AVCS
Moriah
NAC
Saranac
Ticonderoga
CVESSocial & Emotional Support Programs
Safe Schools/Healthy Students schools will participate in programs aimed at positively promoting the social and emotional health of students and their families. Students, families and community members will learn more through a variety of events and activities including: health fairs, parent newsletters, community events, and student after school programs.
Developmental Asset Building
The Search Institute’s Developmental Asset Building Model is an evidenced based approach that promotes 40 Developmental Assets in young people. Assets are positive experiences, relationships, opportunities, and personal qualities that young people need to grow up healthy, caring, and responsible.
Developmental Asset Building resources will be integrated into various venues such as school newsletters, health fairs, and community events. Ideas for Parents, 50Search Institute parent newsletters, will be sent home weekly with students outlining practical ideas for promoting positive youth development.
Adventure Based Learning - ABL
Adventure Based Learning is an after school program targeting individual students. The program goal is for participants to achieve significant growth in the attitudes, behaviors and values that will facilitate their successful individual and social development. Specific objectives include: improved judgment and decision-making; increased self-esteem; development of pro-social group affiliation; increased interpersonal trust; development of initiative and self-discipline.
The program is comprised of carefully selected challenging activities, structured so as to promote the student to take initiative, make decisions, and be accountable for the results, in a small group environment.
ABL consists of a carefully constructed sequence of activity selection, group briefing, goal setting, activity completion, and process debriefing. Activities are structured incrementally so that skills development parallels the graduated difficulty of the tasks. Specific skills are taught and resources are provided appropriate to the activity. Core concepts of ABL are the “Full Value Commitment” and “Challenge by Choice”.
The “Full Value Commitment” asks that group participants agree to:
- Be Here…be physically and mentally present and participate in group activities.
- Be Safe…commit to maintain physical and emotional safety
- Set Goals…agree to set goals for each group meeting
- Be Honest… agree to listen to others around the first three issues and provide feedback to others in a similar manner
- Let Go and Move On…commit to let go of negative feelings that may emerge during group meetings
- Care for Self and Others…agree to take responsibility for one’s self and other group members during the
- meeting
The “Challenge by Choice” concept requires that participation be voluntary and that participants choose at what level they will engage in any group activity. Related to goal setting, each individual decides how much risk they will undertake in an activity. Although encouraged and supported to make gains, individual choices are fully respected.
Activities selected are stimulating and fun as well as growth enhancing. Sample activities include: non-competitive games; problem initiatives; trust falls; low ropes courses; hiking/backpacking; rock climbing; and community service. Some activities can be engaged indoors with portable equipment and materials. Others require specific outdoor environments, specialized equipment, and a high level of technical and safety expertise.
All projects include a large variety of cooperative games; team buildings challenges and trust building exercises that are utilized to create a parallel process to many challenges in life. Everything needed to participate is provided by the program including: lunch, transportation, all equipment, specialized clothing, and support!
For more information, please contact:
Wanda McQueen -
Project Administrator
(518) 561-0100 x 357
School Community Coordinator
(518) 561-0100 x373