Sunday, June 01, 2025
60.0°F

District given grant for substance abuse program

Jordan Dawson | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 14 years, 10 months AGO
by Jordan Dawson
| July 8, 2010 11:00 PM

Next month Bigfork schools will get a little closer to having all of their staff certified in Student Assistance Training International's substance abuse program, thanks to a grant from Kalispell Toyota.

The program teaches school staff and community members to facilitate groups to help students deal with various issues. Although it started as a substance abuse program, it has since evolved into a program to help people deal with a long list of other issues including death, learning disabilities and other adolescent problems.

Outgoing Superintendent Russ Kinzer brought the program to the school 11 years ago. He selected this program in particular because he saw how well it worked at schools he served at in Arizona

"The entire program is so broad that it helps a wide range of students with a big variety of problems," Kinzer said. "It's a program that sets a real positive tone at a school because it teaches a humane way to treat one another amid different issues."

Since adopting the program in the Bigfork schools, Kinzer has been trying to get other schools in the Valley to participate. This year, the Whitefish district decided that it wanted to try it as well.

Whitefish and Bigfork planned to split the cost of the program. Then Kalispell Toyota approached Kinzer about aiding the school financially in light of the school's budget problems.

Kinzer submitted the substance abuse program, as well as a few other desires to them and they agreed to donate $7,500 for the program. The money will go toward training adults to run the eight-week long programs, which have alternating topics each semester.

Both the middle school counselor, Mary Ahnert, and the elementary school counselor Jennifer Wood, said they have seen positive results from the program and are looking forward to having more trained facilitators for the coming year.

"It empowers students to deal with problems in a positive and healthy way," Wood said.

MORE IMPORTED STORIES

District given grant for substance abuse program
Hungry Horse News | Updated 14 years, 10 months ago
District given grant for substance abuse program
Bigfork Eagle | Updated 14 years, 10 months ago
Virtual High School closer to reality at BHS
Whitefish Pilot | Updated 16 years, 11 months ago

ARTICLES BY JORDAN DAWSON

July 22, 2011 11:22 a.m.

Annual 200 race filled with drama, excitement

The Montana 200 is the cornerstone of the summer racing season at Raceway Park in Kalispell, and Saturday night’s competition left little for the crowd to be disappointed about with hours of excitement and entertainment.

June 3, 2010 11 p.m.

Whitewater Festival brings paddlers to Wild Mile

The 34th annual Whitewater Festival returned to its usual tradition of taking place in the rain last weekend after a fluke sunny Memorial Day weekend last year, but that didn't keep people from throwing on their ran gear and watching the races, which had more than double the number of competitors participate than last year.

April 13, 2011 1:15 p.m.

Busy opening week for tennis teams