At-Risk Program for Alcohol and Drug Use Essay Example for Free

At-Risk Program for Alcohol and Drug Use Essay When observing the schools in our communities, many choose not to notice that there is a serious problem concerning drug and substance abuse within the student population. Drug and alcohol abuse has become a serious problem for many students in the state of Alabama. There are over 40,000 adolescents in the state of Alabama that have used illegal drugs in this past month (Inspirations for Youth and Families, 2011). This is an alarming number that needs the support of the community, state funded programs, and the school district. There are currently over 15,000 youths in the state of Alabama that need help with substance abuse problems and are not receiving the proper care and help they deserve (Inspirations for Youth and Families, 2011). This community needs an at-risk program that targets the students who have become victim to drug and alcohol abuse. Identifying students in our schools who may be using drugs or alcohol is not an easy task. There are several signs that students could convey during schools hours that draw the attention of teachers or classmates. This program will be available to any parents concerned about their children with substance abuse, or students exhibiting at-risk warning signs. Warning signs of an at-risk student that will be eligible for a drug and substance abuse program may exhibit several traits that set them apart from the rest of the student body. These include smelling like alcohol or drugs, missing or skipping class, a dramatic change in academic involvement, trouble with authority, and getting involved in fights or showing an increase in aggressive behavior (Indiana University of Pennsylvania, 2012). Students who exhibit any of these signs would be recommended to participate in the drug and alcohol program. Periodic drug screenings in schools for students expressing these signs is another measure that will be taken to inform educators and parents of the students experimenting with illegal substances and need our help and support. This drug and alcohol program will meet the needs of the students in our community by providing them a haven where they can turn without worrying about getting into trouble. This program is not meant to judge these students, but to help them overcome the pressure they feel from their peers and their habitual drug and alcohol abuse. This program will be in every school in the Montgomery County school district. It will target students in grades five through 12. The guidance offices will have specific laws and rules to abide by to find at-risk students and enter students into the drug and alcohol program. The guidance office will have the responsibility of meeting with students when there are not program meetings, keeping a log of the student’s success and information on the drug/alcohol abuse, drug screenings, parental involvement, and so forth. Program meetings for all students involved in the drug and alcohol program will be held three times a month at the George Washing Carver High School Gymnasium, taking place after school for three hours from two in the afternoon to five in the evening. Buses will be supplied at all schools to transport the students to the main center at Carver High School, and then will be available to transport these students home. The staff at our meetings will include guidance counselors from every school in the district, teachers, and volunteers from the community. There will be a certified psychiatrist at every meeting to meet with students considered high-risk. If these high-risk students show signs of serious addiction or dependence, extra therapy sessions will be provided through the school district and rehabilitation options will be explored. This drug and alcohol program will be supported by the Montgomery County Department of Human Resources and Covenant Health Centers who implement the Alabama Recovery Center. Both of these state departments will ensure the success of the drug and alcohol program so the students in our community have access to the best resources. The Montgomery Department of Human Resources has social workers who will be able to meet with at-risk and high-risk children and make contact with family members on the students’ behalf. All cases of adolescent drug abuse must be referred to DHR by state law. This resource will be both beneficial for the students and the community. The Alabama Recovery Center have experienced and licensed staff that work with drug and alcohol abuse in adolescents through intensive  out-patients treatments programs (Covenant Health Centers, 2012). They provide counseling options, individual or family oriented, to best meet the required needs of the student. Their substance abuse programs consist of a 12 week intensive outpatient program that includes after care programs and custom programs working in accordance with several state departments such as DHR (Covenant Health Centers, 2012). With the Montgomery County Department of Human Resources and the Alabama Recovery Center, this new drug and alcohol program will have the support it needs to become a success to our students and the community. The positive impacts the drug and alcohol program would have on our community, schools, and school district are endless. The positive impact it would have on our community is to help adolescents that have fallen victim to drug and alcohol abuse and give them the support these students deserve. This will make sure that the children and teens in our community have a chance to a bright future to become productive citizens for this community. The positive impact this program will bring to our schools is intervention and honesty. Students can communicate with their teachers on a personal basis and let them into their private lives. This will allow the schools to become responsible concerning the essential help that is needed for at-risk students. It will give schools the chance to intervene in situations that involve drug and alcohol abuse. Schools will be the most important level where the student body can be reached to deal with the issues of peer pressure and drug/substance abuse. This program will bring positive impacts to the school district by keeping drugs and alcohol off school campuses and away from the student body. The district will observe dramatic changes in the population of students who have abused drugs and alcohol. The district will reap these rewards by becoming part of a positive change by implementing this program. The school district will see the change in students. This will raise the educational rating of the schools in the district. There are several steps necessary to implement this new drug and alcohol program. The first step is to find and receive funding for this drug and alcohol program. â€Å"The Department of Educations Safe and Drug-Free Schools  and Communities Program (SDFSP) provide funds for virtually every school district to support drug and violence prevention programs and to assist in creating and maintaining safe learning environments† (National Drug Control Policy, 1999, para.12). This is where our source of funding will come from. Once we have received proper funding, the second step is to begin training the guidance counselors, teachers, and volunteers who will be helping this program. The third step is to inform the local community about the new drug and alcohol program to spread awareness. The fourth and final step is to present the at-risk program to the school district’s advisory board. They will make the final decision in regard to implementing the program throughout the schools in the district The drug and alcohol program involving the adolescents in our school systems is a serious concern this community needs to address. This program is planned to target at-risk students by giving them a way to recover from their substance abuse. There are over 40,000 adolescents in the state of Alabama who need help concerning drug and alcohol addiction. The schools in our district are the best ways to identify these students and reach them with kindness, caring, and help. If this district were to implement this program, the student body in the Montgomery County school district will reap essential rewards. These students will have a chance at becoming productive citizens of the community. These students will have a chance to break the substance abuse cycle and become something that we all hope our children will and can become. This drug and alcohol program can bring light into the lives of many students suffering from addiction in our community. It is our job as educators and members of this community to help and give at-risk students a chance. References Covenant Health Centers. (2012). Alabama Recovery Center. Retrieved from http://www.covenanthealthcenters.com/alabama-recovery-center/ Indiana University of Pennsylvania. (2012). Identifying and Confronting Students At-Risk. Retrieved from http://www.iup.edu/page.aspx?id=45873 Inspirations for Youth and Families. (2011). Drug and Alcohol Abuse Among Teens in Alabama. Retrieved from http://www.inspirationsyouth.com/Teen-Rehab-Alabama.asp National Drug Control Policy. (1999). Preventing Drug Abuse. Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/ondcppubs/publications/policy/99ndcs/iv-b.html

American Male Pigs :: essays research papers

American Male Pigs Today in this great country of ours, there is an animal that stalks the face of our land. An animal that'll stop at very little to obtain it's nightly goal. Some women have unjustly classified this animal a Land Shark, along with an assortment of other colorful names. Little do the women of this country realize that these animals have banned together to form a national coalition. I, along with most males above the age of consent, am a proud and very active member. Our covert organization is called American Male Pigs. Our slogan to all other males and future males, is: "Get AMPed" Our purpose is to educate the present, and future male populations, so that they might be better able to distinguish between the different types of females and notify all other members of their findings. Everyone is unique. However, most women can be herded into three basic groups. Those groups are: Those who do, Those who don't, and those who do, that you won't do. The last group and by far the least important, are those who would do Anything with Anyone that you won't do. These women aren't usually very attractive. They are more often than not, quite heavy. They are NOT desirable. These are the women, who after you've been drinking heavily all night, at 2:00 A.M. still don't look good. You can see them lined up at the exit to every bar, looking quite sad, lonely and pathetic at closing time, hoping and praying to get lucky. Unfortunately this hefty flock is usually good in bed. Logic of course would dictate that they would have to be, or else they know they would NEVER get anything otherwise. The other type of third class women that aren't usually identified until it's too late, are the "FATAL ATTRACTION" type. They'll do anything you ask, whenever you ask, but in return you unknowingly give up your soul. These are without a doubt the most hazardous of women, and must be immediately identified. The second section is a strange breed indeed. Those who won't. Won't what, they won't do anything with anyone. We have all met these. Usually stuck up, with an air of conceit, grandiosity and Supreme BITCH all rolled up into one HOT, tight-assed little package. These are not hard to find. Most seem to ooze out of the woodwork. The only purpose we can find for these prudes is to PISS males off. A lot of these women will talk to you, some might actually date you. Beware of these dates! You buy your date dinner, maybe a show, then when it comes to a kiss

Research Essay- Living Life to the Fullest Essay

For one to live their life to the fullest, a person must have a purpose to live. One must have a reason to wake up every day and feel the sun shine or the rain fall, as cold as ice, on your skin. A law of life is necessary for one to have this sense of a calling as to why they walk the earth every solitary twenty-four hour day. A law of life is to surround yourself with people who make you a better person, inside and out. This holds accurate because the people your surround yourself with can either make you or break you, being social with others can either aid or inhibit in self-esteem, and surrounding yourself with better people can help you achieve goals through others’ positivity. Initially, there is a quote saying, â€Å"Surround yourself with only people that will lift you higher, because friends are the family you choose yourself. –Anonymous† The people who you are surrounded by can either make you a better person as a whole, or break you down until you are as low to the ground as a tiny bug, small and easily squashed. If you surround yourself with the people who will make you a better person, then you will become a better person just by association with positive, balanced people. On the contrary, if you surround yourself with people who are adverse and irrational, then you will become adverse and irrational, also just by association. For example, â€Å"Let’s say you have plans to see a friend who is lighthearted, enthusiastic and embraces life with eagerness and zest. Thinking about this friend brings a smile to your face because you know you’ll be having fun and enjoying each other’s company. After your time together, you’re excited about the rest of your day. You want to capture every moment and see all the beauty that’s about you. Your friend may not have intentionally tried to alter your thinking, but her positive approach and attitude was infectious (Par.2-The Importance of Surrounding Yourself w/ Good People).† The people who you let be in your company ultimately affect you as a person, and this can either make you a better person or a worse person. Another example of this would be if you’re in a group of people with a less than stellar attitude, eventually, you will become a less than stellar person. In order to become a better person, inside and out, then you must surround yourself with those people who possess the qualities to make  you a better person. Clearly, being a social individual aids in your self-esteem, it can either make your self-esteem skyrocket or it can make it plummet. Self-esteem is no doubt a massive part of you becoming the person that you wish to be. For instance, when you are speaking to your social group of friends, and they have a positive self-image, then you too should have a somewhat positive self-image. Another example of this would be inferiority. â€Å"People who feel inferior to others always keep comparing themselves to them and they always try to find problems with themselves. So how can such friends affect your self-esteem? Simply because they got used to scanning for any possible flaws they will try to find as many flaws in you as they can (Par. 6- How Friends Affect Your Self-Esteem).† Your friends can also limit your potential as to what you can and cannot achieve. Case in point, â€Å"If you were an ambitious person who was surrounded by non-ambitious friends then most likely they will try to put you down whenever you attempt to do something that they never managed to do (Par. 7 How Friends Affect Your Self-Esteem).† Self-esteem has the ability to support or hinder your self-esteem, and self-esteem in a colossal part of the way you, and your peers see yourself. Your vision of yourself can either make you better or bitter, and through a law of life, your self-esteem should make yourself better. Subsequently, picture yourself in a race on the track outside of your school. The blistering heat is beating down on your back as you’re running through the last lap of the race and you’re in the lead. You have your group of great friends on the sidelines cheering your name as you pass the finish line! Surrounding yourself with virtuous people will help you achieve your goals through their positivity. When you surround yourself with those people who cheer you on instead of bring you down, those people will help you reach your goals, not break you down to the point where you don’t want to reach them. There are two types of people, optimists and pessimists, these types of people are on opposite sides of the spectrum. For example, â€Å"It’s just that the optimist chooses to expect happiness, success, and pleasure and as a result, that’s what they find. The pessimist chooses to replay negative thoughts which lead to negative results. (Par. 5- The Importance Of  Surrounding Yourself w/ Positive People).† Adjoining yourself with optimistic people will help you reach the success, not make you feel that you can’t, that’s what a pessimist would do. For instance, if you’re around people with an attitude of being too good to reach a goal, you will not reach the goal, but if you’re around people who will be your personal cheerleaders, than you’ll most likely get the desired result. Surrounding yourself with the people who are virtuous and optimistic, then they will aid you in reaching your goals, long or short-term. Conclusively, to live a life worth living, you must have a law of life to follow. In this case, a law of life is to surround yourself with the people who bring out the best in you, and these people will make you the best you, you can be. To surround yourself with the kinds of people that will make you better, not bitter these people must possess the qualities of the people your surround yourself with can either make you or break you, being social with others can either aid or inhibit in self-esteem, and surrounding yourself with better people can help you achieve goals through others’ positivity. Works Cited 1. Radwan, M. Farouk. â€Å"How friends affect your self esteem | 2KnowMySelf.† 2KnowMySelf | The Ultimate Source for Understanding Yourself and others. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2013. . 2. Silber, Debi. â€Å"The Importance of Surrounding Yourself w/ Positive People.† All About Nurses, Nurse Communication, Nurse Community | NurseTogether. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2013. .

Macbeths Tomorrow, Tomorrow Speech Vs. Robert Frosts...

Macbeths tomarrow, Tomarrow Speech Vs. Robert Frosts out, Out - An unknown author once wrote â€Å"Never take life too seriously; after all, no one gets out of it alive†. When reading this quote, there can almost be an immediate connection between two very good works of writing: Macbeth’s â€Å"Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow† speech from Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth, and the poem â€Å"Out, Out --† by Robert Frost. Both allude to the idea that a single life, in its totality, denotes nothing, and eventually, everyone’s candle of life is blown out. However, each poet approaches this idea from opposite perspectives. Frost writes of a young, innocent boy whose life ends suddenly and unexpectedly. His poem is dry and lacks emotion from anyone†¦show more content†¦Frost, on the other hand, wipes out his character and leaves us with the feeling as that death will silence the memories of all who knew the child. With the major differences in these works of writing, there are also many similarities among the two. Both Shakespeare and Frost are trying to say death is inevitable. It takes place at different times and under different circumstances for everyone, but none-the-less, it cannot be avoided. Everyone also deals with death in their own way. Macbeth almost discards the news of his wife’s death, as he talks about life itself and how he feels about it. The people in Frost’s poem are also unfazed about the death of the boy. Another similarity is that in both poems, the people move forward with their lives. This is a reflection of human nature; most of us don’t grieve forever, but eventually find a point where we’re able to accept the death a loved one. Robert Frost and William Shakespeare have been celebrated by many people because of their ability to express themselves through the written word. Here we are years after their deaths analyzing these fascinating poems about life and death. It’s clear they had similar thoughts about this subject at the time of these writings, even though their characters could not have been more opposite. For both poets, life is too