A Collaborative Training Model to Address Substance Use and Addictions in Schools

School-based mental health professionals are in an ideal position to intervene and prevent problematic substance use among adolescents (Lasser & Schmidt, 2010). Although specialized graduate training in addictions is commonplace for clinical, counseling, and social work, it has not been as readily available in preservice programs for school psychologists. Consequently, offering a graduate level preservice specialization in addictions to school psychology students was seen as an ideal way to increase the mental health workforce who can address these issues and strengthen outcomes for adolescents with substance abuse and addiction problems. The concept of "It takes a village" was at the forefront of a new collaborative effort to create a specialization in substance abuse and addictions that could be taken by graduate students in school psychology and school counseling. In support of the interprofessional mission of the Morgridge College of Education at the University of Denver, a new addictions specialization was created as a collaboration between the Counseling Psychology Department and the Child, Family & School Psychology Program. This specialization in adolescent addictions was focused on work best conducted within schools by trained mental health support professionals, such as school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists. The new program was developed cooperatively with input from current faculty, administrators, and practitioners in the field of addictions. The major purpose of the new program was to provide high-quality preparation for students within these fields to work interprofessionally within the school environment. A brief overview will be provided of the critical components and benefits of this new specialization currently in its second year of implementation, highlighting what has been learned and what is needed to guarantee its continuation in the future.