Programs
Prevention Programs in our Community
Serving youth in the Mount Vernon School District geographical area.
Programs
Positive Action
Philosophy of Positive Action: Positive Action is based on the intuitive philosophy that we feel good about ourselves when we do positive actions.
The Thoughts-Actions-Feelings Circle (TAF) illustrates how this works in life: our thoughts lead to actions and those actions lead to feelings about ourselves which in turn lead to more thoughts.
When this cycle is negative, students do not want to learn. When this cycle is positive, students want to learn. The essence of the program is to emphasize those actions that promote a healthy and positive cycle. The Positive Action program works through these concepts in a systematic way. (Source: https://www.positiveaction.net/introduction)
MV Hope is currently partnered with our YMCA Early Learning Centers and Skagit Valley Public Health to bring Positive Action to youth at the Y and in our community. Positive Action have kits and training designed to work for youth in pre-k through high school. We are always seeking new sites for implementation. All costs for implementation (training and supplies) are covered by MV Hope. If you have any questions or would like to find out more about implementing Positive Action in your youth serving organization, please contact Bethany Sparkle.
More information about Positive Action as a program, including research outcomes, details on lessons, and testimonials can be found at their website (www.positiveaction.net)
Programs
PAX Good Behavior Game
PAX Good Behavior Game (PAX GBG) is a school-based, classroom intervention used by teachers to teach self-regulation. PAX GBG is not a set of lessons or curriculum, but strategies teachers use throughout their day to build students' behavioral skills and stamina for focused attention and self-regulation. This is what makes PAX GBG so much more than good classroom management. Classroom management ends at the classroom door, but students take self-regulation with them in the hallways, to recess, into their homes and communities, and into their lives. Longitudinal research by Johns Hopkins University, has shown that students who received PAX Good Behavior Game are more likely to experience success in school and significantly less likely to experience difficulty with substance abuse or addiction. (Source: https://www.paxis.org/good-behavior-game-what-is-it)
MV Hope has partnered with PAX to make change for our youth. Currently PAX is running at Centennial Elementary School, where the teachers and kids love it. One of MV Hope's goals is to expand PAX to the other elementary schools in our district. Please see the video below for more about how PAX has been working in Mount Vernon.
For more information about PAX, please feel free to check out their website (www.paxis.org) or reach out to Bethany Sparkle with any questions.
Programs
Drug Take Back Day
Drug Take Back Day (TBD) is a national event sponsored by the DEA as a way to safely dispose of medications that are no longer needed within communities (see https://takebackday.dea.gov/ for more information on the federal program). TBD occurs in April and October of every year. In Skagit county it is a partnership between our local coalitions and local law enforcement agencies. MV Hope has been partnering with the county sheriff's department and running this event as a drive through service since October of 2019. As has sometimes happened during adaptations for COVID, we found that the adaptation may work better than our initial plans. We will be doing drive through services for the foreseeable future events, giving people the opportunity to stop by and drop off their medications quickly and easily. Stay tuned for more information on our next event!
If you have missed TBD and have some medications you would like to get out of the house, the sheriff's department has a drop box, and most local pharmacies will also take them for proper disposal. Feel free to reach out to Bethany Sparkle if you need any help finding safe drop off locations.
If you have medications you are currently keeping in your home, make sure that they are secured! Initial access to opioids and stimulants for youth is most often through their homes or homes of friends (citations 1, 2). MV Hope offers free medication lockboxes to anyone in our community, please reach out if you would like one or to learn more.
Citations: