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ED’s safe & supportive schools News |
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Kevin Jennings Assistant Deputy Secretary |
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Trouble
reading this document? Please open the attachment above. In This
Issue 1. Ben
Franklin was Right About Prevention--From the Desk of Kevin Jennings… 2. A Memo from Bill
Modzeleski on Homeland Security’s Combating the Global Crime of Human
Trafficking 3. U.S.
Department of Education Awards Promise Neighborhoods Planning Grants--21 Communities to Receive Funding to
Build Effective Schools with Strong Support Systems
4. HHS’ SAMHSA National
Survey Reveals Increases in Substance Use from 2008 to 2009--Marijuana
use rises; prescription drug abuse and ecstasy use also up 5. Federal and Foundation Funding Resources: --Youth
Service America – UnitedHealth HEROES Grants to Fight Obesity --Community Tool Box- Out of the Box Program --National Gardening Association and Home Depot – 2010
Youth Garden Grants Program -- Redux: SAMHSA Announces open submissions period for the
National Registry Of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP -- U.S. Department of Agriculture - Peoples Garden School Pilot
Program 6. PBS ‘In The Mix’
Program Highlights for October 2010
NOTE: The material The opinions expressed
herein may not always reflect the views of the Office of Safe and Drug-Free
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PLEASE NOTE:
We are working with our IT folks to correct the problem of multiple copies of
the LISTSERV being sent out. It should be fixed soon. Please bear with
us. Many thanks. BEN FRANKLIN WAS RIGHT ABOUT
PREVENTION--FROM THE DESK OF KEVIN JENNINGS… Last
week, OSDFS announced the winners of our new “Building State Capacity
for Preventing Youth Substance Use and Violence” grants.
Twenty-eight states will receive funds to support efforts by state
educational agencies to coordinate work to prevent substance use and violence
in their schools. Prevention
is a tricky thing: if it works, there’s no “proof,” as the
bad thing that it was designed to prevent never happened. Consequently
it tends to be undervalued and underfunded work.. Instead, we tend to
wait for bad things to happen, and then spend a lot of money cleaning up the
resultant mess – a much more expensive and less effective
approach. It
seems odd to me as a former U.S. History teacher that nearly three centuries
after Ben Franklin told us the right approach in Poor Richard’s
Almanac – i.e. that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of
cure -- we continue to make the same mistake in how we approach problems. I
salute the 28 winners of the Building State Capacity grants for heeding Mr.
Franklin’s advice, and am proud that we are able to support their wise
efforts to stop bad things before they happen. A MEMO FROM BILL MODZELESKI ON HOMELAND
SECURITY’s COMBATING THE GLOBAL CRIME OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING Our colleagues at the Department of Homeland Security are
committed to combating the global crime of human trafficking. Through public
outreach, victim protection, and law enforcement training, the Department
works diligently to prevent human trafficking before it occurs, to
protect victims when it has occurred, and to minimize reoccurrence by
conducting investigations to bring traffickers to justice. To raise awareness of this
problem, our colleagues at DHS would like to invite you to take an online
training on identifying human trafficking victims, offered through the
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. You may access the training
through the direct FLETC Training Portal: http://www.fletc.gov/elp-splash/. Or the main FLETC site: http://www.fletc.gov/. Please take the time to take
this training and disseminate to your colleagues. Many thanks, Bill Modzeleski U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION AWARDS PROMISE NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING GRANTS—21 COMMUNITIES TO
RECEIVE FUNDING TO BUILD EFFECTIVE SCHOOLS WITH STRONG SUPPORT SYSTEMS U.S.
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan recently announced that 21 nonprofit
organizations and institutions of higher education will receive Promise
Neighborhoods planning grants. With the one-year grants, the recipients will
create plans to provide cradle-to-career services that improve the
educational achievement and healthy development of children. The
planning grants of up to $500,000 will support the work in a diverse set of
communities in major metropolitan areas, small and medium-size cities, rural
areas, and one Indian reservation. The President has requested $210 million
in his fiscal 2011 budget, including $200 million to support implementation
of Promise Neighborhood projects and $10 million for planning grants for new
communities. To
address the challenges faced by students living in communities of
concentrated poverty, Promise Neighborhoods grantees and their partner
organizations will plan to provide services from early learning to college
and career, including programs to improve the health, safety, and stability
of neighborhoods, and boost family engagement in student learning. The
21 Promise Neighborhood grantees are:
Secretary
Duncan was joined at the announcement by Melody Barnes, the director of the
White House Domestic Policy Council, Secretary of Housing and Urban
Development Shaun Donovan, and Secretary of Health and Human Services
Kathleen Sebelius. "As
shown in Promise Neighborhoods and HUD's Choice Neighborhoods Initiative,
transforming distressed neighborhoods into communities of opportunity means
connecting housing and development resources to education and access to
economic opportunity," said Secretary Donovan. "Strong
communities start with healthy children who have safe places to live and play
and high quality educational opportunities that put them on the road to
success," added Secretary Sebelius. "Creating these strong
communities requires everyone, including the federal government, to work
together." More
than 300 communities from 48 states and the District of Columbia submitted
applications for Promise Neighborhoods planning grants. "I
congratulate all the Promise Neighborhoods applicants and the hundreds of
other communities that are creating great schools and strong support systems
for our children," Secretary Duncan said. "We encourage all
communities with bold and innovative proposals to continue their important
work, and we are hopeful there will be future opportunities for the Department
to provide implementation grants and new planning grants." Winning
Promise Neighborhoods applications reflect deep partnerships among
community-based organizations, service providers, schools and districts,
colleges and universities, cities, local leaders and others. "Well-coordinated
investments and actions at the local level can generate significant change
and positively impact opportunities for children," Attorney General Eric
Holder said in a written statement. "To build communities of opportunity,
residents must feel safe to live, learn and go about their business. We look
forward to continuing working with our partners in support of this innovative
initiative." Because
of the great potential for Promise Neighborhoods to revitalize communities in
need, it is closely linked to the White House Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative,
which seeks to align federal housing, education, justice, and health programs
with the overarching goal of transforming neighborhoods of concentrated
poverty into neighborhoods of opportunity. HHS’ SAMHSA NATIONAL
SURVEY REVEALS INCREASES IN SUBSTANCE USE FROM 2008-2009—MARIJUANA USE
RISES; PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE AND ECSTASY USE ALSO UP The use of illicit drugs among Americans increased between 2008
and 2009 according to a national survey conducted by the Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The National Survey on Drug
Use and Health (NSDUH) shows the overall rate of current illicit drug use in
the United States rose from 8.0 percent of the population aged 12 and older
in 2008 to 8.7 percent in 2009. This rise in overall drug use was
driven in large part by increases in marijuana use. The
annual NSDUH survey, released by SAMHSA at the kickoff of the 21st annual
National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month (Sept. 16), also shows
that the nonmedical use of prescription drugs rose from 2.5 percent of the
population in 2008 to 2.8 percent in 2009. Additionally, the estimated
number of past-month ecstasy users rose from 555,000 in 2008 to 760,000 in
2009, and the number of methamphetamine users rose from 314,000 to 502,000
during that period. Flat
or increasing trends of substance use were reported among youth (12 to
17-year-olds). Although the rate of overall illicit drug use among
young people in 2009 remained below 2002 levels, youth use was higher in 2009
compared to 2008 (10.0 percent of youth in 2009, versus 9.3 percent in 2008,
versus 11.6 percent in 2002). The rate of marijuana use in this age
group followed a similar pattern, declining from 8.2 percent of young people
in 2002, to 6.7 percent in 2006, remaining level until 2008, and then
increasing to 7.3 percent in 2009. Additionally, the level of youth
perceiving great risk of harm associated with smoking marijuana once or twice
a week dropped from 54.7 percent in 2007 to 49.3 percent in 2009, marking the
first time since 2002 that less than half of young people perceived great
harm in frequent marijuana use. The rate of current tobacco use or
underage drinking among this group remained stable between 2008 and 2009. Overall
past-month illicit drug use among young adults aged 18-25 increased from 19.6
percent of young adults in 2008, to 21.2 percent in 2009. This rise in
use was also driven in large part by the use of marijuana. "These
results are a wake-up call to the nation," said SAMHSA Administrator
Pamela S. Hyde, J.D. "Our strategies of the past appear to have
stalled out with generation ‘next.' Parents and caregivers,
teachers, coaches, faith and community leaders, must find credible new ways
to communicate with our youth about the dangers of substance abuse." "Today's
findings are disappointing, but not surprising, because eroding attitudes and
perceptions of harm about drug use over the past two years have served as
warning signs for exactly what we see today." said Director of National
Drug Control Policy, Gil Kerlikowske. "Fortunately, this
Administration's National Drug Control Strategy, with its focus on
prevention, treatment, smart law enforcement, and support for those in
recovery, highlights the right tools to reduce drug use and its
consequences. But our efforts must be reinforced and supported by the
messages kids get from their parents. Past month marijuana use was much
less prevalent among youths who perceived strong parental disapproval for
trying marijuana or hashish once or twice than among those who did not -- 4.8
percent versus 31.3 percent, respectively." Despite
some troubling trends, the 2009 NSDUH shows continued progress in lowering
levels of tobacco consumption among people aged 12 years and older. Current
cigarette use among this population has reached a historic low level at 23.3
percent. However, even in this case, the pace of improvement is
stagnating. The use of cocaine among those aged 12 or older has also declined
30 percent from 2006. As
in previous years, the 2009 NSDUH shows a vast disparity between the number
of people needing specialized treatment for a substance abuse problem and the
number who actually receive it. According to the survey, 23.5 million
Americans aged 12 or older (9.3 percent of this population) need specialized
treatment for a substance abuse problem, but only 2.6 million (or roughly 11.2
percent of them) receive it. National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month (Recovery
Month) recognizes the accomplishments of people in recovery, the
contributions of treatment providers and advances in substance abuse
treatment and recovery throughout the nation. Electronic versions
of Recovery Month materials are available at http://www.recoverymonth.gov. The kit is
downloadable at http://www.recoverymonth.gov/Recovery-Month-Kit.aspx. FEDERAL AND FOUNDATION FUNDING RESOURCES Youth Service America – UnitedHealth HEROES
Grants to Fight Obesity Youth
Service America along with United Health group have created the UnitedHealth HEROES
program, a health literacy initiative designed to encourage youth to partner
with schools and nonprofits to create hands-on programs to fight childhood
obesity. Awards
are available up to $1,000. Educators, students, and nonprofit leaders are
eligible to apply. Deadline:
October 22, 2010 Please
Contact Youth Service America for more information and to apply for this
funding: http://www.ysa.org/HEROES Community Tool Box- Out of the Box Program The
Community Tool Box, a service of the Work Group for Community Health and
Development at the University of Kansas, has announced the 2010 Out of the
Box Prize program to honor promising initiatives that improve community
health and development worldwide. The grand prize winner will receive $5,000
and a free customized WorkStation for their group. The second prize winner
will receive $2,000 and a free customized WorkStation for their group. Any
group that has engaged in any aspect of community health and development
effort between 2008 and 2010 is eligible to apply. Deadline:
October 31, 2010 Please
contact Community Tool Box for more information and to apply for this
funding: http://ctb.ku.edu/en/out_of_the_box.aspx National Gardening Association and Home Depot –
2010 Youth Garden Grants Program NGA
awards Youth Garden Grants to schools and community organizations with
child-centered garden programs. In evaluating grant applications, priority will
be given to programs that emphasize one or more of these elements:
educational focus or curricular/program integration, nutrition or
plant-to-food connections, environmental awareness/education,
entrepreneurship, and social aspects of gardening such as leadership
development, team building, community support, or service-learning. Five
programs will receive gift cards valued at $1000 and 95 programs will receive
a $500 gift card to The Home Depot and educational materials. Schools, youth
groups, community centers, camps, clubs, treatment facilities, and
intergenerational groups throughout the United States are eligible. Applicants
must plan to garden with at least 15 children between the ages of 3 and 18
years. Deadline:
November 1, 2010 Please
contact National Gardening Association and Home Depot for more information
and to apply for this funding: http://www.kidsgardening.com/YGG.asp Redux: SAMHSA Announces open submissions period for the
National Registry Of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP) The
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration has announced the 2011 open
submissions period for the National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and
Practices (NREPP). NREPP is a voluntary rating and classification system
designed to provide the public with reliable information on the scientific
basis and practicality of interventions that prevent and/or treat mental and
substance use disorders. Developers
are invited to submit evidence-based programs during the November 1, 2010 -
February 1, 2011 submissions period. For
more information http://www.nrepp.samhsa.gov/ For
the Federal Register Notice, go to: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/pdf/2010-20016.pdf U.S. Department of Agriculture - Peoples Garden School
Pilot Program The
purpose of the Peoples Garden School Pilot Program is to develop and run
community gardens at high-poverty schools, and to teach youths involved in
the gardens about agriculture production practices, diet, and nutrition. Deadline:
November 8, 2010 For
more information, please go to: http://www.fns.usda.gov/fns/outreach/grants/garden.htm
PBS
“IN THE MIX” PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS FOR OCTOBER 2010 Week of… Oct 2 #419
POLITICS: ACTION! NOT APATHY *--Get informed, get organized, and
get involved in politics on the local and national level! Co-hosted by youth
advocate and actor Malik Yoba, this evergreen special puts out a call to
America's youth. We highlight young people who are making a difference
through grass roots activities, school governments and party
politics—teens who are bringing to life the critical issues that affect
them. We spend a day with the country’s youngest mayor, check out a
group of Boston teens who travel to the Democratic and Republican Conventions
to make sure the voice of America’s youth is being heard, and meet
students who are working with school boards and city halls all around the
nation to effect positive change. Then, In the Mix lays out practical tactics
and steps young people can take to make their mark. Oct 9 #436
CLIQUES: BEHIND THE LABELS (Guide)--In this companion program
to “School Violence”, we explore the various cliques that exist
in schools, each with their own set of dress codes, slang, and
behavior…as well as the reasons for being part of a group. Viewers
meet, among others, the “popular girls,” “skaters,”
“goths,” and “floaters.” From the popular group to
the loners, kids say they experience harassment and often feel misunderstood.
Teens who were “loners” also speak frankly about how they reached
out to make friends. We see how stereotyping creates rifts among groups and
often leads to cruelty and mistreatment of individuals. Through understanding
the people behind the labels, viewers discover they are individuals with a
lot more in common than they thought. Oct 16 #801
STOP BULLYING...TAKE A STAND! (Guide) DVD w/ Spanish subtitles--Research
from the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) National
Bullying Campaign shows that up to 25% of U.S. students are bullied each
year. As many as 160,000 may stay home from school on any given day because
they are afraid of being bullied. Now, the growing trend of cyber bullying
comes into the home via computers. At least 1 out of 3 teens say they have been
seriously threatened online, and 60% of teens say they have participated in
online bullying. Hosted by Erika Harold, Miss America 2003, herself a
victim of severe harassment, this solution oriented program presents a
comprehensive and multifaceted approach to preventing bullying. It also
provides help and advice to victims, parents and bystanders. Her personal
experience is interwoven with compelling stories of teens who have also been
bullied. Oct 23 #705
FIT FOR LIFE: EAT SMART & EXERCISE (Guide) DVD w/ Spanish
subtitles--There’s
no question that many teens are overweight and don’t get enough
exercise. In fact, an estimated 15% are considered overweight or obese, with
the numbers growing. At the other extreme, many teens are severely dieting to
be “model thin,” with eating disorders also on the rise. Even
those who are within normal weight ranges often eat poorly during these
critical growth years, affecting their energy and concentration levels now,
and putting them at risk for future health problems. In this program,
four diverse teen reporters point out the short- and long-term dangers of an
unhealthy lifestyle, including low energy, difficulty concentrating, heart
disease, cancer, osteoporosis and diabetes. To help viewers make smart
choices, they give easy-to-use information about reading labels to find the
fat and sugar in food; exercising at home; eating well at fast food
restaurants; changing family habits; and much more. They also visit a
public school that makes nutrition and fitness part of the curriculum; plus a
Boys & Girls Club where middle school teens learn nutrition basics and
fun activities. Through humor, surprising facts and compelling personal
stories, teens and parents see how leading a healthy lifestyle can contribute
to their self-esteem. Oct 30 #424 SELF
IMAGE: THE FANTASY, THE REALITY (GUIDE)
DVD w/ Spanish subtitles--What
is “the perfect body”, and why does everyone want it? In the
Mix digs deep into the American obsession with body image, taking a zoom
lens to the images we see on television and billboards, in films and in
magazines. Young men and women speak their minds about how waif-thin
models and macho muscle-men make them feel about themselves. We also hear
from young people who survived eating disorders and steroid abuse, as well as
from teens who are getting help on the road to healthy self-esteem. Model
agency head Katie Ford and magazine editor Lesley Seymour offer
valuable insights and advice, raising an awareness of what’s real and
what’s fantasy in the media. With the help of In the Mix, teens
will learn how to “tune-out” media images and listen to who they
really are. Please
visit www.inthemix.org
for transcripts, discussion guides, video clips, how to get a copy, etc. for
these and other programs. |
