Excellence For All

Parent Committee

Meeting

February 4, 2016

AGENDA

Pittsburgh Science and Technology Academy February 4, 2016 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.

Dinner at 5:30 p.m.

Welcome Lingaire Njie (5 minutes) Project Specialist, Family, Youth &Community Engagement

Announcements All (15 minutes)

Accessing Student Assistance Programs John O’Connell (25 minutes) Director of Student Support After School & Mentoring Programs James Doyle (25 minutes) Coordinator of Out-of-School Time District Creative Arts Opportunities Jody Guy (25 minutes) Visual Arts Coordinator Your Feedback in Action Lingaire Njie (20 minutes) Next Steps and Closing Lingaire Njie (5 minutes)

ANNOUNCEMENTS

ACCESSING STUDENT

ASSISTANCE

PROGRAMS

JOHN O’CONNELL

DIRECTOR OF STUDENT

SUPPORT

Accessing Student Assistance Programs (SAP)This includes services from school staff as well as contracted

providers

What is Student Assistance (SAP)?

• The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Student Assistance Program (SAP), which is administered by the PA Department of Education’s Safe Schools Office in partnership with the PA Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs’ Division of Prevention and Intervention, and the PA Department of Human Services’ Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, is designed to assist school personnel in identifying issues including alcohol, tobacco, other drugs, and mental health issues which pose a barrier to a student’s success. The primary goal of the Student Assistance Program (SAP) is to help students overcome these barriers in order that they may achieve, remain in school, and advance. While Student Assistance Programs exist in other areas of the country, the structure and operation of the program in Pennsylvania is a unique expression of an integrated model serving the needs of Pennsylvania families and their students.

What did he just say?

•To summarize, SAP is available in all Pittsburgh Public Schools. Each school has an SAP Core Team, usually led by a counselor or social worker. The SAP team identifies when students have behavioral, mental health or substance abuse issues that appear to impact them in school. The goals of the SAP team are to work with students and parents to help the students to be successful in school.

Who is on the SAP Core Team

•The SAP Core Team usually includes the following staff:

•Counselor or Social Worker

•Administrator

•School Nurse

•Regular Education Teacher

•Special Education Teacher

•School Psychologist

•Community Agency Liaison

How are students referred?

• When school staff notice a student appears to be unsuccessful due to their behavior, changes in their behavior, or simply not seeming to be “themselves,” they consult with the counselor or social worker.

• The counselor or social worker communicates with a parent, and obtains permission to include the student in the SAP process.

• Teachers, staff and parents are provided behavioral checklists to identify concerns.

• The SAP team reviews the information & discusses ways to help the student.

• The SAP team leader discusses this with the parent and offers possible solutions.

Who are the agency providers?

•Each school is assigned a School Based Therapist from an approved agency & a Prevention Provider

•Middle Schools, High Schools and a select group of K-5 Schools have an SAP Liaison from a behavioral health agency.

•Most K-5 Schools do not have an SAP Liaison, so their School Based Therapist accepts direct referrals

Okay, but what agency is at my child’s school?

Caring Place

Center for Victims

Family Links Alcohol & Drug Abuse Screening,Counseling

Family Links Prevention Services

Family Links-M/H Partnership

Gateway Rehabilitation Prevention Services

Glade Run M/H Partnership

Gwen's Girls

Homewood-Brushton YMCA

Homewood-Brushton YMCA

MAPS, University of Pittsburgh

Mercy Behavioral Health Prevention Services

Mercy Behavioral Health Prevention Services

Mercy Behavioral Health-M/H Partnership

Three Rivers Youth

Wesley Spectrum Mental Health Partnership

WPIC Mental Health Liason

WPIC: Addiction Medicine Services Prevention

What do these agencies do in our schools?

• The SAP Liaison completes behavioral health screenings and assessments.

• The School Based Therapists provide 1:1 counseling to students in the same manner that a therapist or counselor would do in their agency office. An advantage of using a School Based Therapist is the convenience of being seen in school, during the school day.

• The Prevention Specialists run small educational group sessions and classroom presentations. Topics include social skills, coping skills, grief & loss, and transition.

How do I get help for my child?

• Call your school’s counselor or social worker and ask to speak with them about your concerns. Everyone needs help at some point in their life, so why not take advantage of what is offered in your child’s school.

• Members of the SAP team adhere to strict guidelines, and confidential information is not shared with anyone that does not have a need to know.

• The agency staff adhere to even stricter guidelines. They only release information to school staff that you say is okay.

Questions? Comments?

John O’Connell, Director of Student Support

Pittsburgh Public Schools 341 S. Bellefield Avenue, Room 439, PGH., PA 15213 412-529-3918 (W) |412-622-3954| joconnell1@pghboe.net

After-School and Mentoring Opportunities

James Doyle, Coordinator of Out-of-School Time

Pittsburgh Public Schools

jdoyle1@pghboe.net

February 4, 2016

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Setting The Context Around Out-of-

School Time

• Close your eyes. Imagine yourself as a 6th

grader. Think about all the extracurricular, after-school, and summer opportunities you have participated in up to this point. What impact did these experiences have on your overall development to this point in your life?

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Setting The Context Around Out-of-

School Time

Source: Afterschool Corporation (TASC)

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Setting The Context Around Out-of-

School Time

Source: Afterschool Corporation (TASC)

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Out-of-School Time Coordination

Our District out-of-school time offerings are

designed to leverage out-of-school time to build a

coordinated and strategic network in order for

students to become graduation ready, promise-

ready, and college and career ready.

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Out-of-School Time Coordination

Our District out-of-school time offerings are

designed to leverage out-of-school time to build a

coordinated and strategic network in order for

students to become graduation ready, promise-

ready, and college and career ready.

Out-of-School Time Office

Out-of-School Time Office

Student Support Services

School Year OST Partnerships

After-School Academy Program

Summer Dreamers Academy

Program Model

• 27 day summer learning camp offered at NO COST to

PPS students in K-7th grade

• Morning academic component (ELA & math) designed by

PPS staff and taught by certified teachers

• Positive culture of fun and learning

• Afternoon enrichment activities led by community-based

organizations

• Opportunity for PPS students to get excited and

passionate about an activity to which they otherwise might

not have been exposed

After-School Academy

Program Model

• District-run 36-week after-school program offered at NO

COST to PPS students in 4-12 grade.

• Academic component designed by PPS staff and taught by

certified teachers

• Enrichment activities led by community-based

organizations

After-School Academy

Site Location and Gradespans:

• Pittsburgh Brashear 9-12 (9-12 served in ASA)

• Pittsburgh King K-8 (K-8 served in ASA)

• Pittsburgh Langley K-8 (6-8 served in ASA)

• Pittsburgh Perry 9-12 (9-12 served in ASA)

• Pittsburgh Westinghouse 6-12 (4-8 served in ASA)

School-Year OST Partnerships

• Formalized process for recruiting, identifying,

coordinating, and evaluating community

organizations that are facilitating or desire to

facilitate programming with Pittsburgh Public

Schools students.

School-Year OST Partnerships

• For the 2015-2016 school year, the District

engages 92 different partner organizations

focused in:Arts and Culture

Career Awareness and Employment Preparation

Academic or Educational Enrichment

Health and Wellness

Mentoring

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)

Civic Engagement, Activism or Organizing

Educational, Recreational, Mentoring and Youth

Development

Academic or Educational Enrichment

Career or Employment

Social, Emotional or Behavioral (Evidence-based

interventions/Strategies)

Leadership or Character Development

Child Care

Service Learning or Community Service

Positive Youth Development

Recreation, Sports or Physical Fitness

Mentoring Opportunities

• Another way to provide support to District

students is through mentoring!

• Lunchtime literacy program for Elementary

students in grades 3-5

• All mentoring takes place in school building

weekly

• Currently operates at 4 District schools:

Pittsburgh Faison K-5, Pittsburgh King PreK-8,

Pittsburgh Phillips K-5, and Pittsburgh Weil

PreK-5

• http://www.rifpittsburgh.org/ or 412-321-8022

• Mentoring partnership between trained caring

adults and Middle School students

• All mentoring takes place in school building

weekly (lunchtime or after-school)

• Supported through 5 mentoring partner agencies:

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh,

Communities in Schools, Mt. Ararat Community

Activities Center, Urban League of Greater

Pittsburgh

• https://uwswpa.org/be-a-middle-school-mentor/ or

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• Mentoring opportunity designed to provide

support and encouragement to District African-

American male students close to Pittsburgh

Promise eligibility

• All mentoring takes place in school building

weekly

• Currently operates at all District Secondary

schools

• http://www.pps.k12.pa.us/wepromise or

ppswepromise@pghboe.net

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Contact Information

James Doyle

jdoyle1@pghboe.net

Office: (412) 529-3926

DISTRICT CREATIVE ARTS

OPPORTUNITIES

JODY GUY

VISUAL ARTS

COORDINATOR

YOUR FEEDBACK IN

ACTION

LINGAIRE NJIE

PROJECT SPECIALIST

FAMILY, YOUTH &

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

THANK YOU FOR COMING!!

PLEASE REMEMBER TO

SHARE THE INFORMATION

YOU RECEIVED TONIGHT

WITH YOUR FACE

COORDINATOR AND PSCC!!