Workshops for Faculty and Administrators

Prevention is every faculty member's responsibility. Some teachers may hesitate to get involved in this area of a student's life. While understandable, this runs counter to a community-wide commitment to prevention. Teachers (and students) are the eyes and ears for counselors. They are in a position to see early warning signs of possible substance abuse, and it would be a shame to miss out on the valuable contribution they can make. Often, a teacher's discomfort is simply the result of feeling that he or she doesn't have the information or tools necessary to discuss these issues and intervene with confidence.

FCD faculty workshops provide teachers and administrators with the skills and knowledge they need to become valuable members of the school's prevention team. Our work varies widely in its depth and breadth. Almost without exception, we meet with faculty at least once during our teaching visits to a school. We also lead multi-day workshops for schools wishing to provide more intensive prevention education and training. Our faculty programs cover:

Basic drug education to provide a common understanding of issues and definitions
New views of prevention: what the research says
Common myths, pitfalls and obstacles concerning prevention
How schools can inadvertently condone student alcohol and other drug use
Ways to encourage non-use
What every teacher can do to contribute to the health of the community
What to do if you suspect a student is in trouble
Intervention training.

While virtually all of FCD's workshops are well-suited for faculty education and in-service days, the following presentations have been developed specifically for teachers and administrators:

Re-Living Adolescence
An exploration of how one's own attitudes about alcohol and other drugs developed and may be influencing policy-making, discipline, and student-teacher relationships.

Understanding Substance Abuse: Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs
This workshop provides up-to-date information about alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and other drugs. It also explains risk factors for substance abuse and addiction in young people. All questions about the social, physical and psychological effects of alcohol and other drugs will be covered, as well as the latest trends and research.

Intervention A to Z
A student’s grades have plummeted and he frequently falls asleep in your class. You wonder if he is using drugs. You overhear a group of students talking about a classmate who “always ends up passing out at parties.” You could’ve sworn you smelled marijuana on a student in your class who just returned from lunch. What do you do?

At FCD, we hear about situations such as these from faculty at many of our client schools. This workshop explores the ways to recognize and intervene on student alcohol and other drug use before it becomes a discipline problem. Why is early intervention important? What is the school’s role in intervention? How can schools set up early intervention teams? Why do faculty have a unique role in intervention? All of these questions and more will be answered so that we may guide students toward help and support.

Establishing Intervention Teams
Training for faculty, administrators, and health and guidance professional who wish to set up a formal intervention team to help students both before and after drug use becomes a serious problem. We analyze options in light of the individual school's needs, goals, and policies.

Supporting and Encouraging Students Who Choose Not to Use
It is more important than ever for schools to develop comprehensive prevention and intervention strategies not only to deal with substance abuse, but to support students who opt for drug-free lifestyles. This workshop explores normative beliefs and misperceptions and their influence on adolescent behavior. Participants will learn ways that our culture inadvertently condones use, as well as the importance of personal perceptions and attitudes when thinking about and working with teenagers. In addition, this workshop presents specific options for creating a climate of non-use and validating students who choose not to use alcohol and other drugs at this point in their lives.

Helping Students Growing Up In Homes with Substance Abuse
An estimated one-in-four children grow up in homes affected by alcoholism or other drug addictions. This workshop looks at ways in which substance abuse affects families, and offers participants practical and emotional survival tips that will help them understand the issues some of their students face. This workshop addresses the signs and symptoms of children growing up in families with substance abuse problems, and identifies ways adults can help.