The first in a series by Cliff Lewis

Since its inception (then as the “Council on Drug and Alcohol Abuse”) in 1966, Compass Mark has been seeking to work “ahead of the curve” in providing addiction treatment and prevention services in Lancaster County. In the early years, according to Executive Director Dave Bender, this meant setting up Lancaster’s first detox, halfway house, and residential counseling program. Today, Compass Mark has shifted most of its efforts to a prevention and early intervention strategy, focusing on the County’s youth.

In all of Lancaster’s 16 school districts, Compass Mark runs a variety of programs dealing not only with drugs and alcohol, but also engaging troubled students in the ability to solve problems and cope with the difficulties of life. Out of the 4,000 students expected to go through such programs this year, there will be about 600 involved with Compass Mark’s “Skills for Life” program, which is reserved for students with drug and alcohol related problems.

Using alcohol offenses as an example, Bender noted that student recidivism has been reduced from 30% to 3% through “Skills for Life”:

“District judges used to tell us that they would get repeat offenses over and over. Kids would go out, get busted, pay the fine, go out, drink again, get busted, pay the fine….One judge said that there was a kid who came back before him 13 times. He said that now, since referring [offenders] to our program, it’s rare that he gets a second offense, and he can’t even remember getting a third offense.”

Students are referred to the program by either a district judge or school personnel, usually in response to a substance related violation. “Skills for Life” requires that each student attend a weekly group meeting for about one month.

The groups are led by recovering addicts who often surprise the students attending with their level of respect and empathy. The central goal of these groups is to facilitate genuine discussion among the attendees about the personal challenges and choices that they each face: “It’s basically kids holding up mirrors to each other,” Bender said.

Often times, the meetings may not directly touch on the topic of drugs and alcohol at all: “We don’t talk so much about the substance,” Bender said, “What we’ll talk about is building decision-making skills, coping skills, stress-management skills, problem-solving skills. We’re helping kids and adults function with life, and be able to make reasonable, rational choices with what they decide to put into their bodies.”

Personal choice is a cornerstone to Compass Mark’s approach. To demonstrate this value, Bender mentioned the topic of random student drug testing: “People are usually surprised to hear that—for the most part—we are not in favor of random drug testing in schools….It’s taking the responsibility away from kids to develop the skills to help each other make choices, and it’s taking the power away from the individual to make choices.”

Out of each 12 student group, Bender estimates that two students are typically considered for additional in-patient or out-patient rehab treatment.

The purpose of “Skills for Life” is not necessarily to eradicate all presence of drugs or alcohol from the lives of these students. Bender emphasized that this program exists to help students learn to make responsible choices and reduce the harmful effects of these substances where necessary. This approach, according to Bender, falls directly in line with the organization’s mission to provide those in need with a “Compass” to help them locate the next step in improving their quality of life.