FAST (Families and Schools Together)

            
            
             Final Report for HSP 205 Winter Quarter 2004.
            
            
             Name of Project: FAST (Families and Schools Together).
             Class members in project: Meagan Hughes, Frank Morris, and .
             Paulette Erickson.
             .
             Our program, FAST, is a collaborative, school-based .
             prevention program. The problem is that children who are .
             at-risk and their families are distressed, isolated from the .
             community and have a lack of social skills and support. Some .
             of the risk factors include family conflict, family history of .
             abuse, academic failure, and lack of commitment to school. .
             These risk factors and more can lead to dropouts from school, .
             substance abuse, delinquency, and violence. FAST is the .
             solution to decrease risk factors and build protective factors .
             such as, bonding, individual characteristics, healthy beliefs .
             and clear standards, and to implement the forty developmental .
             assets into their lives. FAST uses experimental curriculum, .
             rather than lecture or information based curriculum. The .
             entire curriculum is embedded in activities that build .
             relationships between parent and child, family members, .
             child's parents, FAST parents, school and community. Ten to .
             20 families are recruited for the FAST program and sessions .
             take place at the school. The program runs for ten weeks and .
             FAST sessions are held three times a week for two and a half .
             hours long. FAST sessions include several activities that are .
             repeated weekly. They include the family flag, family hellos, .
             family meal at a family table, age appropriate family .