No Wrong Door training April 23

There will be a No Wrong Door training held April 23, 2013 8:30 am - 12:30 pm and Oct. 10, 2013 8:30 am - 12:30 pm. You can choose which date to attend. For more information, click here to view, download, or print the flier.

Register for Junior Teen Institute Retreat NOW

It's time to have FUN!!!!!!

The Junior Teen Institute retreat will be held Friday, March 22, at Rossford Junior High School.

Junior Teen Institute is a group of middle school students dedicated to learning leadership skills and having FUN, while committing to being drug and alcohol-free.

Awesome, fun-filled events have been planned for the retreat. The theme of the night is "Life: What Do I Stand For?"

It sounds like a serious topic, right? Well, it is. And it is a question that you will explore and answer at the retreat. But we will help you find the answer in FUN and exciting ways, including playing a board game using life-size game pieces that YOU will create. There will be music, food, friendly competition, zany wackiness, surprises, and did we mention....FUN????

All of it will be lead by members of Wood County Teen Institute.

In order to attend, you must either be a member of Wood County Teen Institute or Wood County Junior Teen Institute, and turn a registration form and $5 in to your school's prevention specialist.

How do you become a member of TI or JTI, you ask? First, you must attend middle school or high school in one of the following districts:

• Bowling Green
• Eastwood
• Elmwood
• Lake
• North Baltimore
• Northwood
• Otsego
• Perrysburg
• Penta Career Center
• Rossford

Contact the main office and ask to speak to your drug prevention specialist. Tell your prevention specialist that you want to join Teen Institute or Junior Teen Institute, and get in on the FUN at the JTI retreat on March 22! Your prevention specialist will hook you up and give you the next steps.

Who is your prevention specialist? We're glad you asked!! Go to your school's office and ask for the following people:

• Bowling Green - Emily Krynock
• Eastwood - Mike Kipplen
• Elmwood - Tonya Lentz
• Lake - Jeanine Lindquist
• North Baltimore - Mike Kipplen
• Northwood - Bill Hamilton
• Otsego - Emily Krynock
• Perrysburg - Melissa Notestine
• Penta Career Center - Linda Logue
• Rossford - Jim Snider

In the meantime, here is a flyer about the retreat, and a registration form, if you want to get ahead of the game and turn it, along with $5, in A.S.A.P. The deadline to register for all of this FUN is March 9. Do it NOW. You know you want to.

Parent Project classes have been added

New Parent Project classes have been added!!! 

Eight-week sessions are now being offered beginning July 11 and Sept. 24. 

Contact Lorrie Lewandowski at the Wood County Educational Service Center at 419-354-9010 for more information!! 

Learn more about the class, and register online at www.parentproject.com.

Ohio's texting law: An overview

Do you know the details about Ohio's new texting law?

Under age 18, it is illegal to use any mobile communications device while driving in Ohio, effective Aug. 31, 2012.

* This means no texting, e-mailing, cell phone, video games, iPad/tablet or handheld GPS use while driving, even when sitting at a light or in a traffic jam.

* A primary offense - The only reason police need to pull you over.

* First violation: $150 fine and driver's license suspended for 60 days.

* Second violation: $300 fine and license suspended for one year.

* Exceptions: Pre-programmed GPS or emergency calls to police, ambulance fire dept., etc.

*Adult drivers face a $150 fine for texting or reading/sending e-mails.

Parent Project starts Jan. 8 - Register NOW!!

Most of us in the field, working with high-risk youth know that parent involvement is the key to behavior change with adolescents. Yet, effectively educating parents in basic behavioral strategies is time consuming and repetitive. The Parent Project® is a parent training program designed for parents of strong-willed adolescents.  Since 2003, more than 250 parents and their adolescents have attended Parent Project in Wood County and they report that there is important information in Parent Project classes for parents of all teens.   

Topics include reducing family conflict and arguing, improving school performance and attendance, identifying and intervening with alcohol and other drug abuse, interceding with negative peer associations (including inappropriate dating relationships) and helping parents to set clear, consistent rules with enforceable consequences. Parents who attend the Parent Project® are more likely to see positive behavior changes as parents understand and practice  powerful Parent Project interventions at home. The motto of the Parent Project® is “Parents are the answer … when they have the tools they need.”

Presented in an educational format, parents are trained for a low fee of $20 for the accompanying 180-page workbook. Youth ages 12-18 are also invited to attend a separate class at no additional cost.  If the entire course is completed and the parent has attended all of the required sessions, the $20 fee will be refunded. Parents attend 18 hours of instruction for a cost of less than one session of private counseling.

Here are some comments from a family that completed Parent Project in the fall of 2011:

The information we learned from the sessions is priceless!   Each session was full of information and techniques designed to help deal with a variety of issues and situations that we are faced with on a daily basis.  This class has empowered us to make positive changes in our family dynamics.  After the first session we were so excited to learn more.  We began to implement the techniques immediately and saw results right away. We continued to learn and use the tools given to us.  By the end of the last session we were feeling more confident that we were definitely on our way to becoming better parents, and raising respectful well adjusted teenagers!   Following the guidelines we were given has definitely resulted in a more positive and happy environment at our house.    Words could not express the appreciation we feel for the opportunity to have attended these classes.   We would highly recommend The Parent Project to all parents!  

The next session will be held Tuesday evenings from Jan. 8 through March 10 at the Glenwood Elementary School, 8950 Avenue Rd., Perrysburg, OH, 43551. The first two classes will run from 6 to 9 p.m. The remainder of the classes run from at 6 to 8 p.m.

For more information or to register, contact Lorrie Lewandowski at 419-354-9010, ext. 113 or by e-mail at llewandowski@wcesc.org.

You also can find more information and register by visiting www.parentproject.com and click on “find a class in your area” in the top right-hand corner.

The New Cool Contest starts Oct. 1

Do you want to win some cool prizes, like an iPod Touch, a digital camera package, or free movie tickets?

Here is your chance. Next week, students in Wood County will be able to participate in The New Cool contest. Here are the details and all of the official rules:

• The 5-day Contest will run October 1^st -5^th.
• Students between the ages of 12 and 18 who lives in Wood County or attends a school district in Wood County are eligible for the contest.
• Each day, participating students will be required to provide their first and last name, school district, grade, age, email and cell phone number for winner notification. To make sure the winner attends a Wood County school we will verify enrollment of each winner.
• Each day of the contest, a question will be posted between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. The questions will require the student to search the website to find the answer. The answer(s) to all of the questions can be found somewhere on www.thenewcool.info Web site. Once the question is posted, students have until 7 a.m. the following morning to answer it. A new question will be posted  each day of the contest. The correct answers will be posted on the The New Cool Web site on Monday, October 8.
• Only one correct answer per student per day will be entered in the drawing, allowing students to have as many as 5 entries for the week. Names of the five winners will be chosen at the Red Ribbon Kick-off luncheon on October 19. Winners will be notified by phone, or by e-mail. One prize per contestant. Once a prize is awarded, it cannot be traded for a different prize. If a student’s name is chosen a second time, a new winning name will be chosen for the next available prize.
• Prizes will consist of: an Apple iPod Touch, a digital camera package, four general admission tickets to a BGSU hockey, football or basketball game of your choice (up to $80 total value, not valid on “premium” games), a $50 gift card to Wal-Mart, and two passes to the Levis Commons Movie Theater. An additional 50 New Cool bookbags will also be given away.
• Winners whose names are chosen will be awarded prizes in the order in which the names are chosen, matched with the order in which the prizes are listed above. If for any reason a student is found to be ineligible, a replacement winner will be chosen from the remaining names.
• Winners will be required to claim their prize from the Wood County Educational Service Center, 1867 N. Research Dr., Bowling Green, OH, during regular business hours by October 31, unless other arrangements are made. Winners will be required to sign a form indicating they received the prize.
• Family members of ATOD staff will not be allowed to participate.
• Prizes are subject to change at the discretion of ESC staff.

For more information, or to participate, visit www.thenewcool.info.

Incredible Years starts Oct. 2

Parenting can be tough. So can being a kid.

The Children's Resource Center, Bowling Green, The Incredible Years training beginning October 2, at First United Methodist Church, 1506 E. Wooster St., Bowling Green.

At the Incredible Years parent training:

• Promotes positive parenting strategies
• Supports children's development
• Provide strategies in managing children's behavior

All parent participants will receive on-site child care, a light meal, completion certificates, and an extended support network.

The 14-week classes will be held each Tuesday beginning Oct. 2, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. To register for this session, contact Angie Patchen at Children's Resource Center at (419) 352-7588 or 1-888-466-KIDS. Register soon, as space is limited.