About the project
The goal of this project is to increase skills and strategies for school-aged youth to create more confident, resilient, and healthy youth in rural communities. In 2016 the Aldrich Project Advisory Group conducted a community health needs assessment and found that substance use problems and mental health issues were prominent in Monroe and surrounding counties. By implementing the Second Step curriculum, the Aldrich Project Advisory Group aims to be able to expand access to substance use prevention programming for students grades K-8, as well as help them build self-esteem and resiliency.
Objectives
The project had three main goals: to implement activities for 500 children throughout community schools in Brown, Greene, Monroe, and Morgan counties; to increase awareness about emotional and social wellness concepts and how they help children develop skills; and to bring together interprofessional teams made up of undergraduate and graduate students from the IU Bloomington's health-related schools and departments.
Activities
The Aldrich Project launched its delivery of the Second Step program in 2020, which built upon the Say It Straight program, offered in 2016 to 2020, in partnership with the Centerstone Community Capacity for Prevention Education grant. Ten senior nursing students, 3 masters in public health students, and 1 doctorate in education student took on the project over the course of fall of 2022. In doing so they were able to bring the Second Step curriculum to schools in Brown, Greene, Monroe, and Morgan County School systems. They brought the curriculum to 431 school age children: all of the 5th grade classes in three Brown County elementary schools, all 5th grade classes at Eastern Greene Middle School, all 4th and 5th grades in two Monroe County schools, and 7th and 8th grade at John R. Wooden Middle School in MSD of Morgan County. This project was also able to directly impact 15 school teachers, and 7 principals by educating them on the implementation of the Fall 2022 Second Step program.
“Community schools are appreciative of the presence of IU students in their midst. They welcome the professionalism and enthusiasm displayed by the IU students, who serve as role models. The teachers also appreciated our students stepping in to teach the Second Step material.”
-Kim Decker
Results
According to the final project report, the project found several findings relating to students gaining knowledge and emotional skills depending on mode of instruction; in-person versus online recorded videos. Fifth grade students were found to benefit the most from in-person instruction and showed an increase in knowledge concerning “empathy, listening with attention skills, and assertive behavior, but no significant differences in self-efficacy when applying the skills taught." The 7th grade benefited more from in-person teaching as well, and demonstrated increased in confidence and self-efficacy of overcoming obstacles. The 8th grade showed an increase in self-efficiency when it came to identifying and disrupting bullying, and also benefited most from in-person instruction.
Partnerships
This project is a result of an IU School of Nursing-led partnership and collaboration with the Aldrich Project Advisory Group. The Aldrich Project Advisory Group includes individuals from the IUB School of Education, IU Bloomington School of Public Health, IU Bloomington School of Social Work, IU Bloomington Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, the Center of Rural Engagement, IU Health Community Health Services, and Centerstone. The Aldrich Group's project director is Kim Decker, a clinical associate professor at the IU School of Nursing, who led this project.
IU partners: Kim Decker, IU Bloomington School of Nursing (IUB SON), Sonita Ball, IUB SON, Abby Berg, IUB SON, Greg Carter, IUB SON, Derrick Garletts, IUB SON, Joyce Krothe, IUB SON, Carlene Quinn, IU Bloomington School of Social Work, Catherine Sherwood-Laughlin, IU Bloomington School of Public Health, Kathy Finley, IU Bloomington School of Public Health, Alex Purcell, IUB School of Public Health, Emma Schiestl, IU Bloomington Dept. of Psychological Brain Sciences, Mylan Gaston, CRE, and Heather Ormiston, IU Bloomington School of Education.
IU students: IUB SON: Avery Biggs, Carrington Bultemeier, Anna Cook, Hope Gummere, Alexis Ice, Aaliyah Perdieu, Emilie Reinking, Diamond Richardson, Taran Tavares, Alexandra Vjestica, IU Bloomington School of Public Health: Sarah Collins, Adyson Lasky, Ngawang Tenzin, IU Bloomington School of Education: Alexandria Thielmeyer
Community residents: Beth Allison and Kristina Hunter-Mullis
Other partners: IU Health Community Health Services (Lisa Greathouse and Amy Meek) and Centerstone (Kadie Booth)
Credits:
Created with images by sarawutnirothon - "Asian students are sitting waiting to go to school." • Ashok Sinha - "Children using computers at school" • Valerii Honcharuk - "Portrait of talking middle-aged teacher woman in classroom with students" • Jason - "School buses parked under the canopies of trees"