The TRUST Program was created by extracting the best components from
earlier programs and then blending them into a substance abuse, crisis
prevention/intervention specialist program. Piloted during the 1987-1988
school year in all middle schools and three senior high schools, the
program has expanded and is currently providing services in all middle
and senior high schools, and six elementary schools. The program is
funded from Safe and Drug Free Schools, and the Miami-Dade County
Public Schools District. All TRUST Specialists have masters or higher
level degrees in a human services area and documented experience in
alcohol/drug programs.
The TRUST Program also offers a special service through the Alternative
Intervention Program, an alternative to suspension. This program is
an innovative approach offering students and their families the opportunity
to examine their behavior and improve their coping skills while continuing
to attend regular classes.
The TRUST Program is effective because it minimizes student risk factors
while promoting protective factors creating a research-based comprehensive
attack on the epidemic of drug use. Through parent education, school-business
partnerships, special events, and police participation, school efforts
are supported by an increasingly skilled and knowledgeable adult population.
This kind of network encourages a community-school cooperation that
helps to create a drug-free environment.
Each year the Department of Education, through the Office of Policy
Research and Improvements Prevention Center, identifies and recognizes
exemplary school programs. The districtwide TRUST Program was selected
in 1987-88, as a Program of Excellence to serve as a model for other
drug prevention programs.
In addition, the TRUST Program was selected as the 1997 Program of
Excellence by the National Association of Leadership for Student Assistance
Programs. Representatives from across the country, as well as South
America and Europe, have visited Miami-Dade County to obtain information
and observe the program in action.
