Pat Giuliani • Walton High School Parent Corps (GA)

March Newsletter

April is Alcohol Awareness Month

Local estimates of Cobb youth ages 12-20 who used alcohol in the past 30 days:

21,042 youth reported drinking

5 percent were 12-13 year olds
18 percent were 14-15 year olds
32 percent were 16-17 year olds
52 percent were 18-20 year olds

Alcohol is the most commonly used drug among our young people. Youth use alcohol 10 times more than all illegal drugs combined. Alcohol is the leading contributor to the top three leading causes of death among young people. Underage drinking is reported in nearly half of all teen automobile crashes and 50 to 65 percent of youth suicides. As many as two thirds of all sexual assaults and date rape are linked to alcohol use. Alcohol is also a contributing factor in unprotected sex among young people, exposing them to unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS.

Research indicates that most underage drinking takes place in private settings such as home parties. Private parties often provide a means to introduce younger youth (ages 14-16) to alcohol by older youth (ages 17-19). One in 12 parents of teens said they allowed the friends of their own teens to drink in their home under their supervision.

Communities large and small have begun to address the problem of social hosting through dialogue and local policy making. Currently, hosts who allow underage drinking on their property as well as supply the alcohol consumed or possessed by the minors may be in violation of two distinct laws; furnishing alcohol to a minor and allowing underage drinking to occur on property they control.

Because of all the negative consequences of underage drinking – coupled with the fact that, on average, young people first use alcohol at 13.1 years of age – youth access to alcohol must be addressed pro-actively. To advocate for all the children please check out the two websites below and start talking to other adults in your neighborhood about ways to stop underage drinking.
Underage Drinking is not a rite of passage it is against the law.

www.stopalcoholabuse.gov and www.cudtf.org

February Newsletter

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January Newsletter

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As the new school semester begins it is time to check in with your teens to see how things are going. If they are already having trouble in class then it is time to seek help. Find out if free tutoring is offered through the school. Maybe National Honor Society students can assist with tutoring and at the same time they will earn community service hours. Don't let your child get too far behind because they will never catch up with the rest of the class. It is better to be proactive now because you could find yourself driving them to summer school if you wait too long.

15+ Take Time to Listen...Time To Talk

SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration) is rolling out a new campaign for all parents. It is called the 15+ Make Time to Listen...Take Time to Talk campaign. This campaign is based on the premise that parents who talk with their children about what is happening in their lives on a daily basis are better equipped to guide their children towards more positvie, skill-enhancing activities and friendships. It is critical that parents do all they can to sustain good relationships with their children. Communication is a great starting place. Don't assume your child is getting the correct information from their friends, teachers or faith base groups. They should be getting the correct information from you the parent. If you are making New Year's Resolutions, then talking to your children daily should be at the top of your list and one that you will not break during the years to come. Start today before it is too late so you don't miss out on teachable moments with your children.

January Newsletter Happy New Year

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December Newsletters

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WIth the holidays approaching we need to make sure we are spending quality time with our teens. They are under stress from finals and we need to be listening out for any plans they might be working up to celebrate finals being over. If they are invited to a holidya party then make sure you contact the parents to verify they will be home, no alcohol will be served and the number of teens attending the party. By you checking in with the parents this will let them know you expect supervision during the party and will not have to worry about getting a call from the police that you need to come bail your child out of jail. Take time to enjoy the holidays and be a positive role model for your teen by getting involved in communtiy service events over the holidays.

Newsletter for November

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Happy Thanksgiving. Hope you have an enjoyable holiday.

October Newsletter

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I hope you enjoy reading the information inside this newsletter. We held a very successfull Homecoming dance for our student body last Friday in the school gym. We are planning a Senior Breakfast on, October 18th to help celebrate the begining or completetion of college application and ordering caps and gowns. During October we will be celebrating Red Ribbon Week from October 23-27 and we have scheduled a parental program on Tuesday, October 24th entitled Drug ID night. We will be hosting a teen program on Wednesday, October 25th dealing with Caught "Red" Handed. We will have three speakers talking the teens about consequences of being caught using their cell phones, skipping class, cheating on test, attending a party where alcohol or drugs are, purchasing tobacco, alcohol or illicit drugs and many more topics. We will be providing parents opportunities to write positive drug free messages to their teens through our Red Ribbon Candy grams during the next two weeks. Thanks to all of you who are current active members of Parent Corps and encourage your friends to get on board also. There is no membership fee, monthly meetings or committee officers. Just parents networking together to make sure we help keep our school, community and homes DRUG FREE!!!!

August Newsletter

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Open up and read this August newsletter which was sent out to our Parent Corps Membership. If you are interested in receiving this newsletter please contact me pat.giuliani@parentcoprs.org and I will add you to my email list. All parents need help to raise their children and help keep them safe, healthy and drug free. Remember that all children are one choice away from making a bad choice so you need to teamwork with parents in your community to help make sure that choice does not happen.

Parents' Influence Weaken by Cigarette Media Ads

According to a study led by John Pierce, an epidemiologist at the University of California at San Diego, cigarette ads influence teens to smoke even when parents are highly involved in their lives. "Even if you do a good job of parenting, cigarette advertising can undermine your effectiveness," said Pierce. The researchers found that good parenting halves the risk that a teen will start smoking. For the study, good parenting was defined as setting limits for children and taking an active interest in their daily lives. It is important for parents to be an active person in their children's routine because adolescent often show signs of physical addiction to nicotine within five months of smoking their first cigarette. Of the 1,600 12 to 14 year-olds interviewed in this survey, 20 percent of teens who had involved and authoritative parents had tried cigarettes, while 40 percent of teens whose parents were less involved and less restrictive had started smoking. We need to teach our adolescents not to "buy" into the marketing schemes which glorify drugs, alcohol and tobacco. Keep talking to them about the long term effects smoking has on their body, the physical effects it has on them and the importance of staying healthy so they can live a longer life.

July Newsletter

Download file Back to School mode is in every department store, drugstore or grocery store you visit these days. We as parents need to make sure we are "Back to School" ready. Be sure to download the newsletter and get yourself prepared for the school year. The best way you can help your kids avoid destructive behavior is to spend time with them, talking to them about their friends, school activities, and asking them what they think. Research shows that knowing your kids, who they hang out with-and their parents-dramatically reduces the likelihood that they will get into trouble with tobacco, alcohol and drugs. So if you haven't joined Parent Corps download a membership form today and become involved with a large parent networking group at Walton High School.

Parenting is not a "solo" job

Whether you're single or have a partner, you need people around you and your children who are supportive, affirming, and encouraging. Seeking advice, help and support from others gives you the ideas, encouragement and positive reinforcement you need to be a good parent and care for yourself. Research from Search Institute shows:

Only 45% of middle and high school youth indicated that they have three or more caring adults who they can turn to for advice and support about important questions in life
71 % of parents surveyed say it would really help to have other adults they trust spend time with their kids
Many adults believe they should be supporting young people and want to find ways to do so but
Nearly 3 in 10 parents report NO support from any source other than their spouse or partner

How to build a support team of Adults:

Strengthen your partner relationship - Reguarlarly set aside time to strenghten your relationship with your spouse or parenting partner. Be sure to check in every day, get away for a meal and conversation and take overnight retreats. And above all, continually encourage each other.

Build relationships in the neighborhood - Take advntage of or create opportunities to get to know your neighbors, such as block parties, invite them over to dinner and help them to become a friend to both you and your children. Plan or participate in events in ways that include and connect all generations.

Connect with other parents - Get to know other parents with children the same ages as your children. Share your expectations and struggles, brainstorm solutions and in general just be there for each other. Join Parent Corps by contacting pat.giuliani@parentcorps.org to form Parent Peer Groups or Neighborhood Networking Groups.

Stay involved during stressful times- Stay connected and involved with supportive people and places for your family-particularly during times of stress and transition. This may include extended family, a faith community, a social network, a service organization or other important people and places.

Parents with multiple sources of support are more likely to be better equipt to handle the challenges of parenting.
For more information about Parenting Matters go to http://www.mvparents.com

Parents should enforce clear messages about alcohol

Many parents are driving their kids to drink. Some parents think by letting their kids drink with their pals at home fosters responsible drinking and will make alcohol less alluring. The data strongly contradicts this thought. Studies show that teens who get booze from their parents are twice as likely to drink and binge drink, because their parent appears to sanction alcohol use.

Many parents also believe that the Europeans' attitiude towards youthful drinking yields more reasonable consumption. But an international report in 2004 found that 15 and 16 year-olds from 34 European countries drank and participated in binge drinking more often than Americans the same age.

Parents afraid their children will resent the no tolerance rule are relunctant to lay down the law. But research shows that kids need clear rules and enforcement of consquences.

What's a parent to do???

1. Set clear family rules about teen drinking, such as never drink with friends and never ride in a car with a driver who has been drinking.
2. Remind them that underage drinking is illegal, unhealthy and life threatening.
3. Never host a party unless you are willing to supervise it closely. Don't be on the second floor if the party's on the first.
4. Call parents whose home is to be used for a party. Make sure that adults will monitor the kids and that alcohol won't be served.
5. Don't supply liquor for your child's socializing. Parents who do double the chance that their teenager will become a heavy drinker.
6. Monitor the alcohol supply in your home. Make it clear that you don't allow unchaperoned parties in your house.
7. Set a good example. If you use alcohol, use it moderately. Don't glamorize your past alcohol use.
8. Ask your child where he or she is going, who they will be with and what they will be doing. Have your child check in regularly. Get to know your child's friends and their parents.
9. Set a curfew and enforce it
10. Impose consquences if your teen breaks one of your rules. Youth who expected a verbal reprimand if caught drinking were 1.5 times less likely to drink, and youth who anticipated loss of privileges were two times less likely to drink or binge drink than those whose parents did not respond to their drinking.
11. Work on the overall relationship with your teenager. Studies show good parent-child communication, mutual respect and collaborative decision making lower incidences of teen drinking.
12. Don't kid yourself into thinking your child is not at risk.. ALL KIDS ARE AT RISK

To find out more about Parent Corps and how to become a member contact pat.giuliani@parentcorps.org

Drug use can damage the brain and lead to addiction

In adults, genetics are more than 50 percent responsible for addiction to alcohol. But new brain-imaging studies have shown that the teenage brain is a rapidly-changing organ and doesn't work the way an adult does. When teen's pleasured-chemical systems are not fully developed and they get wired to depend on substances for feeling good, the normal flow of brain chemicals that aid in learning, decision making and other key processes are often blocked. Drugs and alcohol can disrupt that massive renovation of the brain during adolescence, making it more vulnerable to drugs and easier for teens to get addicted.

Nearly half of kids who are regular drinkers before age 14 will become alcoholic. That puts early drinkers at three times greater risk of alcohol addiction than perople who wait until age 21 to start drinking. Once teens start to drink or use drugs, the consequences turn severe. Recent studies show that teens who start using marijuana before they turn 17 are at higher risk of developing schizophrenia than people who didn't use or started smoking marijuana later in adolescence or young adulthood.

Parental monitoring is one of the most consistent predictors of whether teens start using alcohol and other drugs. That means more than just having a good relationship with your kids. It means knowing where your children are, who they are with, and what they are doing. Children with higher levels of parental monitoring are less likely to start drinking or using drugs. Join Parent Corps today and learn how you can be a positive role model in your child's life. Contact pat.giuliani@parentcorps.org to receive a membership form.