Upcoming class may be missing manual for parenting

Parenting can be tough. So can being a kid.

The Children's Resource Center, Bowling Green, is teaming with the Jordan Family Development Center, located on the campus of Bowling Green State University, to offer The Incredible Years training.

At the Incredible Years parent training, parents of children ages 3 to 8 will learn how to:

• Increase children's self-esteem and self-confidence.
• Strengthen children's social skills
• Discipline effectively
• Boost academic success

The 12-week classes will be held June 29; July 6, 13, 20, 27; Aug. 3, 10, 17, 24, 31; and Sept. 7 and 14. Each class will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Jordan Center, located at 812 N. College Dr., Bowling Green, Ohio.

Classes are low-cost and space is limited. Child care is available. Light meals will be provided each week.

Register by June 23 by calling Angie Patchen at the Children's Resource Center at (419) 352-7588 or 1-888-466-KIDS.

Wood County youth rewarded for drug-free leadership

On June 10,  73 Wood County students who are members of Teen Institute were awarded for their hard work throughout the year with a trip to Cedar Point. 

Teen Institute emphasizes peer leadership and positive life skills development.  Members must commit to being drug free.  There is a Teen Institute group in each Wood County high school.

This year, area Teen Institute members participated in two area retreats as well as helped facilitate a retreat for the members of Junior Teen Institute which is open to junior high students.  Members also worked with Red Ribbon efforts in their individual districts, as well as other local drug free leadership activities., including an effort to send toiletry and food items to our troops overseas and various fundraising efforts to support the Cocoon Shelter in Bowling Green.

Teen Institute is a program offered through the Wood County Educational Service Center. Funding  is provided by the Wood County ADAMHS (Alcohol Drug Addiction Mental Health Services) Board and ODADAS (Ohio Department Alcohol Drug Addiction Services).

Drug testing has great impact on use

The six school districts involved with the Federal Grant for Drug Testing in the Schools through the Wood County Educational Service Center recently concluded another year of testing. To determine the impact of the drug testing program, the students were asked to complete a survey to determine attitudes. The results were compared to last spring's survey results and the outcomes were dramatic.

Monthly marijuana use decreased from 7 percent to 3.6 percent, while monthly alcohol use decreased from 15.4 percent to 9.8 percent. Yearly use of marijuana was even more pronounced, decreasing form 10.6 percent to 6.5 percent, with yearly alcohol use decreasing by more than 10 percent, dropping from 31.6 percent to 21 percent. To put this in perspective, the 2009 National Partnership Attitude Tracking Survey found that marijuana use by students in grades 9-12 increased by 19 percent for yearly use, and monthly alcohol use increased by 11 percent.

The survey seems to indicate that the expanded drug testing, made possible by the grant, has been very effective in changing not only attitudes, but actual student behavior.

BG Teen Institute sends students to state conference

Bowling Green High School's Teen Institute is proud to announce that three Bowling Green High School students have been chosen to attend the state-wide Ohio Teen Institute conference.

Seniors Bridget Cushard, Emily Gerken, and Christina Hohman will represent BGHS at the event which will take place at Kenyon College from July 18-July 22. Ohio Teen Institute (OTI) is a week long drug free leadership conference for high school students. Through the program, students develop the skills to become a positive leader within their schools and communities. Students are also equipped with the knowledge and abilities to not only make positive choices for themselves, but also to encourage their peers to make healthy decisions.

Parent Project starts July 8

Parenting is a difficult job, and there is no instruction manual. The Parent Project was designed to connect the love and care parents have for their teens with the skills and support necessary to navigate the job of parenting.

As a participant in the 8-week Parent Project® class offered by the Wood County Educational Service Center, you can expect to learn effective communication strategies and other helpful parenting skills. Additionally this series will include important information regarding adolescent depression, alcohol and other drug use and the influence of music and media on today’s youth.

Many parents attending Parent Project® have had difficulty identifying appropriate limits and enforcing consequences consistently. Parents who attend the Parent Project® are more likely to see their child’s attendance at school improve, and to require less school-based disciplinary resources as parents find powerful interventions at home with which to bring about change in their children. 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, which covers the cost of the accompanying 180-page workbook. If the entire course is completed and the parent has attended all of the required sessions, the $20 fee will be refunded. A class for teens also is offered at no additional charge.

The next session will be held Tuesday evenings from July 8 through August 26 at the Wood County Educational Service Center, 1867 N. Research Dr., Bowling Green. The first class will begin at 5:30 p.m. The remainder of the classes begin at 6 p.m.

For more information or to register, contact Lorrie Lewandowski, Wood County Educational Service Center, 1867 N. Research Dr., Bowling Green, OH, 43402. Phone: 419-354-9010, ext. 113. E-mail: wcesc_ll@nwoca.org.

Registration will be limited to the first 30 people responding.

May 2010 BOARD REPORT

ATOD School And Community Based Prevention Program

The Wood County Youth Survey Dr. William Ivoska presented the 2010 Wood County ADAMHS Youth Survey report on Friday, May 14 at Owens Community College.

Substance Use

• Nicotine use has decreased nationally since 1996.  Wood County showed similar decreases in monthly use, however the use of smokeless tobacco rose among 11^th and 12^th grade males. 
• Annual and monthly use of alcohol declined dramatically at a faster rate than the national rate.  Binge drinking declined in all grades. 
• In contrast to recent national studies, marijuana use continues to decline in all grades for 30-day use.  Minor increases were reported in annual marijuana use in 11^th and 12^th grades.  Wood County reports lower than national rates.
• Inhalant use increased in grades 5, 6 and slightly in 10.  Rates declined in all other grades.
• Ecstasy use showed a sharp increase in 10, 11, and 12^th grades (12^th – 3.5%-5.5%).  Findings parallel the 2009 Partnership for a Drug Free America study.
• Methylphenidate and Amphetamine (Ritalin, Concerta, Adderall) are at their lowest levels in grades 7-10.  Increases were reported in grades 11 and 12.
• LSD is at the lowest levels ever reported in Wood County, except for grade 12 where increases were reported.  Wood County rates are higher than the national averages in grades 10, 11, and 12.
• Narcotic Painkillers have remained steady since 2004.  The use of painkillers among high school ages youth appears considerably higher than the national average.
• Cocaine use remains low except for higher than national rates for high school seniors.
• Cough medicine rates have not changed, however there is cause for concern as rates are much higher than the national averages.

Prevention Efforts

The Wood County Youth Survey reported students who received Life Skills Training reported lower rates of substance use among a broad range of substances.  Dr. Ivoska explained that prevention efforts appear to be effective in reducing substance use with findings that high school juniors and seniors who received Life Skills Training were less likely to use substances than were teens at lower grade levels.

Mental Health

The more teens indicate that they experience internal or external distress, the more likely they are using alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs.  Youth report a decrease in significant (7.8%) and moderate (15.4%) mental health problems.

Bullying

Verbal bullying is the most prevalent form of bullying for Wood County youth were 33.6% report being victims.  Cyber and physical bullying is experienced by 11% of youth.  Victims of bullying are more likely to report substance use, moderate, severe, or intense mental health issues, and more likely to think about suicide.

Communities Mobilizing for Change in Alcohol (CMCA) Task Force CMCA has been working on a media campaign, The New Cool, and we hear it’s creating quite a buzz.  One of the components of this campaign which is designed to change the perception that NOT drinking is cool, not the other way around, is having posters in all the Wood County high schools that contain positive messages and have images of kids making good choices and having fun while being alcohol free.  Since the posters were not finished until spring it was decided to have them in schools at the start of the school year rather than the end of this year.  To get people to anticipate the campaign we have “teaser” signs, the size of bumper stickers, up at all the schools.  These signs feature our new cool logo and say “Coming Fall 2010…The New Cool”.  We hear that many people have noticed them and have been asking what they mean.

The second part of the media campaign is the New Cool website that is being developed and is anticipated to go live sometime late summer.

CMCA Street Team Fourteen drug free Wood County youth will represent Communities Mobilizing for Change on Alcohol as the youth voice of reducing underage drinking.  Plans are for 2 training sessions to be held this summer to get these team members ready to man the booths at several fairs in the county and survey attendees about underage drinking, access availability of alcohol in various Wood County stores, and work on other alcohol awareness projects.

Parents Who Host Lose the Most The 2010 campaign kicked off with a parent meeting in April and signs with the “Parents Who Host” logo and local law enforcement numbers have been posted around the county.  There are a number of different signs including 16’ outdoor banners, 4’ indoor banners, and outdoor realty signs posted in the front lawns of schools, homes, and businesses.

BG schools support Parents Who Host campaign

Teen Institute at BGHS through the Wood County Educational Service Center’s School and Community-Based Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug (ATOD) prevention program is proud to be a part of the environmental awareness campaign, "Parents Who Host, Lose the Most."

Drug-Free Action Alliance has developed the "Parents Who Host, Lose The Most: Don't be a party to teenage drinking" public awareness campaign to provide parents with accurate information about the health risks of underage drinking and the legal consequences of providing alcohol to youth. The campaign encourages parents and the community to send a unified message at prom and graduation time that teen alcohol consumption is not acceptable. It is illegal, unsafe, and unhealthy for anyone under age 21 to drink alcohol.