Student Assistance Programs Student Assistance Counselors

A Team Approach to Student Success

What is a Student Assistant Program?

“A Student Assistance Program (SAP) is a comprehensive school or agency-based program for students (K-12) designed to identify issues which prevent students from learning and being successful in school. SAPs provide education, prevention, early identification, intervention, referral and support groups for students. They foster risk reduction and positive asset development and work to provide a safe place in which students are free to express their feelings and concerns as they develop positive relationships with peers and adults and acquire knowledge, skills and attitude development leading to student success in the school setting.”

Three Words to Remember:

A Student Assistance Program is proactive, not reactive.

Necessary Credentials

Some school systems have Student Assistance Counselors (SACs) as faculty members who serve on the Student Assistance Program team. These individuals have either an LPC, LCSW, or are working to obtain licensure.

Necessary Credentials, con’t

Many SAPs are managed by community agencies. A counselor at an agency who provided counseling to students referred by the SAP would either have or be working to obtain licensure.

In either instance, the SAP has a designated coordinator to facilitate the team.

Who is on the team?

Some guidelines suggest that parents and community members be included on the SAP. For input on general needs of students, this could be useful, but a glaring and unacceptable breach of confidentiality if discussing individual students.

The members of the SAP team consist of teachers, school counselors, administrators, counselors from agencies, and central office staff such as school psychologists and school social workers.

Funding

In the eighties, funding was a provided by the generosity of local businesses, foundations, and funding allocated by school systems.

In 1986 the Drug Free Schools and Community Act began formal support of SAPs, which dramatically increased the number of SAPs and the services they provided.

Funding, con’t.

In 1994, legislation changed the drug free schools program. The name was changed to the Safe and Drug Free Schools and Communities Act. The change in legislation resulted in a diversion of funds from SAPs to law enforcement, violence prevention, policy development and the purchase of metal detectors.

Funding, con’t.

The funding trend now is a return to the mid-eighties model of buy-in by the community which ensures that businesses, organizations, foundations and service clubs support SAPs. Available federal funding is also utilized.

Who benefits?

Students who are suffering emotional pain and have turned to alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and other drugs.

Students who are at risk for reasons unrelated to alcohol or other drugs, such as the inability to form healthy relationships and/or cope with problems, like family issues.

Who Benefits? con’t.

Students with a family member(s) who is drug or alcohol addicted.

Ultimately all students benefit because one focus of Student Assistance Programs is prevention.

Six Components of a Student Assistance Program

Identify students with personal, academic, and relationship concerns before those issues interfere with their education

Initiate change Assess to determine how to best help the students Refer students for assistance, whether within the

school or to an agency Ensure students have access to school and

community resources Offer educational support groups

Confidentiality

Information shared within the counseling relationship remains confidential unless the client is a danger to self or others or there is suspected child or elder abuse.

Student Assistance Programs & Student Assistance Counselors

Some schools have SACs who serve on the SAP, but in some cases there is no SAP at a school but the SAC serves to connect students with resources, provide short-term counseling, make referrals to outside agencies and work closely with administrators on discipline issues to ensure an acute level of understanding is achieved.

Roles of Community Counselors

A community counselor might manage a SAP for a school district or a community services board.

Community counselors might work with young people who are referred to an agency by a SAP.

Many of the SACs in our area started out as community counselors.

The Role of the Student Assistant Counselor

Student Assistance Programs have been in existence since the eighties, but Student Assistant Counselors in the Shenandoah Valley are a fairly recent addition to the support services offered to young people.

I spoke with Robin Breeden, SAC at Broadway High School, Annette Paxton, Counseling Director at Broadway High School, and Frutoso Ortiz, who worked closely with Hilary Bierly, SAC at Spotswood High School. These three individuals were a wealth of information about how these programs actually work. SACs in Rockingham County have either an LPC or LCSW or are in the process of obtaining credentials.

Your Questions

How are clients referred? Clients initially can be referred to the SAP by anyone, such as a parent, teacher, or staff member.

Does the SAC share information with the school counselors? By interviewing, I learned that standard confidentiality guidelines are used. One interviewee commented that often the SAC had a

Your Questions, con’t

difficult time with parents who insisted on knowing every detail of the SAC’s conversation with a student.

Your Questions, con’t

Who provides supervision for a SAC? At an agency, a SAC would have a supervisor and also attend staffing meetings. Sometimes a Student Assistance Program supervisor provides supervision to the SACs. In Rockingham County, the SACs meet weekly with their supervisor, who is a central office employee, for staffing.

Your Questions, con’t

Will the school counselors think the SAC is taking their jobs? SAPs and SACs operate in a complementary capacity to enhance and support existing services.

Your Questions, con’t

Will I have an office? If an office is not offered, a creative solution would have to be found. How can one counsel without a private space? Mr. Ortiz pointed out that the SAC at his school had her office in a separate location from the School Counseling Office and the administrative offices so that she could better establish rapport with students and avoid any association with administration that appeared punitive.

Your Questions, con’t

Will I do psychoeducational counseling? Yes, since implementing intervention programs is part of a SAP and a duty of the SAC.

Resources for Counselors

Links to model programs:

http://www.gfps.k12.mt.us/Departments/

CARE/CARE.html www.sascorp.org http://www.modelprograms.samhsa.gov/

model.htm

Sources

All information was taken from “Help Is Down the Hall” published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSA) unless otherwise noted.

Robin Breeden, Student Assistance Counselor at Broadway High School

Annette Paxton, Counseling Director, Broadway High School

Frutoso Ortiz, Assistant Principal, Central High School