The Second Step Program “arrived” in Washington County on November 18, 2004.  On that date five teachers from Washington School District and one from John F. Kennedy School attended a Staff Training to prepare them to use the Second Step Curriculum in their schools.

The training was presented by deRicci Horwatt, Kristen Kalamaras and Sandra Conaway from Gateway VISION in Washington, PA. Training and curriculum materials were funded through a State Initiative Grant, which was collaboratively written by the Washington School District, the Neighborhood Drug Awareness Core Agency, the Washington Drug and Alcohol Commission and Gateway VISION, a division of Gateway Rehabilitation Center.

The Second Step Program, a research-based curriculum, is currently being utilized in over 15,000 schools in North America.  The research conducted and published by the Committee for Children, a non-profit organization from Seattle, Washington, shows that aggressive behavior in children predicts risk of later delinquency, substance abuse, school dropout, early parenthood, and depression.  The impact of these behaviors on families and communities is huge. 

The foundation of the program relates to four essential social competencies.  They are:  Empathy, impulse control, problem solving and anger management.  The Second Step program teaches children how to deal with emotions, resist impulsive behavior, resolve conflict, solve problems, and to understand the consequences of their actions.  As a result of this curriculum being taught to children from K-8th grade, potential increases for growth in self-confidence and a readiness for academic learning are possible realities.

Following the completion of this one-day training, the mission for the participants is to integrate this curriculum into their prevention programming through teaching the age appropriate lessons.  The ultimate goal of presenting these lessons is to teach young people important life skills which will then lead to a more positive and successful learning environment for the entire school community.

Implementation of the Second Step Program is current in two middle schools in Washington County.  Last school year, Year One of the Grant, all sixth grade students in Washington Middle School were taught Level One, which consists of 15 lessons.  This initial Level provides a foundation of knowledge and skills that are built upon, refined and reinforced over the next two years.

In this, our 2^nd year of the Grant, lessons are being taught at 6^th, 7^th and 8^th grades at Washington Middle School.  Sixth and eighth graders receive Level One instruction and 7^th graders move up to Level Two.   John F. Kennedy Middle School is also participating this year.  All 6^th, 7^th and 8^th graders are being taught Level One.  Feedback from the teachers and students has been positive.  Students are beginning to transfer skills learned in the classroom to their “real” world interacting with peers.