Wednesday evening, Lehighton Area School District hosted the fourth in a series of community Drug and Alcohol Awareness meetings.

Facilitating the session, Lehighton Area High School Principal Tim Tkach described the task force as "A committee with representation from all parties addressing 'The Big Picture.'"Stressing the importance of goal setting, he divided those in attendance into three subcommittees - parents, school representatives, and community organizations / agencies. Each group was charged with creating a specific goal and action plan related to the information discussed by the subcommittees at the July 20 meeting.According to Tkach, the goal setting process being utilized by the task force is based on the

S.M.A.R.T. model:Specific - A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal.Measurable - Establish concrete criteria for measuring progress toward the attainment of each goal you set.Attainable - When you identify goals that are most important to you, you begin to figure out ways you can make them come true.Realistic - To be realistic, a goal must represent an objective toward which you are both willing and able to work.Timely - A goal should be grounded within a certain time frame.Following the breakout session, the three subcommittees reconvened in LAHS auditorium. Each subcommittee was asked to select three representatives to create and serve on a Drug and Alcohol Task Force Board.This board will meet on Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 6:30 p.m. at LAHS Main Office Conference Room. Subcommittees will meet at the convenience of the members between Thursday, Oct.r 6 and Friday, Oct. 28. The board will convene again on Wednesday, Nov. 2.Both Tkach and Superintendent James Kraky thanked the task force for their time and participation.For more information about LASD in general and the Drug and Alcohol Task Force Board specifically, visit

www.Lehighton.org.