The PLUS course is a two-semester course that combines high-level critical thinking, writing, and analytical skills with project experiences and implementation, while giving students an opportunity to explore interpersonal and mass communications as they identify and address critical issues related to school climate. Through this class students will become more empowered peer leaders as they hone their communication and problem solving skills.

Students will participate in Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) projects which includes: research and evaluation, project planning and execution, as well as leadership and critical thinking-based activities in order to further develop these key skills in tandem with mentorship and peer education. This class will require students to synthesize information obtained in core classes as well as work both individually and collaboratively. Findings from these experiences will lead students to become empathic and responsible citizens who can apply their knowledge to larger-scale future projects as their ages, resources, and scopes increase. The  coursework extends and enhances the traditional Peer Leaders Uniting Students (PLUS) program (a program designed under its parent company, The Vanden Corporation) above and beyond its primary intended purpose to protect, connect, and educate students in an effort to create a culture on campuses and in communities where inclusion is a reality for young people. The PLUS Program utilizes the natural channels of peer influence to address critical issues that impact positive youth development, as outlined in the Research Findings on Evaluations of Positive Youth Development Programs conducted by the Social Development Research Group School of Social Work at the University of Washington.

PLUS Leadership trains carefully selected members of 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grades to be PLUS Team members. As positive role models, PLUS Team members are student leaders who facilitate healthy relations with peers and foster actions that establish pro-social involvement. PLUS’s goal is to create and maintain a positive campus environment in which students make real connections with each other, resulting in the following long-term benefits: 1.) increased attendance and graduation rates, 2.) improved academic performance, and 3.) expanded opportunities for pro-social bonding. PLUS empowers students to have a voice in discussions that identify critical issues on campus and serves as the foundation for the overall development of a safe school campus environment.