A Pre Post And Three Month Follow Up Evaluation Of A Training Program For Volunteer Telephone Crisis Counselors

Effects of a training program for volunteer telephone crisis counselors at the National Runaway Switchboard (NRS) were examined. The participants were 35 individuals who self-selected to participate in the NRS training to become crisis counselors. All participants filled out the NRS Knowledge Questionnaire, which assessed knowledge related to crisis intervention and comprehension of topics related to the NRS. They also responded to a standardized crisis call from the same scripted simulated call. The role plays were evaluated with the NRS Role Play Evaluation Form, which assessed specific skills related to the NRS's five-step solution focused Crisis Intervention Model. The Knowledge Questionnaire and role plays were administered pretraining, posttraining, and at the three-month follow-up period. A Training Satisfaction Survey was also administered posttraining to address the participants overall satisfaction with the program. The questions being asked were: (a) Are there any common characteristics among volunteers who do not complete training? (b) Can the volunteers be effectively trained? (c) Does the training program change the volunteers' knowledge base about the National Runaway Switchboard and the types of calls they receive? (d) Does the training program change the volunteers' crisis intervention skills? (e) How satisfied are the volunteers with the training experience? Results indicated that the NRS training program significantly increased the volunteers' crisis intervention skills and knowledge base. Significant increases were seen when comparing the pretraining scores to the posttraining scores. Volunteer skills and knowledge did not show further significant improvement as a result of three months experience. Volunteers who completed the training program were highly satisfied with the program. Although several volunteers dropped out of the training program, it was difficult to characterize and predict the individuals, suggesting the NRS does a sufficient job of training and retaining a diverse group of volunteers. Only gender and educational level were seen as significant predictors, with males and those with lower levels of education being more likely to drop out of the training program. In addition, it can be implied that retaining volunteers in the summer months may be more difficult when compared to the other months of the year.

The Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs is a resource to develop effective and high quality comprehensive school counseling programs that align with Texas statutes and rules governing the work of school counselors. It outlines a process for tailoring school counseling programs to meet the varying needs of students across an array of school districts through implementation of the four components of school counseling programs, Guidance Curriculum, Responsive Services, Individual Planning, and System Support. With this resource, a school counselor will learn to use campus-specific data to identify the unique needs of a campus and design a comprehensive school counseling program to meet those needs. Recognizing the important roles of the entire educational community, the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs provides examples of how parents, teachers, administrators, principals and school counselors can best contribute to implementation of each of the four components of comprehensive school counseling programs. It provides a developmental framework for a school counseling program curriculum that includes activities at each grade level to enhance students¿ educational, career, personal and social development.

This practical introduction to the art of interacting with crisis helpline callers will be essential to those who work, or intend to work, on a crisis line. The book is geared towards volunteers and others who initiate the crisis intervention process, when they need to accurately gauge the nature of the call and effectively engage the caller in problem-solving. The manual, in a loose-leaf binder, helps provide consistency in training on communication and listening skills. The text is designed to help telephone counselors provide an appropriate level of response and direction - but it is not written to help counselors detect underlying causes or otherwise engage in therapeutic encounters. The authors anticipate the possibility that the i

This book will further stimulate interest and discussion of the telephone and the Internet as a mode of treatment. In this extensively revised third edition, a practical framework for providing immediate problem-solving assistance by telephone to persons in crisis is provided. Several new chapters have been added and several chapters have been updated and rewritten. The text offers specific techniques to deal with out-of-control situations with the highly important initial steps to protect the caller, the crisis worker, and the community. The scope of the book includes an overview of counseling by telephone, how to effectively manage crises, how to be supportive verbally and nonverbally, how to accurately assess situations, and how to help create a sense of stability. Part I discusses the varieties of telephone services, while Part II covers crisis intervention and counseling, including telephone therapy, active listening, cognitive therapy approaches, transactional analysis and learned helplessness approaches, as well as Gestalt therapy approaches. Part III discusses a variety of problem callers: the obscene caller, the chronic caller, the silent caller, the nuisance caller, and the “one counselor” caller. A new section, Part IV—Special Topics, includes valuable information on dealing with adolescents, war veterans, rural communities, the elderly, and individuals with disabilities on campus. Part V offers a look at contact beyond the telephone, including crisis intervention by e-mail and letter. Part VI views the roles of telephone counselors, such as the mental health professional, the nonprofessional crisis worker, selecting telephone counselors, and training crisis workers. Finally, Part VII summarizes and evaluates today’s telephone counseling services. This unique and up-to-date book serves as a comprehensive tool for those setting up telephone and Internet counseling services and those in charge of centers already operating, especially in training and supervising those on the front lines, the crisis interveners.

Strengthen programs of family and community engagement to promote equity and increase student success! When schools, families, and communities collaborate and share responsibility for students′ education, more students succeed in school. Based on 30 years of research and fieldwork, the fourth edition of the bestseller School, Family, and Community Partnerships: Your Handbook for Action, presents tools and guidelines to help develop more effective and more equitable programs of family and community engagement. Written by a team of well-known experts, it provides a theory and framework of six types of involvement for action; up-to-date research on school, family, and community collaboration; and new materials for professional development and on-going technical assistance. Readers also will find: Examples of best practices on the six types of involvement from preschools, and elementary, middle, and high schools Checklists, templates, and evaluations to plan goal-linked partnership programs and assess progress CD-ROM with slides and notes for two presentations: A new awareness session to orient colleagues on the major components of a research-based partnership program, and a full One-Day Team Training Workshop to prepare school teams to develop their partnership programs. As a foundational text, this handbook demonstrates a proven approach to implement and sustain inclusive, goal-linked programs of partnership. It shows how a good partnership program is an essential component of good school organization and school improvement for student success. This book will help every district and all schools strengthen and continually improve their programs of family and community engagement.

In recent years, much has occurred in the field of traumatology, including the widening of the audience and the awareness of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). This book from celebrated traumatology pioneer Charles Figley, further clarifies the concept of compassion fatigue through theory, research, and treatment. The basic thesis of this book is the identification, assessment, and treatment of compassion fatigue and this is done over eleven chapters, each from distinguished researchers in the field.

Identifies and describes specific government assistance opportunities such as loans, grants, counseling, and procurement contracts available under many agencies and programs.