Penn State Extension’s Denise Continenza, who coordinates the Communities That Care program with Whitehall-Coplay School District, addressed Coplay Borough Council at its workshop session May 3.

Continenza discussed with council the highlights of the five areas the program addresses. The areas include educating students about risks associated with drug and alcohol use, increasing parent and adult knowledge in keeping children safe from dangers of drugs and alcohol, increasing opportunities for all youth to be recognized in the community, decreasing hunger among students and increasing awareness of local employment options after graduation from high school.

Continenza explained students who feel appreciated by their community have a lower incidence of misbehaviors and get better grades in school.

“We have a survey that we run. Students give us feedback on their perception of how they are treated,” she said.

Prior survey results suggested students feel they could be treated better. Continenza feels the results are indicative of the general student population.

“The survey is anonymous, so no one person can be targeted for their comments,” she said. “The comparison between this latest survey and the others will give us an indication of how well we are doing.”

The latest survey was conducted in 2015, and results are expected soon.

Continenza said Communities That Care will launch a life skills training session at the middle school this fall.

Whitehall-Coplay School District is the only district in the Lehigh Valley that integrates the program into its school curriculum, according to Continenza.

“We are doing a lot of work in this area. We want to make our program here a national model that others can build on,” she said.