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Sky Ranch S.H.I.E.L.D.
Substance Use and Mental Health Intervention for Education, Learning, and Diversion

Sky Ranch SHIELD is a program that aims to divert youth prior to arrest and booking and impact beneficiaries of youth, parents/caregivers, and providers. This is in response to a high prevalence of tobacco and THC vaping with related substance use and mental health in the Sioux City Community School District with a goal to reduce the number of youth with mental illness or co-occurring disorders in the juvenile justice system, increase resiliency skills, enhance school engagement, and improve overall well-being.

Sky Ranch SHIELD is funded by a Substance Use and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services

Federal Award # H79SM089505.

SHIELD Consent Forms

Data Collection Instruments/Interview Protocols

SHIELD will utilize evidence-based models and practices. SHIELD will also utilize standardized instruments, tools, and protocols.

Strategies/ Interventions.

Interconnected System Framework (ISF)- Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). ISF, an emerging approach, builds a single system of social, emotional, and behavioral (SEB) support in schools. ISF applies the core features of Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) to deliberately integrate mental health, community, school, and family partners. Key messages of ISF are: 1. Single System of Delivery; 2. Mental Health is for all; 3. Success defined by student impact; 4. Use the MTSS framework to guide an integrated approach to include team-based decision making, use of school and community data, selecting evidence-based practices (EBPs) connected across tiers, early access through screening, rigorous monitoring for fidelity and impact, and ongoing coaching. https://www.pbis.org

Screening, Brief Intervention, Referral, and Treatment (SBIRT). SBIRT, developed by SAMHSA, focuses on prevention, early detection, risk assessment, brief counseling and referral for assessment that can be utilized in school and community settings. Validated screening tools enable diversion teams to detect risk for substance use related problems and brief interventions help address concerns at an early age. https://www.samhsa.gov/sbirt 

Screening Tools

CRAFFT+N 2.1. The CRAFFT is an efficient and effective health screening tool designed to identify substance use, substance-related riding/driving risk, and substance use disorder among youth ages 12-21. The CRAFFT is the most well-studied adolescent substance use screener available and shown to be valid for adolescents from diverse socioeconomic and racial/ethnic backgrounds. Recommended by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) Youth Screening Guide, the current version of the tool, CRAFFT 2.1, includes evidence-based revisions to increase sensitivity and specificity and includes vaping as a method for marijuana use. The CRAFFT 2.1+N contains questions about tobacco and nicotine use.

https://crafft.org/

Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC). The PSC is a 35-item psychosocial screening tool used to identify the types and severity of cognitive, emotional, and behavioral issues in youth. Both youth-report and parent-report forms are available. The PSC provides suggestions about which youth may be at greater risk for emotional or behavioral challenges.

https://www.massgeneral.org/psychiatry/treatments-and-services/pediatric-symptom-checklist

Diversion Interventions

Motivational Interviewing (MI). MI aims to enhance a person’s motivation to change problematic behavior by exploring and resolving their ambivalence to change. It has been used extensively to treat substance use since first being developed in the 1980s in response to concerns about the traditional confrontational approach used in addiction treatment. MI stages include expressing empathy, discovering discrepancies between present behavior and client goals, eliciting change-talk, ‘rolling with resistance’ rather than arguing for change, supporting self-efficacy and affirming the client’s autonomy. Given this, MI may be considered a ‘good fit’ for adolescents who have or are at-risk of substance use.

https://motivationalinterviewing.org/understanding-motivational-interviewing

Intervention for Nicotine Dependence: Education, Prevention, Tobacco and Health (INDEPTH). INDEPTH is an alternative to suspension or citation that helps schools and communities address the teen vaping problem in a supportive way. Instead of solely focusing on punitive measures, it is an interactive program that teaches students about nicotine dependence, establishing healthy alternatives and how to kick the unhealthy addiction that got them in trouble in the first place. The goal is to educate students about nicotine dependence and cravings and guide them through the process of identifying their own reasons for chewing, smoking or vaping (2022).

https://www.lung.org/quit-smoking/helping-teens-quit/indepth

Service Intervention Consent Form

SHIELD (Substance Use & Mental Health Intervention for Education, Learning and Diversion)

Participants & Caregivers

Lead applicant Siouxland Human Investment Partnership (SHIP) with Sky Ranch Behavioral Services (SRBS) and Sioux City Community School District (SCCSD) propose to deliver culturally affirming, evidence-based, early diversion through Sky Ranch SHIELD (Substance Use & Mental Health Intervention for Education, Learning and Diversion). SHIELD will prioritize and serve Woodbury County, Iowa located in the tri-state (Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota) region of the Sioux City Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), known as Siouxland. Siouxland is both rural and urban with a demographic profile highlighted by vibrantly growing

multicultural and ethnic diversity.

Populations to Be Served. SHIELD will prioritize and serve Woodbury County, Iowa located in the tri-state (Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota) region of the Sioux City Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), known as Siouxland. While this evidence-based early diversion initiative will be open to all youth ages 11 to 18 in grades 5 to 12, a priority focus will be on SCCSD, the largest District in the region, including youth impacted by poverty, low academic performance, and other identified barriers. Minority youth who have been disproportionately impacted by racial and equity barriers will also be prioritized to include the Indigenous, African American, Latino, and LGBTQIA+ youth. Youth will be referred and/or identified for SHIELD by SCCSD, Sioux City Police Department (SCPD), and/or self-identified to receive early diversion with a goal of increasing resiliency and decreasing risk.

Strategies/ Interventions. SHIELD is a new early diversion initiative built upon a foundation of both current capacity and gaps in the service community for youth experiencing substance use and mental health challenges identified by youth and endorsed by SCCSD, Sioux City Police Department School Resource Officers (SROs) and Third Judicial District Juvenile Court Services (JCS) liaison officers in schools. These challenges include a crisis of tobacco and THC vaping in middle schools and high schools that has quadrupled in the past 18 months, truancy, engagement issues, fighting, and bullying. Due to the current crisis in the SCCSD identified by SCPD, JCS, school district officials and students, priority will focus on tobacco vaping and first-time THC use diversion prior to arrest and booking. SHIELD is a culturally affirming, evidence-based early diversion continuum to prevent and divert youth from future or current tobacco vaping, other substance use, and high-risk behaviors impacting mental health, academic performance, social engagement, and overall well-being. Grounded in the Interconnected System Framework (ISF)- Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) and Stages of Change Theory, core evidence-based practices will include Screening, Brief Intervention, Referral, and Treatment (SBIRT), motivational interviewing, and INDEPTH diversion. Self-administered substance use and mental health screening tools will include CRAFFT+N and Pediatric Symptoms Checklist.

Practices will be delivered through individual, group, family, and community-level intervention by diversion specialists and interventionists in collaboration with dedicated team members from the SCCSD and core partners.

Deliverables for SHIELD will include the quarterly Advisory Behavioral Health Workgroup composed of the current SCCSD workgroup, with youth, core partners and community-based providers for this initiative, Early Diversion System Mapping using the Sequential Intercept Mapping (SIM) Model during months 1-3, development of the SHIELD Blueprint™, a comprehensive plan of evidence-based and community-based services to divert youth in the population of focus completed by month 6, a culturally affirming Early Diversion Continuum of Interventions, to include: 1. Vaping prevention education for all 5th and/or 6th graders to divert future use; 2. Group Diversion education for middle and high school students identified vaping, substance use, or other risk behaviors as a part of in-school suspension as an alternative to lawenforcement intervention; 3. Family and Group intervention for youth identified with first-time THC or other substance use as an alternative to Juvenile court intervention. 4. Engagement in individualized community-based SUD, mental health, cultural, and/or supportive services tosupport youth with resources and services to divert from future high-risk behaviors. Annual Training of core and community partners on culturally affirming mental health and substance use awareness and identification, de-escalation, diversion, and crisis intervention will build capacity and Sustainability Planning grounded in Capacity-Building will be completed year 3. Additional allowable activities that will enhance and promote the success of SHIELD will include developing inclusive policies and procedures for SHIELD including National Standards for Culturally Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) and Social Determinants of Health.

What SHIELD is about: SHIELD will prioritize and serve Woodbury County, Iowa located in the tri-state (Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota) region of the Sioux City Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), known as Siouxland. While this evidence-based early diversion initiative will be open to all youth ages 11 to 18 in grades 5 to 12, a priority focus will be on SCCSD, the largest District in the region, including youth impacted by poverty, low academic performance, and other identified barriers.

What we will ask you to do: If you agree to participate, we will deliver the proposed interventions outlined above.

Risks and benefits: There are possible risks. You may find some of the activities and interventions about your experiences, history, trauma, development, substance use, mental health, related areas, and its effect on your youth and family to be sensitive. The benefit is that you and your family will receive access to an array of activities, services, and resources (outlined above). You will also be able to provide input on the benefits and how to improve these services.

Taking part is voluntary: Taking part in the activities and interventions is completely voluntary. You may skip any interventions and/or activities that you do not want to participate in. If you decide to take part, you are free to withdraw at any time.

Confidential. The records of this project will be kept private. In any sort of report or information we make public we will not include any information that will make it possible to identify you. Records will be kept in locked electronic systems and files. Only the designated staff and evaluators will have access to the records. Staff and partners are mandated reporters and must comply with legal requirements of reporting potential youth and/or adult abuse.

If you have questions: Contact the Project Director. You will be given a copy of this form to keep for your records.

Please fill out the following information.

Data Collection Consent Form

SHIELD (Substance Use & Mental Health Intervention for Education, Learning and Diversion)

Participants & Caregivers

Siouxland Human Investment Partnership (SHIP) with Sky Ranch Behavioral Services (SRBS) will deliver Sky Ranch SHIELD, a culturally affirming evidence-based diversion initiative to divert 500 youth prior to arrest and booking in response to a crisis of tobacco and THC vaping with related substance use, mental health, and behavioral issues in the Sioux City Community School District (SCCSD) to reduce the number of youth with mental illness or COD involved in the juvenile justice system, increase resiliency skills, enhance school engagement, and improve well-being. Sky Ranch SHIELD will be delivered in partnership with SCCSD, Sioux City Police Department (SCPD), Iowa Juvenile Court Services (JCS) and the network of community-based providers.

Populations to Be Served: Sky Ranch SHIELD will prioritize and serve Woodbury County, Iowa located in the tristate (Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota) region of the Sioux City Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), known as Siouxland. While this evidence-based early diversion initiative will be open to all youth ages 11 to 18 in grades 5 to 12, a priority focus will be on SCCSD, the largest District in the region with a student body of over 15,000, including youth disproportionately impacted by poverty, low academic performance, and identified barriers. Minority youth who have been disproportionately impacted by racial and equity barriers will also be prioritized to include the Indigenous, African American, Latino, and LGBTQIA+ youth. Youth will be referred and/or identified for Sky Ranch SHIELD by SCCSD, SCPD, and/or self-identified to receive early diversion with a goal of increasing resiliency and decreasing risk.

What SHIELD is about: SHIELD is a new early diversion initiative built upon a foundation of both current capacity and gaps in the service community for youth experiencing substance use and mental health challenges identified by youth and endorsed by SCCSD, Sioux City Police Department School Resource Officers (SROs) and Third Judicial District Juvenile Court Services (JCS) liaison officers in schools.

What we will ask you to do: We will conduct activities such as data collection, surveys, listening sessions, and offer opportunities for collection of information and feedback throughout your participation, as well as gain feedback about the impact of SHIELD.

Risks and benefits: There are possible risks. You may find some of the questions, activities, interventions about your experiences, history, trauma, development, substance use, mental health, related areas, and its effect on your youth and family to be sensitive. The benefit is that you and your family will receive access to an array of activities, services, and resources (outlined above). You will also be able to provide input on the benefits and how to improve these services.

Incentive: Your youth will earn an evaluation incentive gift card for completing evaluation activities at each interval (three) of participation in SHIELD.

Taking part is voluntary: Taking part in the data collection and evaluation is completely voluntary. If you decide not to take part or to skip some of the questions, it will not affect your current or future relationship with SHIELD. If you decide to take part, you are free to withdraw at any time.

Your answers will be confidential. The records of this project and evaluation will be kept private. In any sort of report or information we make public we will not include any information that will make it possible to identify you. Records will be kept in locked electronic systems and files; only the designated staff and evaluators will have access to the records.

If you have questions: Contact the Project Director. You will be given a copy of this form to keep for your records.

Please fill out the following information.

SERVICES BY

SKY RANCH

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