Linn County Safe Schools Project

Mission | Vision | Partnership & Collaboration | Additional Links | Contact Information


In July 2008, Linn Benton Lincoln ESD was awarded a four-year federal "Safe Schools/Healthy Students" grant on behalf of the seven Linn County School Districts and partnering social service agencies. This project provides approximately $1.8 million for each of the four years. Our local Safe Schools/Healthy Students project is called the Linn County Safe Schools Project.

Mission

The mission of the Safe Schools/Healthy Students initiative is to support local communities to address the following goals:

  • To improve services to children and their families
  • To link child-serving agencies in a consistent and complimentary way
  • To decrease violence
  • To decrease drug use and abuse
  • To increase the healthy development of all children

Vision

The vision of the Linn County Safe Schools Project is to foster healthy development and create safe and respectful learning environments for all children by providing a continuum of school/community based services and supports for families with children from birth through high school that are:

  1. available locally
  2. easily accessible
  3. culturally competent
  4. sustainable

Programs/services in each of these four areas include:

  • Safe School Environments and Violence Prevention Activities
    • Building Safety Assessments at Middle Schools and High Schools
    • Middle School Bullying prevention programs

  • Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Prevention
    • Linn County Alcohol and Drug Services are providing The Life Skills Substance Abuse prevention curriculum to students in the 4th and 6th grades.
    • Reconnecting Youth high school program for students at risk of academic failure, depression and/or substance use.
    • Linn County Alcohol and Drug Services is providing school-based Drug/ Alcohol Intervention Specialist Services in Linn County's rural school districts.

  • Student Behavioral, Social and Emotional Supports
    • Schools k-12 receive support to implement Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS) systems through LBL ESD.
    • Linn County Juvenile Department provides social skills groups to at–risk middle school students across Linn County.

  • Mental Health Services
    • Life Space Crisis Intervention Training has been provided to a wide variety of staff across our schools and agencies in skills to help strengthen our ability to better connect, communicate and serve our high-risk students.
    • Linn Benton Lincoln ESD Family Support Project provides coordinated support to families facing a variety of social and academic challenges
    • Linn County Youth Services Teams provide interagency support to children, youth and families that face multiple challenges and are served by multiple agencies in Linn County.
    • Linn County Mental Health provides a range of school/community based mental health services for young children, youth and families including the implementation of school-based mental health therapy services in the rural schools in Linn County.

  • Early Childhood Social/Emotional Learning Programs
    • Linn County Public Health provides Healthy Start screening and support services to first-birth families.
    • Families have increased access to developmental screenings for young children through community outreach activities coordinated through Linn Benton Community College's Parent Education Department.
    • Physicians, child care providers and other professionals are provided training in the ASQ developmental screen.
    • Child care providers and other early childhood professionals will have increased professional development opportunities to increase knowledge and strengthen skills.
    • Family Tree Relief Nursery will provide two therapeutic classrooms for toddlers plus outreach and support services in Sweet Home and Lebanon.
    • Linn County Mental Health provides services for parents and families with very young children and training to early childhood providers to better identify and refer children to services.

Partnership and Collaboration

The Linn County Safe Schools Project is founded on a long history of successful community partnership and collaboration. The Linn County Council for Integrated Services to Children and Families provides the policy and advisory support to the Linn County Safe Schools Project. The Linn County Council has been in existence for over 20 years. This longevity demonstrates the ongoing commitment to strengthen services to children and familes in Linn County.


Additional Links

Contact Information

Safe Schools Project Manager
Kathryn Henderson (email)
Phone: (541) 812-2682

Or contact your local school district for information about local services.

LBL ESD
905 4th Avenue SE
Albany, OR 97321-3199
Phone: (541) 812.2600
Fax: (541) 926.6047
E-mail: webmaster@lblesd.k12.or.us

Last Modified: April 05, 2012