The School Counseling Program at {Your School Name} A look at  where we have been,  where we are, & where we are headed This presentation was developed by the Public Relations Committee of the Lafayette Professional School Counselors Association in an effort to inform teachers about the role of school counselors in Lafayette Parish. This is to be used as a foundation to work from. Please adjust and edit to work for you and your school.

What do you remember about your school counselor? Did you have a school counselor in elementary school? In middle school? In high school? If so, what do you remember most about your school counselor? ICEBREAKER This slide allows the presenter to draw the viewer into the presentation by reflecting on his/her own school counselor. This will set the stage for helping the viewer to understand that there is a difference between what he/she may remember about the school counselor and what the school counselor is today. The presenter can engage in conversation with participants and ask them to share their responses or may simply ask the participants to reflect back.

Yesterday’s Services Versus Today’s Program Guidance Counselor Reactive Services provided to few students Impact measured via feelings or perceptions Ancillary role to school improvement process School counselors in isolation Professional School Counselor Proactive/Data driven Services provided to ALL students Impact measured via achievement data Essential role in school improvement process School counselors as school leaders Note the change in title from guidance counselor to professional school counselor Counselor Position: Mention that services are provided to students who self-advocate or whose parents advocate for them Comprehensive Program: Mention that services are determined based on identified needs of the school and students (from data) Stress that ALL students benefit from this type of program

What can you expect from your professional school counselor? The Role of the Professional School Counselor American School Counseling Association, revised, 2009 “Professional school counselors serve a vital role in maximizing student success. Through leadership, advocacy and collaboration, professional school counselors promote equity and access to rigorous educational experiences for all students. Professional school counselors support a safe learning environment and work to safeguard the human rights of all members of the school community, and address the needs of all students through culturally relevant prevention and intervention programs that are a part of a comprehensive school counseling program." If you have a counselor who is running a comprehensive program, what else can you expect?

ASCA National Model Adapted by the Louisiana School Counseling Model, 2010 ADVOCACY LEADERSHIP School counselors are advocates. We advocate for students, but we also advocate for our programs. This is very different from yesterday’s school counselor. We know we have to maintain comprehensive programs in order for students to benefit so we have to advocate for the program. School counselors within comprehensive programs become school leaders. Because of our involvement with data, we often have our finger on the pulse of the school and can contribute tremendously to the school improvement process. We collaborate with others. We cannot run a program in isolation and we want to find innovative ways to work together to impact student achievement. Ultimately, we will produce systemic change for our students and our school via our advocacy, leadership, and collaboration. COLLABORATION SYSTEMIC CHANGE

A Comprehensive School Counseling Program to meet the needs of ALL students Determines the academic, career, and personal/social needs of the students PROGRAM FOUNDATION DELIVERY SYSTEM Addresses the students’ needs via four delivery methods The program foundation is the basis on which the school counseling program is built. The foundation requires the school counselor to determine the academic, career, and personal/social needs of the students in his/her school. The delivery system is how the school counselor will address those needs: classroom guidance, small group, individual, parent workshops, etc. The management requires the school counselor to include stakeholders in this process so that the program is not functioning in isolation. It also requires the school counselor to measure the impact of activities and interventions. The accountability system uses the outcomes to determine if the activities and interventions were effective or not. By examining outcomes, the counselor can discontinue ineffective practices, modify as necessary, and redeliver effective activities. Involves stakeholders and measures the impact of the school counseling program MANAGEMENT Evaluates the program based on outcomes and makes adjustments ACCOUNTABILITY

What services do school counselors provide? Guidance Curriculum Individual Planning Responsive Services System Support Within the delivery system, school counselors provide guidance curriculum, individual planning, and responsive services. As with any educator, the counselor most also spend time supporting the program through system support.

Guidance Curriculum Standards based Academic Achievement Career Exploration Personal/Social Growth Developmentally appropriate for Pre K-12 Tied to the school improvement plan The ASCA National standards can be aligned with GLEs Delivered through Classroom Guidance Lessons Group Activities Stress that this curriculum is based on standards (academic, career, and personal/social) The curriculum is also developmentally appropriate depending on the student’s grade level. The delivery of this curriculum can directly support the school improvement plan as the school counselor is playing in integral role in advancing students to the next level via this curriculum. Our curriculum can be cross-walked with teacher standards to reinforce material and to provide inter-disciplinary instruction. Students receive these services via classroom guidance lessons and group activities so that all students are exposed to the school counseling curriculum…not just those who self-advocate or whose parents advocate.

Individual Planning Ongoing systemic activities to assist students individually in establishing personal goals and developing future plans Examples: Advisement Annual Parent Conferences Portfolios Although these services are provided to students on an individual basis, they are systemic which means that all students have access to them. These services are more individualized because they are based on student’s personal goals and individual future plans.

Responsive Services Activities to meet students’ immediate needs: Individual Counseling Small Group Counseling Crisis Intervention Agency Referrals Consultation Peer Facilitation School counselors will still need to respond to students’ immediate needs via responsive services. However, by providing an overall curriculum and systemic planning, the immediate needs are reduced. Therefore, all students have access to the program, not just those with immediate needs.

System Support Management activities that establish, maintain, and enhance the total school counseling program such as: Professional Development Consultation Community Outreach Advisory Councils District Committees This is the school counselor’s planning time.

Equity and Access for ALL Students Specialized Interventions Responsive Services Individual Support Individual Student Planning Guidance Curriculum If you consider the program provided by today’s school counselor as a school counseling pyramid that is driven by School Improvement, Then all students receive services via Classroom Guidance. Other students receive services via Intentional Guidance activities that are developed to assist these students to reach the same level of performance as the majority of students. Individual support is offered to even fewer students, and Specialized intervention to even fewer students. Guidance curriculum and Individual Student Planning falls in the first two tiers with responsive services falling into the top two tiers. By providing a program within this context, the school counseling program is providing equity and access for all students. Intentional Guidance Classroom Guidance School Improvement Gail M. Smith (2009)

What can a comprehensive school counseling program mean for students? Reduced Discipline Referrals Increased Student Achievement Improved Attendance These are the types of impact that a comprehensive program can have on a school. Note the Teachers and Students slides are the same. Use this slide to drive home the point that the benefits to students are also the benefits to teachers, or replace with your own ideas for teachers/students. Lower Retention Rates Higher Graduation Rates

What can a comprehensive school counseling program mean for teachers? Reduced Discipline Referrals Increased Student Achievement Improved Attendance These are the types of impact that a comprehensive program can have on a school. Note the Teachers and Students slides are the same. Use this slide to drive home the point that the benefits to students are also the benefits to teachers, or replace with your own ideas for teachers/students. Lower Retention Rates Higher Graduation Rates

What does the data say? School counselors who are implementing comprehensive data-driven school counseling programs can show how their programs are making a difference in student performance. Presenters can add slides with sample projects from their schools.

Plans for the future of the counseling program at {Your School} This slide is for you to input your own departmental goals, ideas, expectations, etc. An Example from Youngsville Middle School: Goals for this year are Plan – Devise and utilize action plans to make measurable goals Evaluate – Analyze that data that was accumulated before, during and after the implementation of the action plan Share – Share the results through a MEASURE, SPARK, Letter to parents, website, grade level meetings, or another avenue appropriate for the data collected.