School Based Prevention Staff

What is a Student Assistance Program?

The Student Assistance Program (SAP) of Vermont is modeled after the Employee Assistance Program developed during World War II to assist employees in dealing with whatever mental health issue is surfacing in one’s life. In the late 80s, Ellen Morehouse developed SAP, which VT adopted. The first SAPs worked part-time in area high schools, reaching out to high-risk students. As time progressed, the program became much more uniform, guided by prevention needs and student data. There are now 53 elementary, middle, and high schools that have an SAP, either part-time or full-time.

According to the Department of Education, Vermont is serving 79,782 students across the 305 public schools for the 2024-25 school year (there are 141 private schools, serving 13,422 students. 86% of all K-12 students in Vermont attend public schools. Student Assistance Programs are a response to the many and varied personal problems that students bring with them to school, including alcohol and other drug-related issues. The basic tenet of the program is hiring a counselor with a background in Substance misuse and mental health who is available to all students to guide them in whatever their mental health issues are; a diagnosis is not needed, nor is treatment provided; rather, they screen, assess, refer, and offer resources. SAP works as part of a comprehensive team in supporting students in a variety of issues, including school struggles, substance misuse, violence, neglect, sexual abuse, depression, and suicidality. SAPs are one more link in the continuum of care: Prevention, Intervention, Treatment/Support & Aftercare. SAPs provide prevention education in classrooms, facilitate prevention groups, offer staff and parent/Community training, and work with administrators to develop and update school policies.

The Six Core Components of a Student Assistance Program

The SAP model is designed to be flexible, allowing schools and communities to build programs that align with their existing systems, resources, and emerging student needs. While SAP programs may look different from one school to another, strong programs generally include six core components:

Early Identification
Identify students experiencing academic, personal, behavioral, social, or other concerns before those challenges significantly interfere with their school experience, well-being, or development.
Early Intervention
Take timely, supportive action to help students begin a positive process of change and connect with appropriate supports.
Pre-Assessment
Gather enough information to better understand the student’s needs and determine the most appropriate next steps, supports, or referrals.
Referral and Connection to Services
Connect students with appropriate school-based or community resources when additional support, assessment, or services are needed.
Support Access and Follow-Through
Help students and families navigate available services and reduce barriers to accessing appropriate supports within the school or community.
Ongoing Student Support and Skill Building
Provide opportunities such as educational support groups, individual support, skill-building activities, and other evidence-informed strategies that strengthen protective factors, healthy decision-making, coping skills, and students’ ability to engage successfully in school.

What Is a Pre-Assessment?

A preliminary assessment, or pre-assessment, is not intended to diagnose a student or provide an in-depth clinical assessment. Instead, it gathers the minimum information necessary to determine:

Whether the student’s concerns can be appropriately addressed through existing school-based supports and services; or
Whether a referral to an outside provider or community agency may be appropriate for additional assessment, services, or treatment recommendations.

Adapted from Help Is Down the Hall: A Handbook on Student Assistance, a SAMHSA publication developed by the National Association for Children of Addiction (NACoA).

For Supervisors

All SAP professionals are encouraged to participate in consistent, ongoing supervision appropriate to their role, responsibilities, and credentials.

Provides a structured opportunity for feedback, reflection, skill development, and professional growth.
Supports quality service delivery and can improve confidence, effectiveness, and job satisfaction.
Offers a space to process challenging situations and the emotional impact of working with students and families.
Helps professionals strengthen boundaries, ethical decision-making, and effective prevention and intervention practices.
Provides guidance and shared responsibility when navigating complex student needs or situations.
Supports ongoing evaluation, accountability, and identification of professional development needs.
Can assist supervisors and organizations with performance support, role clarity, and workforce development.
Supervision should occur regularly and be appropriate to the SAP professional’s credential and scope of practice.
When applicable, credential-specific supervision requirements should also be followed.

This rubric outlines key best practices and benchmarks for Student Assistance Professionals (SAPs) working in K-12 schools. SAPs are integral in supporting students with academic, behavioral, social, and emotional needs, specifically as they pertain to substance misuse.. The rubric is organized into key areas of professional practice, with expectations for effective performance at varying levels of proficiency. It is designed to be used as a tool for administrators and supervisors

The document highlights the role of Student Assistance Programs (SAP) and school prevention staff in the early stages of this continuum, stressing the importance of proactive measures to address risks and strengthen prevention efforts. This integrated approach seeks to effectively reduce and prevent substance misuse through collaboration and targeted interventions.

Student Assistance Program (SAP) job descriptions typically include roles that support the mental, emotional, and behavioral well-being of students. SAP professionals collaborate with school staff, parents, and community organizations to identify and address students’ needs, helping them overcome barriers to academic success. Responsibilities may involve assessing students’ needs, providing brief counseling or interventions, coordinating with external resources, and leading prevention programs on topics like substance abuse, mental health, and bullying. Key skills often required include strong communication, empathy, and the ability to work collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team. These roles aim to create a safer, more supportive school environment, promoting resilience and overall student wellness. The following documents are a guide to the role.

Recommended Training Opportunities For New SAPS

For new Student Assistance Professionals (SAPs), the following training is recommended to build a strong foundation in substance misuse prevention and intervention:

•Substance Misuse Prevention Essentials: Core concepts in substance misuse prevention.

•Special Topics in Prevention of Substance Misuse: In-depth exploration of complex prevention issues.

•Adolescent 6-Part Webinar Series: Insights into youth-specific substance misuse challenges.

•SBIRT (Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment): Practical tools for early identification and intervention.

•Safety Planning for Youth Suicide Prevention: Strategies for preventing youth suicide.

•Preventing Underage Cannabis Use: Risk/Protective Factors & Effective Communication: Addressing cannabis use among youth.

•Pharmacology for Prevention Specialists: Understanding the effects of substances and pharmacology basics.

All pieces of training can be found at www.healtheknowledge.org

Pacific Southwest PTTC

What Research Shows Does NOT Work in Substance Misuse Prevention.

“SHEDDING LIGHT ON INEFFECTIVE STRATEGIES IN SUBSTANCE MISUSE PREVENTION”

There are many evidence-based prevention programs and practices available to families, schools, and communities that focus on preventing substance misuse and its associated harmful consequences among youth and young adults. Over time, evaluations of these programs and practices have also identified which ones are ineffective and in some cases, have adverse effects (e.g., increasing substance use). As prevention practitioners, it is critical to identify ineffective approaches so that resources are better invested, we can mobilize communities to implement effective prevention programs and practices, and we do no harm. While the prevention field has begun to move away from some ineffective strategies, it is important to continue identifying ineffective and in some cases, harmful (e.g., unintentionally leading to increases in use) strategies being implemented in communities. The science of prevention is advancing, and so is our understanding of what works and what does not work in substance misuse prevention. This report focuses on more recent research that describes what does not work in substance misuse prevention. Specifically, the work summarized in this report is taken from research that has been either peer-reviewed (i.e., evaluated by other experts in the field) or published in the form of white papers (i.e., another research-based document) where the findings did not establish any significant impact on preventing key substance use or risk factor outcomes. For more information on how to find other research on what does and does not work in prevention, review this resource from the Pacific Southwest Prevention Technology Transfer Center, ” How to Conduct a Thorough Literature Search.”