Boys & Girls Clubs of the Suncoast

Program Overview and Background

The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Suncoast exists to provide high quality out of school time Club experiences proven to ensure our young people, especially those who need us most, are on track to graduate from high school with a plan, demonstrate good character and citizenship, and live a healthy lifestyle. We strive to develop young people’s capacity to engage in positive behaviors to nurture their wellbeing, set personal goals and grow into self-sufficient adults. As opioids and their abuse continue to spread, part of this mission includes bringing opioid prevention programming and support services to all 7th grade students in the public school district of Pinellas County, FL.

Program Services

Throughout the school year, BGCS prevention specialists will meet with all Pinellas County public school 7th grade students and will conduct a 5-day, evidence-based program in both the fall and spring semesters totaling 10 days of instruction. Our specialists will focus on opioid prevention and support services. This will be done by including instruction on drug prevention, trauma informed care, emotional intelligence, character building, and healthier life choices.

Target Population

We aim to provide mentoring under this grant to young people with any one or more of the following:

• Academic Challenges
• Substance Impact or Misuse

Mentor Recruitment and Training

• 550 matches and youth served under this grant
• 3 mentors recruited under this grant
• Peer Mentoring included in programming
• For mentor recruitment, we target Peers (Youth) and College Students
• Duration of program services: 2-8 weeks • Expected intensity of match contact: 1 hour 5 days a week
• Expected length of a match: 2-8 weeks
• Expected frequency of match contact: Minimum 4 times per month, once per week • Number of training hours required before a mentor is matched with a youth: 80+ hours