Student Assistance Program

Building Skills for Healthy Choices, Strong Minds, and Bright Futures

LICADDs Student Assistance Program (SAP) is dedicated to reducing harm from substance use and mental health concerns through the delivery of dynamic, cutting-edge prevention education, counseling, and referrals to students, educators, and parents/caregivers across Long Island and New York State. All of our programming incorporates elements of social and emotional learning (SEL). SEL involves the attainment and use of knowledge, skills, and attitudes among youth to develop healthy identities, manage emotions, achieve goals, demonstrate empathy for others, establish and maintain healthy relationships, and make responsible decisions. In addition to improving prosocial behaviors and reducing rates of depression and stress among students, SEL also improves academic performance.

LICADD believes that all students, educators, school staff, and parents/caregivers deserve high-quality, personalized programming to help navigate the complex and evolving stressors of our times. We envision a future where accessible, equitable prevention education is available to all students to enhance their social emotional wellness.

LICADD's SAP provides:

• Psychoeducation Workshops
• Prevention Programming
• Short-term Counseling & Referrals

Youth-Focused Workshops

LICADD provides engaging, high-energy, and impactful psychoeducational workshops for youth in groups of varying sizes. These interactive workshops can be delivered in small groups such as in-class presentations or as larger assemblies. All workshops are designed to be age appropriate and are evidence-based, trauma-informed, and customized for your needs. The length of workshops can range from 40-minutes to 2+ hours, depending on what works best for your school.

The topics of our youth-focused workshops are continuously expanding to meet the evolving needs and pressures youth may encounter. 

Topics include (but are not limited to):

• The Risks of Vaping & Skills for Healthy Decision Making
• The Risks of Using Substances & Tools to Make Healthy Choices
• Managing Emotions: Skills for Coping 
• Navigating Anxiety & Stress
• Social Media & Digital Safety
• Hooked on the Win: How Gaming & Gambling Hijack the Brain
• Hijacked: The Hidden Addictions We Don’t Talk About 
• Substance Use Peer Support Training
• Transitions to College (or to middle school or high school)
• Eating Disorders & Body Image Concerns
• Tolerance, Acceptance, Affirmation: Creating a Safe School Community
• Prom Night: Making Healthy Decisions for a Memorable Night

Evidence-Based Prevention & Early Intervention Programming

• Life Skills

  • Engages students in grades 3rd-12th. 
  • Designed to reduce risk factors of substance use and enhance preventive factors by building on the following essential life skills:
  • Goal setting
  • Decision-making skills
  • Effective communication skills
  • Navigating peer pressure
  • Coping with stress

• In-School Suspension (ISS)

  • Alternative disciplinary option for middle and high school students facing suspension.
  • Provides students with psychoeducation and coping skills such as emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and decision-making skills.
  • Supports students in taking accountability for their actions and decreases likelihood of repeated offenses.

• CATCH My Breath

  • An evidence-based vaping prevention program for students in grades 5-12.
  • Delivered as in-class push-in’s across 4 sessions (~35-40 minutes each) provided weekly across 4 weeks.

• The "Body Project"

  • A voluntary, evidenced-based eating disorder prevention program designed for high school and college-age female-identified students.
  • Designed to reduce risk of eating disorder onset, decrease depressive symptoms, and increase body satisfaction.
  • Delivered to groups of 6-10 participants in four 1-hour weekly sessions.
  • Participants complete a series of activities where they collectively explore the negative effects of pursuing the unrealistic appearance ideal espoused for women in U.S. culture.

• Drug & Alcohol Assessment & Referral

  • Comprehensive biopsychosocial assessment, inclusive of family and the school system to determine substance use concerns and risk factors. 
  • Includes provision of psychoeducation, brief counseling, and/or referral to services as appropriate.
  • May be delivered in-person at school or in one of our offices. Virtual options available as well.

• Start2Stop 

  • An evidence-supported intervention for adolescents seeking to stop, reduce, or reconsider their use of substances.
  • Involves the completion of 2-12 weekly sessions with a trained clinician (total number of sessions to be completed determined by severity and need).
  • Utilizes strategies from motivational interviewing and cognitive behavioral therapy.
  • Provides youth and their families with psychoeducation, counseling, and recovery skills.
  • May be used as a restorative alternative for students who use substances on-campus as an alternative to solely punitive strategies.

Parent/Caregiver Workshops

LICADDs SAP provides workshops for parents/caregivers on various topics regarding youth substance use and mental health. We recognize that reaching parents/caregivers with such vital information and skills is equally as important to supporting the mental health and well-being of youth. As with all our workshops, these are designed to be innovative, impactful, and customized for the parents/caregivers in your school/district. Whether it's a back-to-school night, parent university, or other initiative for parents/caregivers, LICADD is here to serve as a resource to your school/district. Our workshops can be delivered in-person, virtually, or hybrid.

Topics for parent/caregiver workshops include (but are not limited to):

• New Trends in Substance Use & Skills to Support Youth
• The Dangers of Vaping & Helping Youth Make Healthy Choices
• Current Trends in Youth Mental Health
• Helping Youth Navigate Stress & Anxiety
• The Digital Mind: Social Media, Gaming, & Youth Mental Health
• Hijacked: The Hidden Addictions We Don’t Talk About 
• Hooked on the Win: How Gaming & Gambling Hijack the Brain
• Eating Disorders & Body Image Concerns
• Prom Night: Making Healthy Decisions for a Memorable Night
• Transitions to College (can adapt for middle or high school)
• Naloxone (Narcan) Training

Educator & School Staff Workshops

Educators, administrators, and other school staff are in a unique position to enhance the well-being of youth and their families. LICADDs SAP delivers workshops to school staff that are evidence-based, innovative, and provide practical tools and strategies to strengthen and support their work with youth and families, which can be challenging in a world with ever evolving stressors.

Additionally, LICADD is a credentialed continuing education provider for licensed social workers and mental health counselors, as well as CASACs. Therefore, we are able to provide continuing education credits for eligible staff who complete our workshops.

Educator, administrator, & school staff workshop topics include (but are not limited to):

• New Trends in Substance Use Among Youth
• Vaping & Marijuana: The Risks, Facts, & Strategies to Help Youth
• Hijacked: The Hidden Addictions We Don’t Talk About 
• Dynamic Approaches to Co-Occurring Disorders
• Youth Anxiety & Depressive Disorders 
• Trends in Youth Mental Health & Strategies to Support Students 
• Creating Affirming Spaces
• Eating Disorders Prevention & Treatment
• The Digital Mind: Social Media, Gaming, & Youth Mental Health
• Resilience & Compassion Fatigue 
• Responding to Community Stress: Practical Tools for School-Based Professionals
• Culturally Responsive Schools
• Trauma-Informed Practices in Schools
• SEL Tools
• Naloxone (Narcan) Training 

For more information, contact Education Programs Supervisor Ali Hougnou, LMSW at ahougnou@licadd.org or call (516) 747-2606.