The 1992–93 school year marks the third anniversary of a very special program in the Rincon Valley Union School District. The Student Advocate Program releases teachers from classroom duties for three to four hours per week to meet with students on a one-on-one basis. The students are sometimes labeled “at-risk,” but they can be any child who needs extra attention or a trusted friend to talk to. The advocate's role is simply to be a good listener, a big brother or sister. Often this is enough to help a child through a rough period in his or her life.
With a ratio of 1 counselor per 700 students, our counselors cannot possibly meet all the demands of our student population. While most teachers already supply some of the extra emotional support that our students need in their classrooms, some problems demand more time than a teacher can give in the few minutes before school, between classes, or during recess. Teacher advocates are not intended to take the place of counselors or therapists, although they do receive training in crisis intervention. When serious issues arise, we have clear guidelines for referring the child to the appropriate support person or agency.
Initiated in one school in Rincon Valley, the Student Advocate Program soon spread to all seven elementary schools and has now been adopted in districts throughout Sonoma County, including Santa Rosa City, Sebastopol, and Roseland. After three years, members of our school community—children, parents, and staff alike—agree that the program is an unqualified success. The recipient of Sonoma County's highest program award for 1992, the program meets the needs of all concerned in ways that nothing else has.
Perhaps the greatest praise has come from administrators and teachers in other districts who have asked us to help them develop their own Advocate programs. With the help of My Teacher, My Advocate, school districts are learning about the program in states including Arizona, southern California, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Texas, Utah, and Wisconsin. Produced in cooperation with Arthur Mokin Productions, Inc., the video shows the program in action through candid footage and interviews with students, staff, and administrators in Rincon Valley.
The Student Advocate Program is one of those rare ideas that is both simple and inexpensive to implement: about $2,500 per year per school. The beauty of the program is that it capitalizes on the closeness and trust that already exist between students and teachers.
