Programs
- Second Step Violence Prevention Program
- The overall goal of the Second Step project is to reduce youth sexual involvement by young people in Lauderdale County. In order to achieve this goal, the following objectives will be undertaken:
- To train a minimum of 4 Prevention staff group leaders in Second Step at the Boys & Girls Club of Lauderdale County.
- To conduct activity sessions of the Second Step program at the Boys &
Girls Club of Lauderdale County.
- To provide a minimum of 30 one-hour education programs on Violence
Prevention using the Second Step curriculum to students in grades 7th
and 8th in the Meridian Public Schools.
- Participants in the Second Step Program will achieve the following:
- Increase knowledge about social skills such as empathy, impulse control, and anger management.
- Increase communication among staff members, parents, guardians, and Club members regarding violence prevention.
- Help pre-teens and teens to identify and resist peer and media pressures to engage in gang and violent activity and to understand the physical and social changes taking place in their lives.
- Help teens to develop and improve skills around making decisions, resisting social and peer pressures, and coping with the stress of growing up.
- SMART Moves (Skills Mastery And Resistance Training) Program
- SMART Moves is a flexible comprehensive program using effective techniques and strategies that help young people deal with three of the most immediate threats to their well-being: alcohol, other drugs, and teen pregnancy.
- The Boys & Girls Club of Lauderdale County believes that young people need skills to help them counter peer, social, and media influences to use alcohol and other drugs and engage in sexual and violent behaviors.
- SMART Moves is designed to reduce preteen and teen vulnerability to use drugs and become sexually involved. In small age-appropriate groups, participants engage in discussion and role-playing aimed at promoting community awareness and establishing a Club environment that encourages young people to say NO and make healthy choices. The focus of this effort is on no drug use as opposed to "responsible" drug use, and postponement of sexual involvement as opposed to contraceptive education.
- Through these program components, 300 youth will be involved in the small group prevention activities; over 500 will be involved in Club/community-wide prevention activities; at least 15 parents will be trained; and 12 volunteers will help in community service projects.
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