The Carbondale PROSPER team was recently honored by the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center (PRC) at Penn State with its inaugural Christine Ann Orrson Award for Prevention Partnership, recognizing the team’s decades of dedication, resourcefulness, and tenacity in providing evidence-based programs to promote the health and well-being of youth and families in their community.

PROSPER, or PROmoting School-community-university Partnerships to Enhance Resilience, is a community partnership approach to implementing evidence-based programs that has been scientifically proven to help prevent substance use and problem behavior by giving kids and parents the skills they need.

PROSPER partnerships were established across Pennsylvania by Penn State Extension and the Penn State Prevention Research Center starting in 2001, and the Carbondale PROSPER team was among the first to be established, by leaders from the Carbondale Area School District, county human service agencies, and community organizations and individuals.

Since 2002, the team has led implementation of two evidence-based programs, The Strengthening Families Program: for Parents and Youth 10-14, (SFP 10-14) and LifeSkills Training in the Carbondale Area School District, serving approximately 375 families and 2600 students over the years. PROSPER combines an in-school program for middle school students with an after-school program with the youth and their families that teaches valuable skills such as refusing peer pressure and resolving conflicts.

Ann Vadella, Carbondale Area Elementary School guidance counselor and PROSPER team co-leader commented, “Those programs have made a difference to hundreds of community members in Carbondale and even beyond. I didn’t know that PROSPER and SFP 10-14 would become one of the best parts of my career as a counselor and even more, as a community member.”

The award was presented April 3 at the Hintz Family Alumni Center by Janet Welsh, Penn State research professor of health and human development and PROSPER principal investigator, and Daniel Perkins, Penn State professor of youth and family resiliency and policy.

Present to accept the award on behalf of the Carbondale PROSPER team were Karen Thomas, PROSPER field coordinator; Ann Vadella, Carbondale PROSPER team co-leader; Nellie Connolly, community team member representing Friendship House and the ministerium, and Strengthening Families Program facilitator; Kelly Langan, community member representing the United Neighborhood Centers and Strengthening Families Program childcare staff member; and Janet Rusnak, retired Carbondale High School nurse, Strengthening Families Program facilitator, and original PROSPER team member.

“It’s gratifying to see the team recognized for their hard work and efforts in implementing and sustaining evidence-based programs for more than 20 years,” says Karen Thomas, PROSPER field coordinator. She added, “They are dedicated and committed individuals who understand the impact they’ve had on building resilient youth, strengthening family bonds, and creating a healthier community. I’m grateful for our current and past community partners including the Carbondale Area School District, the Lackawanna County Office of Youth and Family Services, Goodwill Industries, The United Neighborhood Centers, Friendship House, Lackawanna/Susquehanna Office of Drug and Alcohol programs, the Greater Carbondale YMCA, Outreach, NHS of Northeastern PA, the City of Carbondale, and past program youth and parent participants. Their support has been instrumental to our success.”

The award was named in honor of Penn State Extension professional Christine Orrson.

“Chris’s pioneering leadership within Penn State Extension was multifaceted and was key to the success of the overall PROSPER initiative,” said Perkins. “She was an early adopter of PATHS, an evidence-based program for youth that teaches social and emotional skills. She led one of our first PROSPER teams, enhancing the lives of countless families. She also provided mentorship to Extension educators and faculty alike,” said Perkins.

PROSPER is currently implemented in four communities in Pennsylvania. For more information, contact Sara Brennen at sbrennen@psu.edu. For information about the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center, visit prevention.psu.edu.

PROSPER is currently implemented in four communities in Pennsylvania. For more information, contact Sara Brennen at sbrennen@psu.edu. For information about the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center, visit prevention.psu.edu.