The Pennsylvania Student Assistance Program is a unique collaboration between schools, community agencies, county human services, and the Pennsylvania State Departments of Human Services, Drug and Alcohol Programs and Education. The Network for SAP Services provides leadership, communication and monies to support SAP at the county and local school level.
At the local school level, a highly trained, multidisciplinary school team works with the staff to identify students’ barriers to learning and school success. These include, but are not limited to:
The SAP team identifies students, determines whether their problem lies within the responsibility of the school to address and makes recommendations to assist students and families remove barriers to learning. When a problem lies beyond the scope of the school, the SAP team, including the community agency liaison, will assist the parent and student to identify appropriate services within the community and school to address the issues and work toward improvement.
The Prevention Team of Addiction Medicine Services-UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital, a Pennsylvania Approved SAP Training Provider, has trained educators and behavioral health professionals for over 30 years.
Our professional educators, clinicians, and behavior specialists deliver high-quality initial SAP and advanced training and ongoing coaching designed to help teams function efficiently and effectively. Our goal is to help schools build sustainable systems for addressing student learning barriers in the best way possible.
We currently offer the following workshops for school personnel: teachers, nurses, school liaisons, administrators, clinical staff, school resource officers, and probation officers. Learn more about each course below:
2024-2025
$345/person fee includes all materials and 13 Act 48 Credit Hours / 14 Act 45 Credit Hours.
8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
$345/person fee includes all materials and 13 Act 48 Credit Hours / 14 Act 45 Credit Hours.
During the two-day training, participants will:
Act 48. Additional charges will apply for specialized credits. LSW, CEUs,CAC/CPS and NBCC credits offered at $30.
For further information, please contact Pat Woodke at woodkeps@upmc.edu.
To register for a training, download the registration form (PDF), complete and email to Pat. When emailing, please put “SAP REGISTRATION” in the subject line.
For groups of 15 or more, our trainers will travel to your school and provide SAP or other topic-specific trainings. You determine the dates and the topics; you provide the materials and lunch.
$375 per participant
For further information or to schedule an On-Site Training or Mental Health First Aid Training, please call 412.235.5377 or email Pat Woodke at woodkeps@upmc.edu.
None scheduled at this time
Students listen to other students. Groups are an effective and fun way to teach social and emotional regulation skills to students. However, working in a school is different from working in an agency. Education groups are different than therapy groups. Come and refine your skills and knowledge while having some fun, too!
This one‐day workshop will prepare participants to design, plan, implement and evaluate topic specific skill development groups in schools. The schedule creates time to select and demonstrate activities, gather feedback, wake up your brain "breaks," and promises to engage and energize you. Staff will leave with tons of resources, many new statewide networking contacts, and most importantly, the confidence and know how to help students make lasting changes that transfer to daily life.
Who should attend? SAP Liaisons, SAP professionals, school counselors, teachers, prevention specialists, school psychologists and school social workers interested in facilitating educational groups in schools
During the one‐day training, participants will:
None scheduled at this time
$200 per participant
Come and refresh your knowledge and skills in the Pennsylvania model for Student Assistance! This highly interactive educational experience will provide multiple opportunities for networking, analyzing cases, improving teamwork, and brain breaks. Get a refresher and assess how well your SAP team functions!
If you have questions about any of our training courses, please call 412-235-5377.
