Play groups and The Incredible Years class offered

Parenting can be tough. So can being a kid.

The Children's Resource Center, Bowling Green, is offering The Incredible Years training beginning in September.

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.

Also beginning in September, CRC will offer Parent-Child play groups.

These events will occur Thursday mornings Sept. 1 through Oct. 20, from 10-11:30 a.m. at CRC. It is intended for children ages 18 months to 4 years, and for their parents/guardians.

There, participants will:

• Make friends with other families
• Share experiences and ideas
• Learn how your child grows and develops
• Enjoy activities and play that is designed to promote your child's development
• Nutritious snacks will be provided

For more information, or to register for either program, contact Kristin Nagel at Children's Resource Center at (419) 352-7588 or 1-888-466-KIDS.

Parent Project starts Sept. 20

Most of us in the field, working with high-risk youth know that parent involvement is the key to behavior change with difficult, behaviorally disordered 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 (those sometimes referred to as oppositional defiant, or conduct disorder). Since 2003, nearly 250 parents have attended Parent Project in Wood County and they report that there is important information for all  parents of 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 up to and including frank gang involvement) and helping parents to set effective applicable limits. 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 for the accompanying 180-page workbook “A Parents’ Guide to Changing Destructive Adolescent Behavior.” There is no cost for the training itself. 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.

The next session will be held Tuesday evenings from Sept. 20 through Nov. 22 at the Wood County Educational Service Center, 1867 N. Research Dr., Bowling Green. 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, Wood County Educational Service Center, 1867 N. Research Dr., Bowling Green, OH, 43402. Phone: 419-354-9010, ext. 113. E-mail: 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 local Parent Project program was featured in a radio news segment that was broadcast Jan. 27, 2010 on the Morning Show hosted by Dave Horger on WBGU 88.1 FM. Listen to the segment on BG Gizmo by clicking here.

Registration will be limited to the first 30 people responding.

Wood County youth gather join others for statewide leadership training

Fifteen Wood County High School Students representing gathered at Kenyon College in Gambier, OH last week with teens from across Ohio. The training, held July 17-21, was part of Ohio Teen Institute, a leadership training program that focuses on development of resistance skills to peer pressure and drug and alcohol abuse.

Student leaders in Wood County meet several times per year to be trained, to train others in these leadership strategies, and to show them ways to have a good time without bringing drugs and alcohol into the picture. Each summer, key student leaders gather at Kenyon College to re-energize, learn more, and prepare for the upcoming year.

Surveys returned by Wood County students after the retreat reported the training made them a better leader.

The majority of students also reported that they would use what they learned to help recruit new members to Teen Institute and help spread the group’s message in their schools.

Students who attended were:

Bowling Green:

Emily Drake

Eastwood:

Carli Kehres

Lake:

Kandie King

Karris Pugh

Daniel Ingle

Breanna Reardon

Amber Studyvin

North Baltimore:

Becka Adkins

Ashley Baisden

Ashlee Quantic

Tessa Reinman

Northwood:

Andrea Howard

Penta:

Jeremy TenEyck

Dustin Bolton

Perrysburg:

Ali Kopp

Additionally, the following students were chosen to serve as youth staff at the Teen Institute event:

Bridget Cushard (Bowling Green High School graduate)
Kaylyn Haynes (Lake High School)

Jeanine Lindquist, a prevention specialist with the Wood County Educational Service Center’s School & Community-Based ATOD (Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug) Prevention Program served as adult staff at the state retreat.

Registration fees for participants were paid by ODADAS (Ohio Department of Alcohol & Drug Addiction Services) and by the Wood County Educational Service Center through a grant from the Wood County ADAMHS (Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services) Board.

Lots of online changes and updates

Hi all!!!

We recently underwent some major updates and changes in our online presence.

Find all of our links at about.me/WCESCPrevention.

Also, we have temporarily moved the School and Community-Based ATOD Prevention main site to http://wcescprevention.freehostingcloud.com/index.html#

The most exciting part is that the 2011/2012 Wood County Prevention Coalition Resource Guide is finally (FINALLY!!!!) online. This year's guide marks a huge step forward for the coalition. Not only can you download the PDF version of the guide, but you can also search out what you need in the interactive online version. Be sure to check it out at http://wcescprevention.freehostingcloud.com/Resources11-12.html.

If you prefer a printed version, please call Lorrie Lewandowski or Greg Van Vorhis at the Wood County Educational Service Center at (419) 354-9010.

If you have any ideas on how we might be able to improve our online presence even more, please let us know!!

Resource Guide now available

The 2011-2012 Wood County Prevention Coalition is now available.

View or download it by clicking here!

Sign the Pledge and Attend Prom Looking Good for Less

As part of the Wood County Educational Service Center's School and Community-Based ATOD (Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug) Prevention Program's Parents Who Host Lose the Most campaign this year, we have teamed with several area vendors to help you save money for Prom and graduation!

Simply click this link to download and/or print our flyer. Then, parents and students both must sign the pledge to be responsible during this upcoming season of celebration. Present the signed flyer to one of the listed participating vendors to receive your discount!

Have a fun and safe prom and graduation season!!!

Current teen leaders teach future teen leaders

Wood County JTI and TI members, and prevention specialist from the Wood County Educational Service Center gather outside Rossford Junior High School during the JTI retreat March 18.

Wood County Teen Institute members on Friday helped light and pass the torch of leadership during the Junior Teen Institute retreat held at Rossford Junior High School.

The event March 18 event, put on by the Wood County Educational Service Center’s School and Community-Based ATOD (Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug) prevention program.

Teen Institute groups exist to allow students to teach each other strategies to be leaders in their schools and to be a student advocate and role model for a drug, alcohol and tobacco-free lifestyle.

Approximately 70 youth from across Wood County in grades 6 through 12 attended the event, which began after school and continued into the late evening.

Teen Institute (TI) members used the leadership skills they learned in TI to lead, teach, excite and energize Junior Teen Institute members, who will continue on into TI.

Friday’s event included a cookout; a hands-on, experiential learning activities; and engaging youth in fun, educational and team-oriented activities to enforce the theme of leadership and a drug and alcohol-free lifestyle.

Eventually, JTI members will learn these leadership skills and become leaders themselves during future JTI retreats, passing the torch to the next generation of youth committed to a drug and alcohol-free lifestyle.

Emily Cohen, a senior at Rossford High School, competes in a Minute To Win It game against other family group members. More photos from the event can be found here.