Since June 2019, the Health District has been a recipient of the Human Resources Services Administration (HRSA) Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) grant. The District received a Planning grant from 2019-2020 and is now in its second year of the Implementation grant. The project specifically serves the two federally-qualifying rural census tracts in Snohomish County (Exhibit A). The District, along with a consortium of community partners, including the Darrington School District, is working towards implementing strategies that increase access to prevention, treatment, and recovery services and support for individuals with opioid-use disorder and their families.
In May 2022, the Board of Health approved entering into an agreement to provide funding to Darrington School District that would allow them to hire a behavioral health specialist term-limited position to provide counseling services for its middle and high school.
Since that approval, there have been further conversations with the consortium on expanding this work to include covering the cost of a PAX Good Behavior Game® training as well as staff time to attend the training. PAX Good Behavior Game is an evidence-based universal preventive intervention applied by teachers in the classroom. This evidence-based practice consists of a set of research-based strategies with origins in behavioral science, neuroscience, and cultural wisdom that operate together to improve children’s self-regulation. Teachers implement these strategies as part of their daily routines in carrying out tasks such as getting students’ attention, selecting students for tasks, transitioning from one task to the next, working as part of a team, limiting problematic behavior, and reinforcing pro-social behavior. The PAX Good Behavior Game helps to build children’s self-regulation, resulting in improved focus and attention, improved test scores and other academic outcomes, and reduced alcohol and drug use, psychiatric disorders, and suicide.
The attached agreement (Exhibit B) includes all changes made since it was previously approved. Due to the collaborative nature of the relationship with Darrington School District, it was also determined that they are acting in the role of a subrecipient rather than a contractor for this work and so there is also some additional language that complies with federal requirements.
The total cost of training and staff time is $14,891 and would be completely funded through our HRSA grant. This addition revises the total maximum contract amount to $150,000.