Nurturing Sources of Strength – $5,000

Curricular Area: Social Emotional Learning
Grant Focus: At-risk Students
Schools: Columbia High School, White Salmon Academy
Items Purchased: Coordinator for Sources of Strength

Sources of Strength (SOS)  is a comprehensive wellness program focusing on the prevention of suicide, violence, and substance abuse in schools and their communities.  Effective, school-based intervention to enhance mental health and social inclusion has been shown to improve attendance, grades, standardized test scores, and graduation rates, while reducing disciplinary actions. SOS trains a student selected group of adult advisors and peer leaders to positively change school and/or community norms around help seeking, codes of silence, and perceptions of adult support. Students trained as SOS peer leaders join a network of youth and caring adults across the North America.  Adult advisors receive extensive and ongoing training and resources from SOS staff so that they can model best practices for other adults, and mentor youth to become agents of positive change in their communities. This WSVEF grant supports the hiring of a coordinator to continue training and support of the program.