This Phase II SBIR application requests 36 months of support for the development and testing of a skill-based prevention program for career and technical education (CTE) students about to transition to full-time work. The program, LifeSkills Training Transition to Work (LST-TW), will [provide students with the self-management and interpersonal skills needed to resist internal and external influences to use substances, as well as build competencies in terms of employability skills and effective functioning in the workplace.] LST-TW will be based on the model program LifeSkills Training (LST), a cognitive-behavioral, skill-based substance use prevention program for middle and junior high school students. The effectiveness of the LST approach has been well established in over 20 peer-reviewed publications, with behavioral effects on substance use and related risk behaviors lasting until the end of high school and beyond. [The goals of the eight unit LST-TW program are to prevent the onset or progression of substance use, reduce use among those who already use substances, and improve job related outcomes such as work performance and job satisfaction. These goals will be achieved by combining key drug prevention and life skills taught in LST with a focus on relevant employability skills required in today's rapidly changing workplace. A variety of interactive skills training techniques and classroom exercises will help students learn and master these skills and apply them to issues specific to the transition to work, such as starting a new job and career advancement. Thus, LST-TW will aim to improve skills, attitudes, and behaviors related to health, drug use, and work.] In Phase I, two prototype units of the LST-TW program were developed, evaluated by CTE teachers and administrators [and employers of CTE graduates], implemented in CTE classrooms, and evaluated by students from these classrooms. In Phase II, the written curriculum (Teacher's Manual and Student Guide) of the full eight units and accompanying website will be finalized after teacher and student focus groups and consultation with experts. The completed program will be tested in a rigorous, randomized controlled field trial including 30 CTE program sites that will be randomized into an intervention or control group condition. LST trainers, who will serve as providers of LST-TW, will attend a training workshop prior to implementing the program. The randomized controlled field trial will include a pretest survey, implementation of the LST-TW program to those in the intervention group, and the collection of 30-day posttest surveys along with process data. A 12-month follow-up will be competed after participants from both conditions have graduated from school and are working or seeking work. Project activities will also include conducting a training-of-trainers (TOT) workshop for CTE teachers from the participating sites to become program providers of LST-TW after the study has been completed. This project offers the potential for extending the reach of an already proven prevention approach to older adolescents transitioning into the work setting. PROJECT NARRATIVE This Phase II SBIR study involves the development and evaluation of a program called LifeSkills Training Transition to Work (LST-TW) for career and technical education (CTE) students who are preparing to transition into the workforce. The eight-week LST-TW program is a skills-based substance use prevention program for non-college bound adolescents that emphasizes both employability skills and competence enhancement prevention skills before they enter the workforce, thus reducing substance abuse risk factors and improving job-related outcomes. This project addresses an important public health issue given that high rates of substance use and abuse often coincide with the transition from school to the workforce, and the growing need for youth in the workplace to possess prosocial behavior skills that are vital to career success.
