Middle School Programs - New Jersey Peer to Peer - Princeton Center for Leadership Training

NEW JERSEY PEER TO PEER (NJPTP)

Peer Leadership and Substance Abuse Prevention Network for NJ Middle Schools

This was a great [program] and I learned so much. I improved my leadership skills, public speaking skills, and met many new people. I am so glad I attended because I believe our [team] can really make a difference in our state and community.

- Student Leadership Corps Member

what schools receive

Comprehensive training for stakeholders and advisors

	Stakeholder Training
	Orientation and Residential Training for New Advisors
	Follow-Up Training for Veteran and New Advisors

Special statewide events for students and advisors

Separate Days of Learning for veteran and new schools for advisors and students to network, expand their prevention skills, and learn outreach activities to conduct in their schools

Curriculum materials

	New Jersey Peer to Peer Advisors Guide – focused on substance abuse prevention paired with the social and emotional skills implicit in the ability to refuse drugs and communicating effectively with peers and younger students
	New Jersey Peer to Peer Outreach Handbook – presentations for students to conduct with their peers covering five key drugs including tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, inhalants, and over-the-counter/prescription drugs

Ongoing support and assessment

	School-based site visits and consultation as needed
	Program evaluation
	Program newsletter

Funding

Program costs can be funded through Character Education and/or Title IV (Safe and Drug-Free Schools Act) grants offered by the NJ Department of Education.

references

Roosevelt Intermediate School, 301 Clark Street,
Westfield, NJ 07090

Contact:

Dr. Ken Shulack, Principal
908-789-4560

Upper Pittsgrove School, 235 Pine Tavern Road,
Monroeville, NJ 08343

Contact:

Dr. Jay Dugan, Superintendent/Principal
856-358-8163

Lord Stirling Community School, 101 Redmond Street,
New Brunswick, NJ 08901

Contact:

Rosaura Lorente, Principal
732-745-5900, x 5391

how do we know it works?

The results of five years of comprehensive program evaluation clearly indicate that New Jersey Peer to Peer has demonstrated success in achieving its stated objectives:

	Students exposed to NJPTP activities both as student leaders and as participants in peer-led outreach activities have repeatedly demonstrated lower mean rates of tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use than students with no exposure to the program. This result has been found consistently for use both in the past 30 days and in the past year.

	Regarding attitudes toward substance use, consistent findings have emerged indicating that targeted students are significantly more likely than control students to report:
	greater abilities to talk to peers about substance use issues; greater perceptions of student efficacy to impact substance use; more appropriate perceptions of risks associated with student use; and stronger desires to talk to adults, peers and friends about substance use issues.

	Significant findings have been consistently linked with positive school climate, indicating that climate may be a mediating factor related to the success of prevention programs.

	“Peers learn anti-drug message”, Burlington County Times, April 4, 2001
	“Students learn to be peer leaders”, Today’s Sunbeam, April 15, 2002

Kietha Biggers, Director,
NJ Peer to Peer

609-252-9300 x 102
Kbiggers@
princetonleadership.org