The A-PLUS Program

Albany Partnerships for Learning and Uniting Services

Leslie Jimpson, Project Coordinator
(518) 475-6545

ljimpson@albany.k12.ny.us

What is A-PLUS?

The Albany Partnership for Learning and Uniting Services (A-PLUS) launched in 2009 and is funded by the four-year federal Safe Schools-Healthy Students initiative. The program is designed to improve academic outcomes by expanding high-quality school and community-based services available to students and families so that students in Albany may learn, live and prosper in safe and supportive environments.

There are many components of A-PLUS that are designed to enhance students' social and emotional growth, and foster supportive and safe school environments. Every A-PLUS service is evidence-based and delivered by a trained professional.

Check out a video with staff and student interviews regarding A-PLUS and its benefits.

In addition to the City School District of Albany, the A-PLUS coalition of public and private agencies includes the following organizations:

A-PLUS Health Clinics

Many student and teacher support services are available through the A-PLUS health clinics located in room 338 at Albany High School, 700 Washington Ave., and across from the main office at North Albany Academy, 570 North Pearl St.

The A-PLUS clinics began operating in February 2009 as the centerpiece of the Safe Schools-Healthy Students initiative. Each clinic is staffed by a full-time clinical social worker, behavior specialist and parent partner. A case manager and a youth advocate divide their time between the clinics.

In the program's first year, both clinics had summer hours and expanded outreach during the fall of 2009, resulting in an increasing number of students receiving individual or group services as the 2009-10 school year progressed. By November, Albany High's A-PLUS clinic served 58 students and North Albany’s clinic served 54 students.

The intensity of services also increased over time – from September to December there was a 50 percent increase in the number of contacts with each student per month.

The Gang Resistance Education and Training Program

Launched in the fall of 2009, the Gang Resistance Education and Training (GREAT) program is a school-based curriculum that is delivered to sixth-grade students in the district's three middle schools through weekly classroom visits by law enforcement officers.

In other diverse urban communities, GREAT has been shown to deter youth from delinquency, violence and gang membership by building life skills such as problem solving, conflict resolution, goal-setting and self control. By expanding and improving the School Resource Officer program, students are allowed to interact with police officers in a supportive, collaborative environment.

All officers currently working in Albany's public schools have completed training as GREAT instructors. They delivered the 13-week curriculum to 179 sixth-graders during the 2009-10 school year.

For more information about the GREAT program, please contact Albany Police Detective Lt. Kevin Connolly at kconnolly@albany-ny.org.

CrisisChat.org -- Online emotional support

Questions?

The Center for Human Services Research at the University of Albany is conducting a four-year evaluation of A-PLUS. The center is a social-research organization that conducts program evaluations and designs data systems to inform policymakers and service providers about the design and delivery of effective services that address social issues and meet community needs.

For more information about the center's research, please contact Kenneth Robin, Ph.D., at (518) 591-8797 or krobin@uamail.albany.edu.

For more information about A-PLUS, contact Project Coordinator Leslie Jimpson at (518) 475-6545 or ljimpson@albany.k12.ny.us.