives on review teams.
Status: Pending. This strategy will occur in the fall of 2004 when the Restorative Practice
Consultant is in place in the school districts.
Update:
Pending the successful acquisition of a consultant in this area or the adoption of
an alternate strategy.
38
2. Report results of reviews via website, social marketing campaign.
Status: In process. Leah Goldstein Moses of the Improve Group was recruited in
December, 2003 as our local evaluator. She began developing a logic model that was
adopted in February, 2004. We anticipate that questionnaires (staff, student and public)
will be developed with initial data collection occurring in April and May of 2004. Results of
the first round of evaluation results will be published in the fall.
Please see the report under “Evaluation” and “Communications Plan” for information on
project reporting.
Update: Leah Goldstein Moses will be reviewing the data collected through the Staff
Reporting Forms and Population Served Worksheets for review at our September 14,
2004 Executive Board meeting. A final Year One evaluation report will be included in our
next report. The information will also be included on the Council of Collaboratives website
and a variety of audience-specific facts sheets developed for distribution to parents,
students, school staff, administrators, partners and other interested stakeholders by
December 2004.
Preliminary evaluation data from The Improve Group is included in Appendix A.
Objective 3: To expand the use of restorative practices within school districts and
approaches used by law enforcement, corrections, mental health and social service
agencies.
Activities:
1. Implement restorative practices training and consultation.
Status: Not implemented. See information above. It is anticipated that the training and
consultation will begin in school districts in the fall of 2004.
Update: Pending hiring a consultant. The Executive Board will also be reviewing this
strategy at the September 14, 2004 meeting to determine an alternate course of action for
implementing Restorative Practices.
39
2. Create restorative practices advisory group.
Status: Not implemented. See information above. It is anticipated that the advisory
group will be operational by September, 2004.
Update:
Pending resolution of items mentioned above.
Changes to planned activities: We need to hire a different consultant or develop an
alternative plan for implementing Restorative Practices. Plans should be in place in
September 2004.
Sustainability: Restorative Practices already have a strong foothold in Northwestern
Minnesota. Tri-County Community Corrections has a Restorative Justice Program serving
Polk, Norman and Red Lake Counties. By implementing the strategies designed for the Safe
Schools participants, it is hoped to expand the capacity of the services. Training will be
provided to grant staff as well as permanent school district staff in Restorative Measures. By
utilizing train-the-trainer opportunities, we expect that Restorative Circles and Conferencing
will be in place past the duration of the Safe Schools Initiative.
Update:
Training of grant staff is expected to occur in the fall of 2004.
Evaluation Plan
The Northwestern Minnesota – Stephen-Argyle Safe Schools/Healthy Students’ Initiative has
employed the services of Leah Goldstein Moses from the Improve Group out of Minneapolis,
MN. Leah began her work with the project in December, 2003. Through her attendance at
several of the Executive Board meetings, the following activities occurred:
40
Table 1: Stephen-Argyle SS/HS Initiative Evaluation Activities 12/17/03 - 3/22/04
•
Evaluation planning
and management
•
Worked with Initiative staff, Executive Board, and specialists to
set parameters of evaluation
•
Prepared an inventory of data already collected within the
Initiative’s 11 school districts and by other providers in the
area
•
Attended the SS/HS evaluation conference
•
Prepared a logic model
•
Designed instruments to fill gaps in data-collection; student
surveys, staff surveys, partner focus groups, satisfaction
surveys and community forums
•
Began to prepare data collection guidelines and timeline
•
Identified opportunities and challenges for data collection
•
Determined roles for data collection
•
Reviewed data already in existence for each of the 11 school
districts and the area population as a whole
•
Identified several types of reports to write for various
audiences within the Initiative’s geographic area
•
Prepared worksheets and meeting agendas for evaluation
meetings
Evaluation design
Data collection
Data analysis
Reporting
Activities
Reviewed grant application and other project background
41
At the Feburary, 2004 Executive Board meeting, the Logic Model was adopted as were the
Key Stakeholder Focus Group Protocol, the High School Survey and the Staff Survey.
Implementation plans are pending, with a timeline for an initial data collection occurring in
April and May of 2004. It is anticipated that results from the data collection will be available
and reported in the fall of 2004. Information gathered from these reports will then be
disseminated as part of the ongoing Communications’ Plan.
Update:
Excerpt from report from The Improve Group (Appendix A).
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
An analysis of the data collected for the Northwest Minnesota Council of Collaboratives SSHS
Initiative shows many accomplishments in the first year of the grant.
The Improve Group has determined that there have been successes in five of the six Northwest
Minnesota SSHS Initiative elements, but that there remain opportunities to have an impact. Some
Initiative successes are presented in Table ES-1 below.
Table ES-1: Successes and Opportunities in Each SSHS Initiative Element
Elements
Successes
Safe School Environment
The majority of students and staff believe that their school is safe
Resources are available and students are getting positive messages
Alcohol and Other Drugs, Violence
about violence prevention and alcohol, tobacco and other drug
Prevention and Early Intervention
(ATOD) prevention
School and Community Mental
Staff knows where to get help for students and families facing mental
Health Prevention and Treatment health issues
Intervention Programs
Early Childhood Psychosocial and
Emotional Development Services
Educational Reform/Positive
Educational Climate
Safe School Policies
School districts and communities are committed to providing services
to young children and their families
Both students and staff reported report positive student-staff
relationships
School policies will be evaluated for a subsequent report
A preliminary evaluation report for the first year of activities appears in Appendix A.
Changes to planned activities update: There are no changes to activities or budget for the evaluation.
42
Population served update: Currently, grant staff, Executive Board members and partners are
being served by the local evaluation. Once data has been finalized in the fall, other key
stakeholders will be provided with results by website postings, fact sheets and focus groups.
Strengths update: A definite strength in this area continues to be the expertise and energy of
our Consultant, Leah Goldstein Moses. She has conducted several meetings with Executive
Committee and staff members and is a valuable resource to the project. We are confident
that the second year of data collection will be enhanced through experiences learned in our
first year and feel better positioned with concrete data behind our programmatic and service
decisions. Both our Consultant and Project Director attended the conference on Evaluation
in January this year and were able to apply lessons learned to this effort.
Challenges update: No challenges are noted at this time.
Sustainability: At the national conference on Evaluation, Leah and Colleen MacRae (Project
Director) discussed several ideas for research-based opportunities. One idea involves
evaluating past and existing Safe School sites throughout Minnesota (seven since 1997) and
another involves a research study in Northwestern Minnesota with school districts who have
never participated, those that participated in our 1997-2003 project and those just starting.
Details of these research concepts are still being developed. It appears there will be valuable
information gathered from this research that can be used in a variety of ways, particularly with
partners, potential partners, local/state and federal legislators, granting agencies and other
interested parties.
Update: Leah has been asked to submit an in-depth proposal on the research concepts
identified above. We look forward to finding out the results of her submission.
Technical Assistance update: Several technical assistance opportunities were utilized. They
included:
•
Participation in monthly National Communications’ Teams phone seminars on
communications and sustainability.
•
Participation of five grant staff in the National Conference in Kansas City.
43
•
We continue to utilize contents from the Victory Kit, provided by the National
Communication’s Team as well as from the Making Communications Work For You
workbook from the December, 2003 Communications conference
•
We continue to utilize information provided through the National Communication’s Team
listserv and website (www.sshscom.org) on a weekly basis
•
We continue to utilize information from the National Center for Mental Health Promotion
and Youth Violence Prevention website at www.promoteprevent.org on a weekly basis
Communications update: We continue to have staff complete Staff Reporting Forms and
Population Served Worksheets each month to provide an overall perspective of individual
service contacts. This allows us to track services to students, staff, parents, administrators,
partners and key stakeholders. This system of information collection, in addition to the
surveys administered through The Improve Group, provides administrative staff with timely
access to an overview of activities, structure, successes and challenges. It continues to aid
in the day-to-day communications between Management, school district staff and grant staff.
It also allows for a more content rich report for all partners (participating agencies, school
districts, communities, local, state and federal representatives) and is proving to be a useful
tool. We will continue this method of information collection for the second year of the grant.
44
SAFE SCHOOLS/HEALTHY STUDENTS
PART IV - BUDGET INFORMATION
OMB Control Number: 1890-0004
Expiration Date: 02/28/2003
Name of Institution/Organization
Stephen-Argyle Safe Schools/Healthy Students' Initiative
603 Bruce Street, Crookston, MN 56716
August 1, 2003 -- July 31, 2004
Prepared August 25, 2004
ELEMENTS 1-3
Budget Categories
Element 3
School & Community Mental Health
Preventive & Treatment Services
Prevention & Early Intervention
Budgeted
Expended
Element 2
AOD/Violence
Prevention & Early Intervention
Budgeted
Expended
Element 1
Safe School Environment
Budgeted
Expended
A. Personnel
$6,000.00
$5,552.39
$12,833.33
$7,425.95
$0.00
$0.00
B. Fringe
$1,500.00
$1,179.45
$3,208.33
$3,731.52
$0.00
$0.00
C. Travel
$1,450.00
$1,450.00
$1,095.00
$374.55
$0.00
$0.00
D. Equipment
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
E. Supplies
$0.00
$0.00
$1,800.00
$1,288.36
$0.00
$0.00
F. Construction
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$189,764.01
$69,799.28
$207,829.66
$103,605.95
$358,718.67
$122,730.71
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
Total Direct Costs (lines
A-H)
$198,714.01
$77,981.12
$226,766.32
$116,426.33
$358,718.67
$122,730.71
I. Indirect Costs
TOTAL
$1,987.14
$200,701.15
$1,987.14
$79,968.26
$2,267.66
$229,033.98
$2,267.66
$118,693.99
$3,587.19
$362,305.86
$3,587.19
$126,317.90
G. Consult/Contracts
H. Other
Ed Form No. 524
45
SAFE SCHOOLS/HEALTHY STUDENTS PART IV - BUDGET INFORMATION page 2
Name of Institution/Organization
ELEMENTS 4-6
Budget Categories
Element 4
Early Childhood Psychosocial & Emotional
Development Svcs.
Budgeted
Expended
Element 5
Educational Reform
Budgeted
Expended
Element 6
Safe
School Policies
Budgeted
Expended
A. Personnel
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
B. Fringe
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
C. Travel
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
D. Equipment
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
E. Supplies
$0.00
$0.00
$475.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
F. Construction
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$147,464.50
$45,065.83
$48,212.00
$29,572.75
$7,500.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$147,464.50
$45,065.83
$48,687.00
$29,572.75
$7,500.00
$0.00
$1,474.65
$1,474.65
$486.87
$486.87
$75.00
$75.00
$148,939.15
$46,540.48
$49,173.87
$30,059.62
$7,575.00
$75.00
G. Consult/Contracts
H. O ther
Total Direct Costs (lines
A-H)
I. Indirect Costs
TOTAL
ED Form No. 524
46
SAFE SCHOOLS/HEALTHY STUDENTS PART IV – BUDGET INFORMATION Page 3
Name of Institution/Organization
Applicants that promise non-federal funding for the grant in the form
of matching or in-kind funds in the original proposal must report the
expenditure rate of those funds at the time of the semi-annual report.
SECTION B -- BUDGET SUMMARY
Budget Categories
1. Personnel
Project Year 1
Budgeted
Project Year 1
Expended
$18,833.33
$12,978.34
2. Fringe Benefits
$4,708.33
$4,910.97
3. Travel
$2,545.00
$1,824.55
$0.00
$0.00
$2,275.00
$1,288.36
$0.00
$0.00
$959,488.84
$370,774.52
$0.00
$0.00
$987,850.50
$391,776.74
$9,878.51
$9,878.51
$0.00
$0.00
$997,729.01
$401,655.25
4. Equipment
5. Supplies
6. Construction
7. Contractual
8. Other
9. Total Direct Costs
(lines 1-8)
10. Indirect Costs
11. Training Stipends
12. Total Costs (lines 911)
Project Year 2
Budgeted
Project Year 2
Expended
Project Year 3
Budgeted
Project Year 3
Expended
OTHER BUDGET INFORMATION
ED Form No. 524
47
NORTHWESTERN MINNESOTA – STEPHEN-ARGYLE CENTRAL SCHOOLS
Grant Performance Report – March 1 – July 31, 2004
BUDGET NARRATIVE (Update)
There are 19 service providers and the fiscal host (Stephen-Argyle Central
Schools) written into the budget. Additionally, there are several consultants with whom
contracts have been or will be negotiated (Local Evaluator, Respect and Protect
Consultant, Restorative Practices Consultant). Approximately .028% of the budget is
for services directly provided by the Stephen-Argyle Central School District. Another
1% is budgeted for indirect costs, also for the Stephen-Argyle Central School District.
The remaining 98.5% of the budget is apportioned out to the other service providers and
consultants.
A total of 40% of the entire budget was debited against the grant between August
1, 2003 and July 31, 2004. There were approximately $286,896.60 in cost savings from
delay in implementation (most activities not fully operational until January 2004) and
another $115,000 in incurred expenses yet to be billed and drawn down (lapse between
contracted services billing cycle and the SS/HS Initiative billing cycle). The remaining
$194,177.16 represents budgeted amounts for activities not yet carried out, due to
some staff turnover and difficulty hiring consultants as originally planned. We do plan to
continue our pursuit of Respect and Protect and Restorative Practices this year and
subsequent cost savings from year one will be worked into the year 2 budget.
The Project Director and Assistant Director (Element 4) were hired immediately
upon the start of the grant, as were the Clinical Psychologist (Element 4) and School
Based Probation Agents (Element 5). The Kittson County Schools requested holding
48
off on hiring their Prevention Specialist and Mental Health Professional until the spring
of 2004 which created some immediate cost savings. The majority of the remaining
positions including the Safety Coordinator, Prevention Specialists, Mental Health
Professionals and Local Evaluator were hired by December, 2003. This created an
automatic under-spending of approximately four months in salary, fringe, travel and
evaluation in Elements 1, 2, and 3. Some reworking of the Special Response Team
model in Element 1 also created a delay in billing for their services. We had anticipated
that this would be billed against the grant in March 2004, however, in reality, the SRT
provided some in-kind to the grant. The cost of the training and attendance of officers
from the SRT which is scheduled for August 2004 will exhaust the monies available in
this area. The resignation of the Restorative Practices Consultant at the beginning of
the grant created a delay in activities in Element 6 and we were unable to implement
this strategy in the first year of the grant.
49
APPENDIX A IS A SEPARATE DOCUMENT DUE TO FILE SIZE
50