During the past decade, schools throughout the country have looked to the Wisconsin Model for a Comprehensive Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse (AODA) Program as a guide for their own efforts. In 1994, however, educators from across the state came together to explore how they might improve their ability to serve "high-risk" children and the general school population with a broader, wellness-oriented approach.
The discussion began with frank assessments of day-to-day realities. According to one report, participants depicted school and community efforts to serve high-risk children as "disconnected, overworked, and frustrated."
During the next year, a framework for student services, prevention, and wellness emerged. It used language that was decidedly different from the more familiar but limited AODA focus. It recognized the interconnectedness among youth risk behaviors and the necessity for cross-disciplinary, integrated services dealing with violence and aggression; sexual behaviors that result in pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases/AIDS; alcohol, tobacco, and other drug abuse; suicide; intentional and unintentional injuries; unhealthy dietary patterns; and sedentary lifestyles.
Instead of problems and risks at the center of this picture, however, the words "resilient and successful learner" appeared, surrounded by an array of learning environments concerned with the whole child. As teams came together for training and action-oriented sessions, they built their plans on the strong foundations of reducing risk factors and enhancing protective factors. The overall goal: a positive, caring, and supportive environment to help promote healthy development and learning.
This new model was not meant to replace or restructure all "old" programs, however. Instead, the intention was to connect effective efforts to the total school environment. To that end, for example, pre-K-12 school-community advisory councils with broad representation provide an important bridge. In this model, pupil services teams play key leadership and coordination roles. With the four core disciplines of school psychology, social work, counseling, and nursing, such teams go beyond crisis intervention and support groups; they serve as the liaison between classroom teachers, families, and community resources.