by Kate Shunney
After struggling through challenges posed by COVID and a changing volunteer base, a long-running program to pair adult volunteers with students who need extra support is getting rejuvenated in Morgan County Schools.
The PASS Program, which was run by longtime leader Karen Whisner, has been on pause since her retirement and undergoing an organizational change.
Angie Beddow, the County Schools Director of Child Nutrition, told the Morgan County Board of Education last month that she has outlined the kickoff of PASS 2.0 – a newly-envisioned student support program. 
PASS – short for Providing Academic Social-Emotional Support – has long paired up adult mentors with students in the school system who may need encouragement for academics and social connections with a caring adult.
“The program was designed for students who may be at-risk now or in the future of falling behind academically or socially. PASS volunteers can follow a student as they progress through school,” says the program page.
Volunteers are screened, trained and matched with students who were recommended to PASS by teachers or school staff or family members. Matched pair would typically meet once per week at the student’s school. In the past, some students worked with the same PASS volunteer for years in a row, and some PASS volunteers had several students they mentored.
Beddow told the school board she envisions a revival of the program in early 2026.
Toward that end, a new PASS program webpage has been created and updated at https://www.morganschools.net/page/pass and houses various forms needed for a referral to the program, an application to volunteer and a preview of the volunteer training.
“Working with students has changed since PASS was created. We have some new tools for volunteers,” Beddow told school officials.
School administrators also decided that it makes sense to include PASS activities with the work of Student Assistance Teams in schools to coordinate multiple forms of student support, Beddow said.
Who can volunteer?
Volunteers must be 18 years of age or older and cannot be a student enrolled in the school system. Potential volunteers will be fingerprinted and undergo a criminal background check, must complete the school’s training for PASS volunteers, then commit to a weekly 30-minute meeting with a student.
That commitment is a cornerstone of the program’s success, as students in the program especially need the reliability of the positive interaction weekly.
Some of the training will cover how a community volunteer will navigate entering county schools and interacting with youth in a positive way.
Volunteers have to navigate issues of supporting students while protecting their confidentiality, enforcing appropriate boundaries with youth and being aware of issues that may need to be referred to parents or other school staff.
“We want to give the PASS volunteers the best experience. A lot has changed, like mandated reporting, so we have to teach them and equip them for working with today’s students,” said Superintendent David Banks.
Beddow said she and Banks, along with other board members, have been working on revamping the program, including updating the job description for a part-time PASS Coordinator for the county schools. That position is now open, and Beddow told school board members she hopes to hire that person in the coming weeks. The PASS Coordinator is paid with school special levy funds.
“The next step is funding that special person to run the day-to-day parts of the program and to find volunteers,” Beddow said.
A previous pool of PASS volunteers who met with many students before COVID has dissipated as some veteran older volunteers have passed away and the program became inactive.
Beddow is hoping to do a volunteer drive in November with a new coordinator to rebuild that corps of volunteers.
“It’s a great program,” said Aaron Close, school board president.
“It’s the right time to revamp and bring it back,” said Beddow.
Anyone with interest in the program can visit the PASS page on the county school website or contact Beddow at the school board office.
