News Around the District

Teen Drinking Rates Drop in NE (from the Office of Public Affairs)

During the past four years, drinking rates among northeast Seattle youth have decreased, including a 19 percent drop at Nathan Hale High School and 13 percent decline at Roosevelt High School. These numbers far exceed a statewide average decrease of 5 percent during the same time period. What happened? A panel of students, school administrators, parents, and health and public safety officials will share what they’ve done to prevent underage drinking and support healthy decision-making among teens in Northeast Seattle – and how others can replicate their activities – during a “Celebrate Healthy Youth” community meeting on Monday, Oct. 10. This event is presented by Prevention WINS, a community coalition with the mission of preventing youth substance abuse in northeast Seattle.

Monday, Oct. 10th at Nathan Hale High School, 10750 30th Ave. N.E., from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.  For more info,   Inga Manskopf, PreventionWorksInSeattle.org, 206-987-7612,
 Inga.manskopf@seattlechildrens.org
                                                            
Lots of good news in SchoolBeat, the SPS e-newletter.  Highlights:
  • SPS holding an event, Symposium: Families as Partners Supporting Student Success, Saturday, Oct. 15th from 9:30 am to 2:30 pm at Garfield High School, 400 23rd Ave.

  •  Two Whitman 8th graders, Mara Hollenback and Stephanie Shao, won an award at a regional film and video festival, Young People's Film & Video Festival.

  • Gatewood teacher, Julie Trout, is one of nine finalists for Washington State's 2012 Teacher of the Year award.

  • The Roosevelt Jazz Band will open the Earshot Jazz Festival.

  • The PTSA Reflections national art program is seeking submissions through Dec. 1.  Students can submit original artwork in photography, visual arts, dance/choreography,musical composition, literature and film/video that reflect the 2011-12 “Diversity” theme. Participants will receive recognition and the chance to advance from their school to council, state or national Reflections Programs.   Students can also send inquiries to the Seattle Council PTSA Vice President of Enrichment at enrichment@seattlecouncilptsa.org.        

  • The Northwest Association for Biomedical Research invites invites 7th- and 8th-grade students at Seattle Public Schools to participate in the 2012 "Biomedical Breakthroughs and My Life" essay competition. This contest brings together writing and research skills while exploring the science behind real life medical topics of each student’s choice.

    Students choose biomedical topics that impact their lives – cancer treatments received by a relative, asthma medications that they are taking, or vaccinations given to their pet – and explain how animal models and/or human clinical trials have contributed to those biomedical treatments and cures.
    • More information and previous winning essays can be found on the NWABR Web site: http://www.nwabr.org/students/essay-contest. For more information, contact Reitha Weeks at rweeks@nwabr.org or (206) 957-3337, Ext. 3 
    • 2011 Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Families Dinner will be held 6-8 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 3 at Nova/SBOC (old Meany Middle School). District leaders and members of the School Board will be there to welcome LGBT families and their friends. All District families and staff are welcome to attend.  To reserve space at this popular event, please RSVP with the number of people in your party to Lisa Love in the Health Intervention Office at 252-0982.  
      • The Simon Youth Foundation (SYF) has nominated Beth Brunton, a teacher at Middle College High School, Northgate Mall, for its 2011 National Teacher of the Year award.
        Brunton, the Northgate site coordinator, teaches all humanities courses at the school, including language arts, civics, law and U.S. history. She helped create and sustain the Middle College at Northgate program for the past ten years.

        Along with her teaching responsibilities, Brunton is credited for helping raise funds to hire a life coach and substance abuse counselor at the school. The two staff members helped at-risk students learn how to set better goals and become more self-sufficient.

        The SYF National Teacher of the Year will be named at the SYF National Conference to be held Oct. 9-12 in Schaumburg, Ill. The conference runs in conjunction with the National Dropout Prevention Network Conference.
         

    Comments

    anonymous said…
    This comment has been removed by the author.
    10/9/11, 1:24 PM
    anonymous said…
    No matter how you slice it it's great that drinking rates at NE high schools have decreased. I do wonder though if the 19% decrease at Nathan Hale is a result of community/school efforts to deter drinking, or due to the school having a very different demographic group now that the NSAP is in effect? Nathan Hale went from a school that served a very diverse group of students coming from all over the city, to a school that now serves primarily neighborhood kids. And Ingraham went from a HS that served many south end students (that bused up for a better school), to a school that added a north end APP option this year, and a full IB diploma program a few years ago. This school too is serving a very different demographic than it did 4 years ago.

    no name
    10/9/11, 1:27 PM
    anonymous said…
    Does the district still have the "where they come from" map online? That map showed what part of town kids came from to attend each school.

    no name
    10/9/11, 1:29 PM
    Anonymous said…
    no name,

    Like you I am thrilled if teen alcohol consumption is declining "A mind is a terrible thing to waste".

    Great question about "are these the equivalent student populations" given the NSAP.

    The question I've often wondered about is the methodology employed to produce these percentages .... what is the statistical accuracy of these percentages?

    So + or minus how much? and how do we know any of this has any accuracy?
    ============

    Are changes in the Nathan Hale student demographics effecting the school drinking rates? Who knows?

    Here are some Hale numbers from OSPI

    May 2011 count 1097
    May 2010 count 1031
    May 2009 count 1040

    October 2007 count 1097

    May 2011 Low-Income 27.6%
    May 2010 low-Income 25.4%
    May 2009 Low-Income 21.1%
    May 2008 Low-Income 15.2%

    ====
    Increasing poverty ... reduced funds available for alcohol purchase... No I don't think that is it.

    -- Dan Dempsey
    10/9/11, 2:30 PM
    Melissa Westbrook said…
    I honestly don't think the demographics have a lot to do with it. I'm not aware that any particular age/race/ has a lot to do with it. A cursory look at SADD showed white teens drinking more than any other group (with Asians the lowest). The girls seem determined to keep pace with the boys and older teens are more likely to drink than younger ones.
    10/9/11, 3:30 PM
    Marion said…
    I'm curious if there has been an equal drop in marijuana use.
    10/10/11, 9:39 AM
    anonymous said…
    According to my NH high school student drinking is down, way down, but marijuana use is very high - through the roof.

    momster
    10/10/11, 4:26 PM
    Anonymous said…
    You can see the numbers for Roosevelt at the Prevention Works website.

    Look for news posted July 25th for healthy youth survey results 2011.

    Alcohol, marijuana, prescription drug abuse all down for seniors. Alcohol & binge drinking down for sophomores, marijuana use up. Minority of kids using.

    Very deliberate effort at parent education, child education, drug counselors in schools, etc. over last several years.

    - mom
    10/10/11, 5:53 PM
    Anonymous said…
    And the Nathan Hale numbers of alcohol & marijuana users are all down. For seniors & sophomores the numbers are down according to the healthy youth survey last spring.

    See Prevention Works website news posts from last July.

    -mom
    10/11/11, 8:31 AM
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