Issue No. 3 – Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development

A Letter From Our Director:
Major Reasons Programs Fail to Meet Blueprints Criteria

I’m often asked why a particular program did not meet Blueprints criteria. Most programs fail to receive Blueprints certification because their scientific evaluations have major limitations.

These limitations are such that apparently positive results could emerge not from participation in the program but from design problems in the evaluation. The most obvious problems are not having a control group (in which participants are compared to nonparticipants) or not assigning participants to the intervention and control groups randomly.

Keep reading to discover some of the most common methodological problems.

Sincerely,

Sharon Mihalic
Director, Blueprints Initiative
Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence
Institute of Behavioral Science
University of Colorado Boulder
sharon.mihalic@colorado.edu

Featured Model Program
Parent Management Training (PMT)
Blueprints Certified: September 2014
Ages Served: 4 – 12 years old
Program Outcome: Antisocial-Aggressive Behavior, Anxiety, Conduct Problems, Delinquency, Externalizing, Internalizing, Mental Health, Substance Use
Parent Management Training (PMT) is a group of theory-based training interventions aimed at reducing antisocial and behavior problems in children by providing parents with family management strategies and parenting skills.

Learn more about Parent Management Training…

Featured Promising Program
Promoting Health Among Teens!
Blueprints Certified: January 2017
Ages Served: Grade 6 and 7
Program Outcome: Sexual Risk Behavior
Blueprints recently certified Promoting Health Among Teens! (Comprehensive) and Promoting Health Among Teens! (Abstinence Only) programs as “Promising.” These two programs aim to intervene and prevent sexual involvement and risky sexual behaviors in adolescents through knowledge enhancement and skill building.

Learn more about Promoting Health Among Teens…

Blueprints News & Resources
Relevant articles and helpful resources

Here are a few articles that feature some of our Blueprint’s Model Programs:

Supporting Local Families (MST)
YWCA York receives grant to combat underage drinking (Project Towards No Drug Abuse)
VIDEO: LifeSkills Training, Making Education Fun for Children (LST)

Here are some helpful resources:

Mark Your Calendar!
Join us in Colorado next spring for our bi-annual conference. It’s shaping up to be another great event that you won’t want to miss.

Legislative Update
Stay Informed
Legislative support is key to the elevation of our programs. We would encourage you to keep an eye on these bills as they progress.

Our mailing address is:
University of Colorado Boulder | Institute of Behavioral Science | Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence
483 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309

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