Students Taking a Right Stand (STARS) is a Student Assistance Program (SAP) dedicated to helping students make healthy lifestyle choices and refrain from the use of alcohol and other drugs, to prevent violence and to enhance their educational achievement and character development.  Our goal is to help students tackle the tough problems they face including substance use, school violence and bullying, academic failure, school suspension and dropout.

The objectives of STARS include:

*     Strengthen students’ resistance, refusal, and   decision making skills related to alcohol, drugs, sexual activity, and violence

*     Promote increased student school attachment.

*     Increase youth positive orientation to the future

*     Promote student involvement in the community

*     Improve student behavior related to their individual service objectives

*     Provide crisis management support for faculty and students

*     Increase student and family access to and utilization of appropriate community based services (i.e., health, mental health, social, etc.)

Components of STARS

CORE Team:  Core Team Leader, Kim Ezell

*     A team of faculty members that work with the STARS specialist to implement the SAP components by identifying and assessing student/school-wide needs, to receive ongoing training on substance abuse issues, and to develop prevention/intervention ideas.

Student Executive Council (SEC):  Staff Sponsor, Jay McCulley

*     A student organization that consists of identified student leaders that assist in the planning and implementation of educational and recreational activities supporting program goals and student commitments.

Education/Support Groups:  STARS Specialist, Joyce Hollins

*     The STARS specialist provides small groups according to the referral need.  Students, teachers, counselors, parents, and other faculty can make referrals for support groups.  The small groups meet once per week and utilize research based educational curriculum on topics such as divorce, grief and loss, social and emotional competence, bullying, decision making, recovery support, etc.

 

Safe and Drug Free Schools

“What we do in the name of health, safety, and well-being are linked with teaching and learning.  Teaching and learning can’t take place if students aren’t healthy, aren’t physically and mentally fit, or aren’t safe.”

William Modzeleski, Director
Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools
US Dept. of Education