El Riad El Riad Shrine Divan - El Riad Shrine Temple

At this very moment... and
the next...or the next...girls
and boys in your schools are
trying to learn while trying to
overcome bullies; to understand
friends who are considering
or succeeding in their
suicide threats, to cope with
personal depression, to negotiate
their way through the
threats and challenges of drug
and alcohol use.
WHAT IS THE MMSAP
Right now, across South Dakota,
the children in our schools are victims
of bullying, depression, suicidal idea -
tion, alcohol and drugs. Sometimes
our own child or grandchild may be a
“bully” or the target of a bully. Perhaps
your child has had a friend who committed
suicide or told her or him he
was considering it.
Increasingly our children come
from single parent families, live in
homes with one or more adults who
are already over-powered by drugs,
including alcoholism or are patients
suffering from depression. Often parents
are totally overwhelmed by their
job, economics or simply despair in
being a parent. These children lack
the stabilizing forces of a child-centered
family and the only people who
can help are the educators in our
schools. School districts and their
“home” communities in South Dakota
continue to seek help in trying to correct
these problems; help in serving
the young people who live in your
community.
The South Dakota Masonic Model
Student Assistance Program delivers a
pro-gram for educators from public
and private schools in a three-day
workshop designed to teach every
education employee in your schools
how to identify children at risk of selfdestructive
behavior and how to
develop a course of interventions
involving the parents, other educators
and the child.
What is the MMSAP?
The Masonic Model Student
Assistance Program was developed
by two specialists working in the
Pennsylvania Department of
Education. Then-Governor Dick
Thornburg directed Larry Newman
and Thomas Stecher to develop a system
to enable teachers to identify students
at risk of suicide and who were
in the early stages of using drugs or
alcohol. The program has been implemented
in South Dakota schools and
educators praise the program and the
Masons who make it possible.
Universally those who have attended
the workshops tell us that when the
“Core Team” in a school is formed and
begins work, success follows and
problems which young people are
experiencing decrease.
Plans are being made now to
present MMSAP to School
Superintendents, Administrators,
Teachers and School Counselors at
the El Riad Temple on June 11, 12, 13
and 14, 2012.
How El Riad, Masonic-Shriners
Can Help
If the Masonic Model Student
Assistance Program is to become
available to more teachers, counselors
and administrators each year, we must
in-crease our voluntary contributions.
You may give directly to the SD-
MMSAP by sending a check to the
Grand Lodge of South Dakota. You
may also contribute to SD-MMSAP
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Ill. Sir Don Jensen’s theme for this year:
“Unity”
An Open Heart and an Open
Mind make El Riad who we are!
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12 www.elriad.org • e-mail: cactus@elriad.com • FEBRUARY 2012