Project Hope's Prevention Exploration Series is a set of three one-hour sessions provided to 5^th, 6^th, or 8^th grade students in classroom settings. The curriculum was originally designed to reach children of alcoholic or addicted parents with fundamental self-care and safety skills, substance abuse prevention education, and the message that they are not alone in their experiences with substance abuse in the home. It is difficult to reach these children due to isolation, shame, and family rules around secrecy, as well as due to problems with identification and lack of parental consent for participation. Therefore, this program was developed as a way to reach them without specific identification, labeling, or need for parental permission.

The curriculum is applicable and available to all children, and is presented by trained prevention specialists. It contains interactive lessons on essential topics like substance abuse, personal risk factors, peer pressure, and personal safety.  Instructors combine class discussion, story telling, written methods, and a highly interactive game to strengthen comprehension and reinforce learning.  The classroom teacher is asked to stay present in the room and provide written evaluation of the series.

To schedule this series for your class (limited to one classroom of students per hour), please contact Community Resources at Anchorage School District. If you are not an ASD school, the Classroom Prevention Exploration Series is still available, and may be scheduled directly with Volunteers of America Prevention Services.

For additional information, please contact:

Prevention and Intervention Services Director
Trish Smith

1675 C Street, Ste. 201
Anchorage, Alaska 99501
Tel: (907) 279-9646
Fax: (907) 276-5489