It takes a community
to provide a Rite of Passage Experience® initiative to its youth.
Building a collaborative community partnership is the first
step toward successfully installing a ROPE® initiative in a
community.
Any school or community group can take the lead in installing*
ROPE® in a community. Some communities provide ROPE® through
the school system, some through youth services or through a community
organization like the YMCA, and some make it a joint venture. Although
it is important to follow the ROPE® curriculum precisely, the
timeframe for implementation is flexible.
The problems facing youth on their path to adulthood require the
support of their community. Problems like alcohol and other drugs,
delinquency, pregnancies, and suicide, to name a few, do not yield
to simple slogans or “quick fix” solutions. Communities
face significant challenges to intervening in productive ways to
prevent these problems from occurring.
Although ROPE® has prescribed elements that could be considered
a program, the programmatic elements work together, not as a prescription
but as a structure to foster a collaborative
evolutionary process within a community. Thus, the strategy’s
utility is not in its programming but in its ability to mobilize
a community, within a common language and shared emotional experience,
to create and sustain a community focused initiative. Programmatic
strategies and community collaboration and coordination help promote
important developmental assets in children and youth.
Three Part Consulting and Training
The ROPE® consultation and training is tailored to each community's
particular situation and needs. This three-part consultation and
training is designed to occur over a period of several years.
Consultation for Parts I and Part II are typically conducted during
the first year of the installation. However, it is not unusual for
a community to spend a year or more developing Part I to establish
a solid foundation within the community.
Part III consultation and training typically takes place at the
end of the first year of Phase I implementation.
Part I
Purpose:
To build a community understanding of primary prevention and acceptance
of the importance of rites of passage in our society.
Steps:
Identify and motivate members of the community to form community
partnerships at a policy and program level. Community partnerships
may include the following adults:
- Superintendent of schools
- Community-based agency administrators
- School principals & administrative personnel
- Community-based agency counselors
- Teachers for targeted grade levels
- Civic organization representatives
- School counselors
- Clergy
- Parent/teacher organizational representatives
- Business representatives
- Board of Education members
- Police
- Town government officials
- Others – inclusive community representation High School
Students
2. A community representative usually
speaks with Dr. Blumenkrantz and/or a Master Trainer from The Center
to clarify requests and discuss options.
3. Dr. Blumenkrantz and/or Master Trainers
from The Center continue conversations with small groups of community
representatives, and facilitate community networking to discuss
community approach using the Rite of Passage Experience®.
4. Conduct a two-hour community orientation
to acquaint the community with primary prevention as exemplified
in the Rite Of Passage Experience®.
This orientation includes an exploration of the relationship of
rites of passage to a sense of community and an examination of the
practical aspects of implementing the philosophy of, “It takes
a whole village to raise a child.” It outlines a community
process for creating, implementing and sustaining a Rite of Passage
Experience® initiative and illustrates how this promotes developmental
assets in children and youth.
5. Facilitate a series of small planning
meetings with ROPE® initiative coordinators to develop the initiative’s
training component.
PART II
Purpose:
To work with a Core Group of 12 - 15 individuals from the community
partnerships to build skills needed for implementation of the ROPE®
initiative. Conduct training for the Core Group to refine and tailor
the Rite Of Passage Experience® to reflect the community's cultural
uniqueness and resources.
Steps:
1. Train the Core Group (five day training).
2. Support the initial ROPE® initiative
implementation in Grade 6 (Phase I) through a series of observation
and consultation meetings.
PART III
Purpose:
To assist the community partnerships in developing and implementing
the follow-up phase of the Rites Of Passage Experience® in Middle
School (Phase II) and High School (Phase III).
Steps:
1. Conduct a series of consultation
meetings to tailor the follow-up activities for Phase II and Phase
III.
2. Identify available community resources
and appropriate activities for Phases II and Phase III.
3. Support and provide technical assistance
for Phase II and Phase III implementation through a series of consultation
meetings.
In Conclusion:
The consultation and training is tailored to each community's particular
situation and needs. The three-part consultation and training is
designed to occur over a period of several years. Consultations
for Parts I and II are typically conducted during the first year
of implementation. However, it is not unusual for a community to
spend a year or more in Phase I, establishing a solid foundation
within the community. Part III consultation and training typically
takes place at the end of the first year of Phase I implementation.
- Expenses may vary based on size and scope of ROPE® initiative
and other factors. The Center will provide general price estimates
at the beginning of each ROPE® initiative and refined estimates
at the beginning of each Phase of the project.
- All materials for the Rite Of Passage Experience©®,
ROPE®, are copyrighted and Federally registered marks of The
Center.
*We use the terms “install” and “installation”
to define the implementation process of the ROPE® initiative.
This is intentional and aligns this process with the creation and
placement of a work of art in a community. We believe that engaging
in a ROPE® initiative is as much about art as it is science,
perhaps more so. |
