Choosing to be violence free in middle school: the student component of the GREAT Schools and Families Universal Program

Abstract

This paper describes the theoretical basis and content of the universal student component of the Guiding Responsibility and Expectations for Adolescents for Today and Tomorrow (GREAT) Schools and Families' middle school violence prevention program for changing school climate. The GREAT Student Program builds on and extends the content of the sixth grade Responding In Peaceful and Positive Ways (RIPP-6) social-cognitive violence prevention program through an expanded conceptual framework that focuses on changing school norms and explicitly incorporates cultural and contextual goals. The program consists of twenty 40-minute lessons taught by a trained facilitator on a weekly basis during the school day