As you know, one of my main goals this year as Grand Master, is to begin to implement the MMSAP (Masonic Model Student Assistance Program) program in Iowa's Schools.    The purpose of MMSAP is to assist our schools in creating a team approach to identification and intervention on behalf of kids who may be at risk for substance abuse, depression, suicide or violence.  It isn't enough to simply identify these students -- the schools must take the next step and therein lies the beauty of MMSAP.  The MMSAP approach trains teams of teachers how to best utilize the resources that are already available to them and maximize their efficiency.   Most schools already have some programs or resources available to deal with the problems listed above, but they don't have the comprehensive plan of action that MMSAP provides.  It really is the missing link.

The training is conducted by the renowned firm of Newman/Stecher International and consists of three-day intense, interactive workshops. The program is designed to take groups of five to eight teachers from individual schools and teach them how to intervene early and effectively with students that display certain patterns of behavior; patterns that if allowed to continue unchanged will lead to seriously negative situations.

If you have paid any attention at all to the national news recently, you know that one of the major stories involves a teen from Massachusetts who took her own life because she was being bullied.  Her fellow students made her life so miserable that she thought death was a better alternative.  It is situations like this that MMSAP was designed to help prevent.  A common reaction is to think, "Yeah, but that's Massachusetts.  Things like that don't happen in Iowa."  Don't kid yourself.  Those sad situations can happen anywhere at any time.   According to the Children's Defense Fund, 5700 American teens are victims of violent crime every single day.  Their statistics also show that 110 teenagers attempt suicide every day and 20 of them actually accomplish the act. 

MMSAP has been in existence for 28 years and is needed now as much as, if not more than ever before.  Even in Iowa.

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