The
Drug Education School Challenge
(D.E.S.C.) Award is a collaboration with the Cuyahoga County Opiate Task
Force (Education Committee) and Ohio PTA. The purpose of the award is to
publicly recognize schools that are providing comprehensive drug education,
prevention, and intervention programs to both students and parents. This years'
sponsor was The Sherwin- Williams
Company in Cleveland, OH as well as anonymous donors. Thanks to The
Sherwin- Williams Company for supporting schools that are promoting mental
health and drug prevention education programming!
The
1stplace D.E.S.C Award
went to Rocky River High School PTA
located in Cuyahoga County, PTA District 12. They were honored with a monetary
award. Their application was submitted by Jeffrey Petrulis, Rocky River High
School Counselor. Some highlights of their programs were the Great Kindness
Challenge, Winter Town Hall meeting with showing of the Angst Movie, which is a
documentary designed to raise awareness around anxiety. They provide a McKeon Education Group Family Liaison which is
a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor who assists RRCS counselors in
providing mental health support to RRCS students and community resource
information to RRCS families. For parental support, they provide Start Talking
and Know! Tips via emails and twitter and their Counselor’s Corner.
Their Health curriculum encompasses The SOS Signs of Suicide Prevention
Program (SOS) program. It is a universal, school-based depression awareness and
suicide prevention program designed for middle-school (ages 11–13) or high-school
(ages 13–17) students. The goals are to 1) decrease suicide and suicide
attempts by increasing student knowledge and adaptive attitudes about
depression, 2) encourage personal help-seeking and/or help-seeking on behalf of
a friend, 3) reduce the stigma of mental illness and acknowledge the importance
of seeking help or treatment, 4) engage parents and school staff as partners in
prevention through “gatekeeper” education, and 5) encourage schools to develop
community-based partnerships to support student mental health.
Congratulations
to the Rocky River High School District, their staff and the PTA for their
commitment to providing these mental health and drug prevention educational
services to their students!!
Barbara Varley, Director of HWS