What is the Bedford County Raising Healthy Children program?
The four-year Bedford County Raising Healthy Children program, which began during the 2006-07 school year, is providing social-skills training for elementary school students, training for teachers to improve classroom-management methods, and workshops for parents to help them communicate more effectively with their children and with their children’s school personnel. Scientifically tested, comprehensive, and school-based, the Raising Healthy Children program promotes positive youth development and academic success. The program includes three basic components: a school component, a family component, and a peer component. The Raising Healthy Children program is the culmination of the Seattle Social Development Project (SSDP), a 15-year study conducted by Dr. J David Hawkins and Dr. Richard F. Catalano in urban, multiethnic elementary schools in the Seattle, Washington School District, and in replications around the United States.
