Medford officials described a new school-based program Tuesday that embeds a certified substance-use counselor in secondary schools to deliver Teen Intervene, an evidence-based prevention and early-intervention program for 12-to-19-year-olds.

The program matters because the city provided grant funding that allowed the Medford School District to change its disciplinary approach: students suspended for substance-related conduct now enter in-school suspension and complete a screening that can trigger on-site counseling instead of being sent home.

Jill Jeter, crisis intervention specialist for Medford School District, told the council the city’s opioid-prevention funding supports OnTrack staff in 14 schools and six secondary sites. “These evidence based programs provide two to six free sessions of education, support and guidance for teens and their parents,” she said, describing Teen Intervene as aimed at students with mild-to-moderate use.

Jeter said screening occurs during in‑school suspension; students scoring two or higher on the screener are referred to the district coordinator, who assigns them to Christy, the OnTrack counselor embedded in schools. Christy, a certified alcohol and drug counselor, said the response from students was immediate: within two weeks of starting, she worked with more than 50 students and, through June 5, reported that 56 students had engaged in brief interventions on campus.

City and school staff stressed the program’s goals: promote substance-free choices, teach harm-reduction and coping skills, and reduce out-of-school suspensions so students remain connected to school-based supports. Jeter said the prior practice of sending students home sometimes led to further use; the new approach offers screening, goal-setting and two-to-six counseling sessions during the school day.

Program results reported to the council: 62 alcohol-, drug- or vape-related suspensions since Feb. 10; 59 students screened into the program; three families declined services; six students were referred to ongoing OnTrack services; eight students were enrolled in OnTrack’s 90-day prevention program; and two students entered the MIP program. Jeter and Christy said seven students self-referred after hearing about small-group activities.

Councilors asked about grade-level breakdowns and parents’ reasons for declining. Christy said some families declined because they were not ready to acknowledge a problem, and one family worried about confidentiality despite staff explanation that in-school counseling respects privacy. Jeter said the district saw about a dozen more high-school than middle-school participants but emphasized that middle-school students made up those needing higher levels of care.

Councilors and staff framed the initiative as an early-intervention, school-centered model relying on city prevention dollars and a partnership with Jackson County Health & Human Services and OnTrack. Staff noted the program began late in the school year as training occurred and added that additional data collection and evaluation will follow as the program continues.

The city provided the prevention funding that made the embedded OnTrack counselor possible; staff asked councilors to note the program’s early success and to allow continued coordination between the district and OnTrack as the initiative scales.