School Counseling in the Real World · Web viewAs students of the school counseling profession, we work to learn competencies, counseling theories, and the ASCA National Model, but

Running head: REAL WORLD COUNSELING 1

School Counseling in the Real World

Emily Curtis, Julie New, & Ashleigh Stambaugh

Salem College

April 19, 2014

REAL WORLD COUNSELING 2

School Counseling in the Real World

As students of the school counseling profession, we work to learn competencies,

counseling theories, and the ASCA National Model, but how will this all fit together as we build

real world programs at schools all over the country? This project allowed us to meet with

counselors who are already doing it, who are affecting the lives of young people, and inspiring

them to become active, academically competent individuals who will become contributing

members to society. It is these hands on lessons that will give us a true insight in to problems

and challenges that counselors face daily as they seek to lead their students and administrations

through the complicated educational maze.

As we interviewed counselors at various schools types including rural elementary to

urban, as well as grade levels from elementary to high school, we worked to find their

similarities and their differences. Are there best practices that can be pulled from their various

programs that we can incorporate into our processes? This report will show that we determined

for each interview subject how they advocate for their students, and how they collaborate with all

school areas and the community.

We discovered how today’s counselors coordinate and consult within their school, their

departments, and the community to work with all students, not just those with specific needs.

We will demonstrate how they are educational leaders, and how they have to allocate very

limited resources. We will show strategies our real world counselors use to attack diversity issues

with an understanding of multi-cultural as well as academically based challenges their students

face.


Counselor Introductions

Lisa Wagoner

The counselors we interviewed came from varied educational and career fields which

made a difference, we believe, in how they work and face their challenges. Lisa Wagoner began

her educational career by obtaining a BA in Psychology from UNC- C and then obtained a M.Ed.

in School Counseling from there as well. She has been counseling since 1990 at the elementary

and high school levels (K-8 school, K-6 school, 9-12 school, and an early college) which gives

her great insight to all the areas of social and academic development of her students. Her current

school, West Yadkin Elementary, is a rural K-6 school with 600+ students, which is a Title 1

school that has a 40% Hispanic population. Six to eight elementary schools in Yadkin County

have to share counselors and resources.

Anna Gilkey

Anna Gilkey received her BA in Psychology with teaching license from Mary Baldwin

College, then taught elementary school for seven years. She then went to Wake Forest

University for her MA in Clinical/Mental Health with School counseling license. She has

worked four years as a school counselor with two years each at Starmount High, and North

Forsyth High. At her current school (NFHS), there are 1250 students, it is a Title 1 school with

40% black, 40% white, 15% Hispanic, and 5 % other making up the demographic population.

There are five counselors total which include one full time director, one full time registrar, one

full time guidance clerk, one full time counselor, and one full time social worker. She spends

approximately 60% of her time in directly counseling work.


Melinda Vest

Melinda Vest has a MA in Marriage and Family Counseling and worked as a family

counselor for a few years before deciding she wanted to be a school counselor. She took classes

geared to counseling the K-12 age children and took the Praxis for school counselors. Her

current school is Clemmons Middle School which is a Title 1 school that has approximately 801

students. The school has two counselors each assigned a specific grade, and they split the seventh

grade in half by teams and work with the students that way to make sure all have appropriate

services.

Breanne Clements

Breanne Clements obtained her BA from Salem College in Music performance and

worked in college admissions for nine years at two different schools prior to beginning her work

in the school counseling field. She went to NC A&T State University and got her MA in school

counseling, and has been a school counselor for two years. She works at the Randolph Early

College High School in Asheboro NC where she is responsible for 296 students as the only

counselor. This is a non-traditional public high school where students may earn their high school

diploma at the same time they earn an Associate’s degree. The school is made of up 66.3%

white, 3.5% multi-racial, 4.5% African American, 22.1% Hispanic and 4.6% other.

Amy Garner

Amy Garner received her BA from UNC-G in Human development with a minor in social

work. She completed her Master in counseling at UNC-G as well and has been a school

counselor since early 2000. She currently works at Southmont Elementary school in Asheboro

NC which is a Title 1 school where she is responsible as the only counselor for 643 students.

Southmont has a high population of white and Hispanic students and is working hard under a


school improvement plan to make sure all their students are well prepared in Reading and Math.

Their math pass rate scores are well above the state average and they are getting much closer in

reading.

Advocating and Collaborating

Advocating

The ASCA National Model is very clear that we as school counselors need to be strong

advocates for our students, our schools, and our profession. School counselor competency “I-B-

3 advocates for student success, and states that a school counselor (I-B-3a) understands and

defines advocacy and its role in comprehensive school counseling programs” (Association,

2013). “We must advocate on behalf of the children, the schools, and the communities we serve –

both as student advocates and advocates of our profession… If not “you” then “who?” (Dr.

Morris, 2014, p. 5). Advocacy is very important to promoting the programs and services that we

as school counselors have to offer. “In other words, if our “publics” do not know what we –

school counselors – do … they will not be willing or able to support us” (Dr. Morris, 2014, p.2;

New, 2014, p. 7).

“The ASCA Ethical Standards for school counselors calls on school counselors to

advocate for, lead and create equity-based school counseling programs that help close

achievement, opportunity and attainment gaps” (Association, 2013). Our counselors were all

asked to explain what steps have been taken to achieve this in their schools, and their approaches

seemed to vary based on the size school they are and what resources they had available.

Clements said that “serving as a member on the School Improvement Team is the best way for

me to gain information and assist in implementing school-wide programs for students” (New,

2014). Ms. Gikley targets achievement gap as part of two goals in SIT plan (especially Hispanic


students and black male students), community and schools program, mentoring programs,

individual meetings, parent-teacher conferences, Hispanic Achievers Program with the YMCA

working with Juntos and touring businesses and it created an in-school community for Hispanic

students (Curtis, 2014) Other ways that counselors advocate for student academic success is by

offering tutoring classes to students that did not understand lessons throughout the week, and

some schools even offer a Saturday Academy for students that are not performing at grade level

(Stambaugh, 2014).

From a professional standpoint, we as counselors must advocate not just for our students,

but for ourselves and our value in the community. We must “promote a professional identity and

increase the public image of counseling” (Dr. Morris, 2014, p. 3). We must also work on

“developing inter-professional and intra-professional collaboration; and work on “promoting

legislative policy initiatives” (Dr. Morris, 2014, p. 3). We should work within these four areas as

well as social justice areas to advocate for ourselves as we work to build and maintain

comprehensive counseling programs.

Collaboration

The ASCA National Model Competency I-B-4 says that “an effective school counselor is

able to accomplish measurable objectives demonstrating the following abilities and skills:

collaborates with parents, teachers, administrators, community leaders and other stakeholders to

promote and support student success” (ASCA, 2012; Curtis, New, & Stambaugh, 2014). When

asked what level of importance is placed on collaboration in your school counseling program,

answers varied based on the size and scope of their programs. Clements stated that

“collaboration is HUGE at RECHS because we have a small staff of 19, with me being the only

counselor. We also have a smaller student body of around 280 students (New, 2014). She tries


to constantly keep the lines of communication open between herself and the staff, students and

parents (New, 2014). “Also, Randolph County School System Student Services conducts almost

monthly meetings to bring together all counselors (elementary, middle, and high), social workers,

drop-out prevention advocates, and nurses” (New, 2014, p. Q4). Wagoner and Vest both cited

the fact that communication is key and that they participate on as many committee’s as possible

in order make sure programs are working properly (Curtis, 2014 & Stambaugh, 2014). Table 1

in the Appendix A, gives us examples of how advocacy and collaboration go hand and hand to

aid school counselors with working with students and other members of their administrations and

communities.

Collaboration often involves teaming or partnering with parents, businesses, or other

outside organizations (ASCA, 2012). When our counselors were asked who are some teams or

partners that your school counseling department rely upon to help improve student achievement,

and fulfill the goals of the school counseling program (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh, 2014), it was

interesting to see what agencies had a presence in the schools. Lisa Wagoner uses “Hospice for

low cost counseling services, Mobile Crisis Unit for psychological crisis (1-888-235-4673),

Juvenile Justice System for students who have behavioral issues that are out of control, DSS

(Department of Social Services) for homeless students, hypothetical concerns (to report or not

report), School Social Worker (only 2 for 14 schools in Yadkin County)” (Curtis, 2014). Ms.

Vest collaborates with the community by giving some students access to outside tutoring

(Stambaugh, 2014). They also offer tutoring in house to any student who needs it, and they refer

out to Mental Health programs (Stambaugh, 2014). They give the parents a list of 7-8 agencies or

therapists that they have previously gotten good feedback if an outside referral becomes

necessary (Stambaugh, 2014).


Coordinating and Consulting

Coordinating

Coordination is part of a larger process that includes collaboration, consultation, and

program management. According to Dahir and Stone (2012) the coordination of services is

defined as “counselors serve as a liaison between teachers, parents, support personnel, and

community resources to facilitate successful student development. School counselors secure the

appropriate and necessary services and supports that are essential to every student’s ability to

achieve” (Dahir & Stone, 2012). Coordination, like consultation, is a daily part of the school

counselor’s job. Collaboration may occur between the school counselor and regular education

teachers, special education teachers, parents, administrators, community agencies, and other

stakeholders in the education process.

Through our interviews, we gained insight into the coordination process for school

counselors. At the elementary level, coordination begins with scheduling. Due to elementary

classes staying together and working with one teacher all day, there are not normal transitions

built in the schedule for other classes. Therefore, the teachers and the school counselor must

coordinate their schedules to arrange for students to have counseling class at least once a month

(Curtis, 2014). This coordination is made easier through the use of the calendar function of

Google Apps (Curtis, 2014). This allows teachers to look at the schedule of the school counselor

and plan for counseling class based on the counseling schedule and their own classroom

schedule. At the middle school level it is important for teachers and the school counselor to

coordinate counseling sessions around instructional time. In order to limit students from missing

core classes, counseling is generally scheduled during the time that students attend elective


classes (Stambaugh, 2014). In high school, coordination is key to keeping the daily schedule of

students working smoothly while still allowing counselors to play an active role in student

achievement. One way that teachers and counselors coordinate is through the English

department. Since all students must take an English class each year of high school, this is an

excellent opportunity for classroom teachers to allow the counselors to work with students on

college and career planning (Curtis, 2014). Also, the health classes coordinate with the

counseling department to share information with students (Curtis, 2014).

Consultation

Consultation is an important part of a school counselor's job on many different levels.

School counselors may be called upon to seek consultations from outside agencies. They may

also provide consultation based on their own training. Consultation come up multiple times

throughout the ASCA National Model Competencies (Association, 2012). One of the first

mentions of consultation is in competency III-B-1i in the management section (Association,

2012). The competency states that an effective school counselor “uses personal reflection,

consultation and supervision to promote professional growth and development” (Association,

2012). Consultation is revisited in the delivery section of the competencies (Association, 2012).

Competencies IV-B-5a, 5b, and 5c discuss consultation and the role it plays in school

counseling. These competencies look at consultation from both perspectives that of providing

consultation and seeking consultation by working with everyone involved in the education

process.

Based on the information provided through our interviews, consultation is important in

the daily work of school counseling. Lisa Wagoner, of West Yadkin Elementary School, uses

many different forms of consultation with teachers and parents (Curtis, 2014). PBIS, Positive


Behavior Intervention Supports, are used to consult on daily behavior, the calendar function of

Google Apps is used to consult on times for counseling classes, and SWAT, School-Wide

Assessment Team, consults with Lisa on different types of assessments and performance

information at the school (Curtis, 2014). For Melinda Vest, of Clemmons Middle School, and

Anna Gilkey of North Forsyth High Schools, maintain regular contact with all faculty members

to provide any necessary consultation (Curtis & Stambaugh, 2014).

Consultation must be a daily part of a school counselor’s job. Though a school counselor

may not have to seek outside consultation on a day to day basis, in-house consultation is

constant. For all of the counselors interviewed, it is common to be consulted by teachers,

parents, and/or administrators in regard to grades, attendance, EC (Exceptional Children)

services, and behavior on a daily basis (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh, 2014).

Educational Leadership and Managing Resources

Educational Leadership

Leadership is one of the main themes of the ASCA National Model. The ASCA National

Model states that structural leadership is used when you are building a strong foundation and

counseling program, and involves developing a strong focus (ASCA, 2012). We asked our

counselor interviewees “how do you as a counselor lead your organization in building a solid

counseling program foundation” (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh, 2014)? Wagoner stated that a

counselor develops monthly themes in regard to character, and school-wide projects that are

supported and encouraged in the whole school (Curtis, 2014). In Wagoner’s school each teacher

signs his or her students up for a 35-45 minute class with the counselor each month (Curtis,

2014). In the school Gilkey is a school counselor at they have departmental meetings weekly to

address patterns and procedural issues, and monthly in this meeting they address the annual plan


to gauge how much progress they have made towards goals (Curtis, 2014). In the school that

Vest is at they have a month-to-month plan that they follow and the counselors work as a team to

achieve these goals and include the parents, teachers and administrators in their plans

(Stambaugh, 2014). Garner stated that having lots of communication and being a part of all of

the committees makes your program stronger (New, 2014). Clements stated that she was still

working on her leadership skills, since she has only been a counselor for two years (New, 2014).

When asked about how, as a leader, they track the policies and procedures of the school

in relation to student progress Clements and Vest both stated that looking at grades at teacher

reports are good ways to see if students are making progress (New, 2014; Stambaugh, 2014).

Garner talked about meeting with students individually and inside the classrooms about anti-

bullying and instructing teachers to identify bullying (New, 2014). Wagoner stated that this was

mostly an administrative process; whereas Gilkey stated that they talked about it in their weekly

departmental meetings (Curtis, 2014).

There are many different types of leadership in the world and in our interviews, we

focused on political leadership and symbolic leadership. Political leadership, according to the

ASCA National Model, is known as the “use of interpersonal and organizational power” (ASCA,

2012, pp.3) and provides the school and the community specifics of your counseling plan. We

asked our counselors “do you create an annual counseling plan” (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh,

2014)? “Who has input into the plan and whom is the plan presented to when complete” (Curtis,

New, & Stambaugh, 2014)? Wagoner stated that they have a monthly schedule of classes,

monthly themes and everything is presented to the administration (Curtis, 2014). Gilkey

described an annual plan that is developed by the entire department and presented to the central

office (Curtis, 2014). Vest stated that her and her co-counselor create a plan every two years that


is broken down into month-to-month goals (Stambaugh, 2014). Garner has not had a specific

written out plan in the past but due to having a new principal she will be developing one for next

year (New, 2014). Clements creates a new plan each year and she asks the students by survey for

input into the new plan and the principal also has a say in how her plan is written (New, 2014).

Symbolic leadership is another type of leadership that we addressed with our

interviewees. Symbolic leadership is “leadership via the interpretation and re-interpretation of

the meaning of change” (ASCA, 2012, pp.4). This leadership role is one where the counselor

needs to really be in tune with the needs of the school and the students. We asked the counselors:

“how do you provide services to all students, not just the individuals that present themselves to

you with a need” (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh, 2014)? We also asked “how do you help your

administrators and staff work with change in the educational arena” (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh,

2014)? Wagoner, Vest, Garner and Clements all use a type of classroom lesson to make sure

each student is touched by their services (Curtis, 2014; Stambaugh, 2014; New, 2014). Gilkey

uses individual student meetings and faculty meetings (Curtis, 2014).

Managing Resources

Managing resources is a key part in the profession of school counseling. Working with

budget and time constraints, as well as being able to connect with the resources out in the

community to make sure all students get the services they need is paramount. Being able to

compile a list of therapy and tutoring resources that our students can utilize is helpful to the day-

to-day functions of a school counselor.

Budget cuts and constraints are a real issue in the school system. More often than not

when federal government introduce budget cuts one of the first things they cut is education

budget. We asked our counselors, “as you try to manage limited financial resources, what do you


find, within your program, to be the most difficult to do without, in order to meet the needs of

your students” (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh, 2014)? Gilkey stated that money is always an issue;

they work with limited resources and even charge students for copies of their transcript (Curtis,

2014). Vest stated that she does not really have an issue with financial resources; it is more of a

time constraint (Stambaugh, 2014). Garner stated that the PTO for her school works hard to give

their school grants for various projects but most of the money goes to teachers for resources for

their classrooms (New, 2014). Clements stated she was thankful for the vast amounts of free

resources on the internet, however with not all children having access to a computer or internet at

home she has to spend a lot of one on one time with many students to help them fill out college

applications and forms (New, 2014).

Being able to use your available resources to run a good program can help you be

successful when working with students. Time can be a great resource and the ASCA competency

III-A-4 suggests using short and long-term time management skills, such as calendars and

schedules, as a way to help students, as well as school administrators, be successful. We asked

our school counselors, “what forms of time management do you sue and which methods of time

management are also made liable to others, at your school, to use” (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh,

2014)? Wagoner stated that “using google docs for calendars and referrals and the counseling

class schedule” (Curtis, 2014). Gilkey responded with “the annual plan, department meetings,

individual meetings with students, and a departmental calendar that is posted on the wall two

weeks out” (Curtis, 2014). Vest stated that she tries to pull students during electives classes if

possible so that they do not miss core instruction courses; she also tries to do her classroom

instruction around the same time each year so that the teachers know to expect her (Stambaugh,

2014). Clements stated that they provided all students with planners/calendars each year and


give time management skill classes to freshman; they also encourage google docs and calendars

(New, 2014). Garner stated that she uses a chart to track her days in 30-minute slots to get an

adequate idea of how she is spending her time (New, 2014).

A school counselor should be able to use technology, such as the internet and information

management systems, as a resource to work with students and staff. We asked the counselors,

“what forms of technology does your program use to reach your students” (Curtis, New, &

Stambaugh, 2014)? Wagoner talked about utilizing a website that was provided by the county for

each school and faculty member; google drive resources and phone calls via the all-call system

(Curtis, 2014). Gilkey utilizes a counseling website, scholarship newsletters, e-mail, and info

posted on the local news channel (Curtis, 2014). Vest uses a source called Power School for

report cards, the surveys that are given to students are compiled and the date placed into a

program called Counselor tools that analyzes the data and gives each student a list of possible

careers options based on likes and dislikes (Stambaugh, 2014). Garner uses smart boards a lot to

get the attention of students when doing a classroom lesson, once she has their attention she likes

to use face-to-face activities (New, 2014). Clements gets new students to fill out contact data

sheets so that she can e-mail, mass text (without the text giving out her phone number), and she

also utilizes the two monitors in the school that scroll through various information (New, 2014).

One question we asked the counselors was about counseling resources; “where do you

get resources such as how to deal with anger management, low self-esteem and other issues your

students may face” (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh, 2014)? Gilkey stated that she tries relationship

building with the student and working with the 504 coordinator (Curtis, 2014). Vest stated that if

the issue is situational she tries to work with the student on a one-on-one basis to find out the

issues that are underlying, however, if the issue is ongoing she gives the parents a list of places


she has used for referrals in the past so that the student can get more in-depth help (Stambaugh,

2014). Garner uses the internet to find resources, she belongs to many blogs and groups that

share helpful resources (New, 2014). Clements also uses the internet a lot to find resources for

these issues and she also stated that the county level Director of Student Services also passes

along information on these types of resources that are brought to her attention (New, 2014).

Challenges facing today’s counselors

Diversity & Multicultural issues

Diversity in our schools can be vast and varied, including areas such as age, race,

culture, and academic or grade level to just mention a few” (New, 2014). The area that is

receiving more and more focus in a counselor’s day to day work is that of multicultural issues.

“The ASCA states that “multicultural counseling competencies include school counselors’ (a)

awareness of their own beliefs and attitudes toward diverse cultures and people, (b) knowledge

and appreciation of diverse cultures, and (c) counseling skills to address the diverse needs of

their students and stake holders” (ASCA, 2010: Sue, 1992; Lambie & Limberg, 2011, pg. 46;

New, 2014).

As we work with any type of diverse populations, it is important for us to really look at

ourselves as we approach these situations. Mark Good offers us the following as a road map to

help guide us through what can be tricky at best.

“Inclusion of all – exclusion of none – OR equity versus just equality – doing the

right thing for all, not just making everything equal (Good, 2012; New, 2014).

Discomfort equals position change – OR coming out of your comfort zone to see how

others exist and relate (Good, 2012; New, 2014).


Self-evaluation – looking at our assumptions, not assuming, not stereotyping (Good,

2012; New, 2014).

Practicing world view – put yourself in someone else’s shoes (Good, 2012; New,

2014).

Healthy communication – really reaching out to someone on their level” (New, 2014).

If we take these suggestions into account as we work with any diverse population, we should be

able to deal with everyone in an equitable, fair manner.

School safety

School counselors can play a major role in maintaining a safe school environment. Since

school counselors are not limited to spending the whole day in a classroom, they are more

available to move about the school and help observe and monitor daily interactions, comings,

and goings of students. Through our interviews, a common idea was that of maintaining a

presence on campus. All of the counselors said that it is important to them to be seen by students

regularly throughout the day, especially during any social times, like lunch, breaks, and class

changes (Curtis, New, & Stambaugh, 2014). By simply being more present on campus, students

are more likely to feel safe, recognize an adult that can help, and share important information

that can contribute to maintaining school safety. Another way that school counselors can assist

with school safety is through coordination, collaboration, and consultation. When teachers and

administrators work with school counselors to recognize and improve behavior problems, school

safety can also be improved. Since school counselors have specific training in managing many

different types of student issues, not just academic issues like teachers, students can be referred

to the counseling department to talk and work through their issues. Also, school counselors are


trained to recognize psychological issues, such as depression or violent tendencies, providing

them with important knowledge that can help keep students safe at school.

Special Needs

School counselors are one of the key players in special education placement. School

counselors work together with teachers, parents and administrators to test students who are

behind in class tested to see if they need to be in special education. One of the many ways they

test these students is by using programs such as the Response to Intervention (RtI) program. RtI

is the program that is used to satisfy the “instructional needs for all students to prevent long-term

school failure” (Danir & Stone, 2012, p. 287). If this program is implemented and the student

still does not make improvement then the student is considered eligible for special education.

According to Danir and Stone, “Special education encompasses the entire range of learning,

emotional, and physical disabilities, and in some states also includes students who have special

abilities, gifts or talents” (2012, p.301).

There are many laws in place to protect students that are in special needs programs. The

Educational for all Handicapped Children Act of 1975 also known as Public Law 94-172,

“protected the rights of all children and required states to provide ‘free and appropriate

education’ for all children between the ages of 3 and 21, regardless of the handicapping condition

or disability” (Danir & Stone, 2012, p.300). In 1991 this was rewritten as the Individuals with

Disabilities Education Act or IDEA. IDEA took out the word handicapped and stated that every

disabled student should be allowed an education equivalent to that of a normal child (Danir &

Stone, 2012). An Individualized Education Plan or IEP is compiled with the parents, teachers

and school counselors to determine the needs of each student and what services are required.

Another law that helps these students is Section 504 of the Rehabilitation act of 1973 (Danir &


Stone, 2012). Section 504 “was the first congressional action to mandate that individuals with

disabilities could not be discriminated against or denied benefit from any program receiving

federal funding solely based on being disabled (Danir & Stone, 2012, p. 309).” School

counselors help make sure that schools abide by these laws and collaborate with administrators,

teachers, parents and students to make sure that all students get a fair and appropriate education.

Conclusion

Talking to counselors in the “real world” during this project was eye opening for all of us.

We learned that their jobs are hard and demanding, but are also very rewarding. What really

stuck out from our studies is how important it is to consult with others to make sure the students

are getting all that they need to be successful. We heard concrete evidence of how coordinating

activities within departments, administrations, and communities gives the students the best

chance to grow up and contribute to society.

We discussed and were given examples of how counselors take on the role of educational

leaders throughout their work, and how important it is for them to advocate for their students and

their profession. We heard how difficult it is to manage limited resources and how counselors

collaborate in all areas of the school and community to make sure their students have what they

need.

Finally, we learned how counselors work with diversity which at times can be difficult.

Diversity can be multicultural and age or grade related, and that a multitude of characteristics can

make a student population struggle to come together. We came to understand why school safety

is so important to the learning atmosphere and culture, and how without it, real learning can stop.

Being a school counselor encompasses many tasks and skills, all of which are very important to

building a strong foundation for the students we serve.


References

Association, A. S. (2012). The ASCA national model: A framework for school counseling

programs (3rd ed.). Alexandria, VA: Author.

Association, A. S. (2013). School Counselor Competencies. Retrieved from

www.schoolcounselor.org

Curtis, E. (2014). Interview Questions with Anna Gilkey. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem College.

Curtis, E. (2014). Interview Questions with Lisa Wagoner. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem College.

Curtis, E., New, J., & Stambaugh, A. (2014). Group C Questions. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem

College.

Dahir, C., & Stone, C. (2012). The Transformed school counselor. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole

Cencage Learning.

Dr. Morris, A. (2014). School Counselors: Leaders and advocates. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem

College.

Good, M. (2012). http://salem.learninghouse.com/mod/page/view.php?id=3554. The five steps

that make diversity work, parts 1-3.

New, J. (2014). Hispanic Culture in our schools. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem College.

New, J. (2014). Interview Questions with Amy Garner. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem College.

New, J. (2014). Interview Questions with Breanne Clements. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem

College.

New, J. (2014). Leadership and Advocacy. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem College.

New, J. (2014). Week 7 Discussion Question 2. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem College.

Stambaugh, A. (2014). Interview Questions with West, Melinda. Winston-Salem, NC: Salem

College.


Appendix A

Table 1

Advocacy & collaboration competencies

Competencies Services for Students & CommunityStudent Empowerment (Micro) Teaching core curriculum; completing

individual student goal setting and tracking;

responding to specific needs of individuals

through counseling (Association, 2012)

Student Advocacy (Micro) Working with individuals directly through

consultation, collaboration and in small

groups (Association, 2012)

School/Community Collaboration(Micro)

Using advisory councils to set goals for

community and programs to implement

curriculum (Association, 2012)

Systems Advocacy (Micro) Using consultation, collaboration and various

assessments to bring about change to systems

that may not be working as well as they could

be working (Association, 2012)

Public Information (Macro) Collaborating between the school counselor

and the community to give mission, vision

and results of programs (Association, 2012)

Social/Political Advocacy (Macro) Advocating for change in the political arena

as necessary to correct legislative issues

(Association, 2012)

Reprinted from (New, 2014, p. 8)


Appendix B

Interview transcripts

Learning Group C Interview Questions

Breanne Clements

Bachelors from Salem College in Music Performance

Masters from NC A&T State University in School Counseling.

Breanne worked in college admissions for nine years prior to becoming a school

counselor.

1. Consultation is defined as sharing strategies for improvement (ASCA, 2012). How

does the school counseling department consult with classroom teachers, including EC teachers,

to provide the highest quality services possible for all students? How often do you/your

department consult with other teachers? I meet weekly with teachers during team/grade-level

meetings. A large part of our discussion revolves around student concerns (academic,

personal, social, etc.). I meet with EC teachers on an as needed basis. At RECHS we have

very few students receiving EC services.

2. How often do you/your department consult with parents in regard to student

achievement and success? By which methods does this consultation occur? I conduct at least

one open parent meeting a year for each grade level. This allows for the delivery of a

variety of information. Consultation with parents occurs face-to-face (conferencing with or

without the student), phone calls (#1 method), and email.


3. How often do teachers seek consultation from the counseling department to improve

student achievement? What methods of strategy sharing does your department provide for all

teachers at your school? During our weekly team/grade-level meetings we discuss ways to

address students’ needs. Suggestions include time and stress management strategies, and

test taking skills.

4. The ASCA National Model Competency I-B-4 says that “an effective school counselor

is able to accomplish measurable objectives demonstrating the following abilities and skills:

Collaborates with parents, teachers, administrators, community leaders and other stakeholders to

promote and support student success” (ASCA, 2012). What level of importance is placed on

collaboration in your school counseling department? Collaboration is HUGE at RECHS. We

have a small staff of 19, with me being the only counselor. We also have a smaller student

body of around 280 students. I try to constantly keep the lines of communication open

between myself and our staff, students and parents. Also, Randolph County School System

Student Services conducts almost monthly meetings to bring together all counselors

(elementary, middle, and high), social workers, drop-out prevention advocates, and nurses.

5. Collaboration is defined as working with others to enhance achievement, advocate for

equity, and provide access to school counseling for all students (ASCA, 2012). On which

committees or councils do you or your department serve? What is the role you play? What

contributions do you make to the committee or council? I am part of almost every committee

we have at RECHS. Some of the ones I’m on include the School Improvement Team, the

Recruitment Team, the Attendance Committee, and the Scholarship Team. The School

Improvement Team is the most time consuming. The SIT is charged with setting goals for

the school addressing academic achievement, school safety, etc. The only team I lead is the


Scholarship Team. We meet to either choose or nominate students for scholarships, special

programs, and special recognition. My role on each committee is to serve as a contributing

member. I collect and analyze data, participate in discussions, and work with the teams to

make decisions.

6. Collaboration often involves teaming or partnering with parents, businesses, or other

outside organizations (ASCA, 2012). What are some teams or partners that your school

counseling department rely upon to help improve student achievement and fulfill the goals of the

school counseling program? Since we are an early college, we have a Liaison who works

with us and RCC. The relationships she has built allows myself and other school leaders to

have access to student progress in the both the high school and college classrooms. This

information is used to determine the academic needs of our students.

7. Within these teams or partnerships, what are the specific goals that the school

counseling program has established and how do the teams or partnerships work together to fulfill

these goals? N/A

8. One important group of stakeholders in education are parents. As it is very important

to collaborate with parents, by what means does the school counseling program collaborate with

parents on a large scale, for example, by grade level? How does the school counseling

department collaborate with parents in terms of college and career planning? We conduct

parent meetings for each grade level throughout the year. Topics of discussion typically

include expectations for the school year, graduation information, testing information,

school specifics, college admissions and financial aid, etc. Also, I send out a series of emails

(almost like a newsletter) to grade level specific parents or to the parent population as a

whole.


9. Collaboration is one of the four themes of the ASCA National Model. This theme has

two facets, one of which is collaboration in school. How does the school counseling department

support and encourage collaboration among students, teachers, administrators, staff and school

counselors? I was lucky enough to come into a school environment that has a well-

established communication system. Ways of maintaining that system include student

conferences, team meetings, parent meetings, etc.

10. The ASCA National Model states that structural leadership is used when you are

building a strong foundation and counseling program, and involves developing a strong focus

(ASCA, 2012). How do you as a counselor lead your organization in building a solid counseling

program foundation? I am completing my second year as a counselor, so I am still working

on building my leadership skills.

11. As a leader, how do you track the policies and procedures of your school and

students to see if they are making progress? How do you determine what changes, if any, need to

be made? Grades, teacher input, and student self-reporting are the best ways to determine

progress. In deciding on changes to be made, collaboration is key. Decisions regarding

students are made by a group, including the student.

12. The ASCA National model defines human resource development as “leadership via

empowerment and inspiration of followers” (ASCA, 2012, pp.3). What do you, as a counselor,

do to empower your students? What programs are in place in your school to inspire your

students? Our school promotes self-advocating for our students beginning their freshman

year. We hold students accountable for their decisions/actions, while also helping them to

understand the importance of making good decisions.


13. Political leadership is the “use of interpersonal and organizational power” (ASCA,

2012, pp. 3) and gives the school and community the specifics of your counseling plan. Do you

create an annual counseling plan? Who has input into the plan? Who is the plan presented to

when complete? I do create a counseling plan each year as part of my professional growth

plan. My principal and students (from surveys) have input into my plan. I don’t really

present the plan to anyone specific.

14. Symbolic leadership is “leadership via the interpretation and re-interpretation of the

meaning of change” (ASCA, 2012, pp. 4). This leadership role is one where the counselor needs

to really be in tune with the needs of the school and the students. How do you provide services

to ALL students, not just the individuals that present themselves to you with a need? How do

you help your administrators and staff work with change in the educational arena? Services

provided for every student include individual counseling (when requested), classroom

guidance, college/career planning, and testing preparation. I try to stay in the know with

the educational changes through weekly team meetings, the committees I serve on, and the

information provided from my principal and NCDPI.

15. As you try to manage limited financial resources, what do you find, within your

program, to be the most difficult to do without, in order to meet the needs of your students? How

do you work to resolve this issue? Thankfully, the internet provides a wealth of free

resources that can usually meet the needs of students, or at least alleviate some of the needs.

I wish there was a way to provide computer and internet access for all students while they

are home. In the technology driven world in which we live, it is important to remember

that not every student has computer/internet access at home. In the college admissions


process, most documents are completed and submitted online. I spend many hours one-on-

one with students filling out these forms/documents in my office.

16. Being able to use your available resources to run a good program can really help you

be successful when working with students. Time can be a great resource and the ASCA

Competency III-A-4 suggests using short- and long-term time management skills, such as

calendars and schedules, as a way to help students, as well as school administrators, be

successful. What forms of time management do you use and which methods of time management

are also made available to others, at your school to use? We provide a student

handbook/planner to each student at the beginning of the school year. For the freshman we

conduct lessons on time management and how to utilize their planners. We also use google

calendars and encourage students with phones to use the phone calendars and alarms.

17. A school counselor should be able to use technology, such as the internet and

information management systems, as a resource to work with students and staff. What forms of

technology does your program use to reach your students? I keep an email list of each grade

level to get out information quickly. At the beginning of each school year, I have students

complete data sheets with their contact information. There are sites where you can plug in

their cell phone numbers and send out mass texts to students without them having access to

your number. Our school has 2 monitors used to scroll through information

(announcements, dates, etc.), which I often use.

18. Where do you get resources such as how to deal with anger management, low self-

esteem and other issues your students may face? There is a wealth of knowledge on the

internet. Also, there are organizations you can sign-up for free resources to be delivered


via email or mail. The Director of Students Services at the county level does a wonderful

job of passing along information that comes across her desk.

19. How does your organization evaluate resources, both financial and otherwise, that

will be needed and what plans do you have in place to get these needs met. Do you have a grant

writer or someone else who can help you work to obtain additional backing from public forums?

Being a public high school, all of our resources come from the county office. Therefore, all

requests for funds have to be approved by the county office.

20. As a counselor one of the most important responsibilities is advocating for students.

When advocating for students, who do you find to be the most difficult to work with, in terms of

collaborating with other staff or community services? The most difficult to work with are

some of the strict rules and paperwork required to get services for students. I know that is

not a specific group or organization, but the amount of red tape associated with some

educational services is unreal.

21. Most people would assume that the students you have to advocate for the most would

be either students with special needs or troubled students. What type of students would you say

you have to or do advocate for the most? I don’t know that there is a specific type of student

that I advocate for more than others.

22. The ASCA National Model states, “The ASCA Ethical Standards for school

counselors call on school counselors to advocate for, lead and create equity-based school

counseling programs that help close achievement, opportunity and attainment gaps.” What steps

have been taken to achieve this in your school? Serving as a member on the School

Improvement Team is the best way for me to gain information and assist in implementing

school-wide programs for students.


23. According to the School Counselor Competencies, School counselors must

coordinate activities that establish, maintain and enhance the school-counseling program. What

types of activities have you coordinated to achieve this? This year, emphasis has been placed

on SAT/ACT testing, including awareness, number of students testing, and preparation. I

have posted dates around the school, on the webpage, and in emails. I have teachers using

the questions of the day and vocabulary words for review. We have communicated the

availability of testing fee waivers (and have run out twice!). Recently we provided a two

day prep course for students, presented by an outside agency.

References

ASCA. (2012). ASCA National Model: A Framework for School Counseling Programs

(3rd ed). Alexandria, VA: The American School Counselor Association.

Dahir, C., & Stone, C. (2012). The Transformed school counselor. Belmont, CA:

Brooks/Cole: Cenage Learning



Interviewed: Amy Garner – Bachelor’s from UNC-G in Human Development with Minor

in Social Work

Masters in Counseling from UNC-G

Ratio – 1 to 643 students




department consult with other teachers? I am on every school committee just about which

while time consuming allows me to be a bridge among the departments. Social workers also

work with us on items such as 504 section plans as does the parents and teachers.


achievement and success? By which methods does this consultation occur? Getting parents to

attend meetings or sign paperwork is often a challenge so building that relationship can be

difficult. I use newsletters, website, emails and phone calls to communicate.



teachers at your school? Other ask for help with behavior plans; we try to empower the

children by teaching assertive versus aggressive behavior skills. I work with the social

worker that travels between five schools and we make home visits often to try and work

with the departments as get parents and students on board. We have a lot of poverty in this

county so there are times when we are working to supply basic needs.






collaboration in your school counseling department? We advocate for counseling services by

empowering our students through programs like Pride Awards, academic awards and other

things that promote self confidence among the students. Since I am on every committee we

are work together to develop these programs. This helps us teach the children the proper

way to react to various situations.




contributions do you make to the committee or council? We have a leadership team of our

administrators that involves even a parent so that we are all working together for the good

of our students. We work on attendance issues, 504 issues, and academic plans with all

areas of the school.




school counseling program? We collaborate through Beth Allen with local businesses to work

for grants and other business funding for our students. We try to fill back packs for those

without food and we work on social skills and we purchased the “2nd step” program with

grant funds. Unfortunately when the grants are over, we lose staff to help.




these goals? We work on items such as bullying by communicating with all students, staff

and presenting a united front. We even post these items on the walls around school to

promote programs such as bullying control, respect and social skills.




department collaborate with parents in terms of college and career planning? We have parent

nights, we send newsletters, we call, and we send emails. We do things like have college

career planning, bring in individuals so that the students hear it from a young age and then

it carries through high school. Career day is a fun day for our students to really hear what

types of jobs are out there.



support and encourage collaboration among students, teachers, administrators, and staff and

school counselors? PLC leadership team includes members of all departments as well as a

parent when possible to make sure we are looking at how changes would affect all.




program foundation? Lots of communication is really important, I also have my


administrative certification to help me with issues from that aspect. Being a part of all

committees makes your program stronger.



be made? I meet with my students as individuals and inside of the classroom and I believe

the culture of the school shows quite a bit about whether or not programs to teach respect

and anti-bullying is working. If it isn’t then I go back into the classes and also work with

teachers on how to recognize bullying etc. to make changes.




students? We use things such as the Pride Awards to see if bullying techniques and

programs are affective. I even have a mail box that if a child is afraid to speak with me that

they can stick in a note. I work hard to keep my students safe and make them feel

empowered.




when complete? Politics is a tricky subject and I do not get as much time work in this area

as I would like at times due to the volume of students I have that I work with now. I have

been with a principal for a long time so an annual plan hasn’t been put into writing

however, we have a new principal now so I will be updating it this year for her and working

out how we want to approach things to go forward.






you help your administrators and staff work with change in the educational arena? I work with

all students by teaching lessons such as the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program and the

2nd Step program. This allows me to teach the same concepts and expectations to all

students then work one on one with those that need additional help. I also work with social

workers and other administrators to determine if a student needs to be referred out for

additional help.



do you work to resolve this issue? We do have a strong PTO that works to give us grants for

various projects as they can, we have used some of them to start groups such as all girl

book clubs and all boy book clubs. They help us but there are a lot of times that the

teachers absorb some of the costs for things they need in their own classrooms. We try to us

resources well, and we make a lot of things ourselves to help.






are also made available to others, at your school to use? There are a lot of valuable resources


available on the internet and we do all we can to use that if possible. I personally use a

chart to track my days in 30 minute time slots, filling in what I already know I have, but

adding in students or other classes I teach as they happen so I have an accurate picture of

how I am spending my time.



technology does your program use to reach your students? We use smartboards a lot and I will

usually start my presentations with that but I really believe that having the students work

face to face is more important to help them develop social skills. So, while I may lead with

technology to get their attending, I will usually end up with face to face activities.


esteem and other issues your students may face? I use the internet A LOT because there are so

many great resources out there. I also belong to counselor blogs and Facebook groups so we

can share resources that we find.




We do needs analysis and try to obtain grants but we do not have someone that does this

full time at our school.



collaborating with other staff or community services? I find this difficult because there are

times when I am put in the middle between the school and a child, a parent and a child or


parent and the school. I advocate for my students but have to be careful not to alienate

their parents or teacher.



you have to or do advocate for the most? I would say that bullying prevention is one of the

top things I have to advocate for the group as a whole. My troubled students it is difficult in

this county to refer to proper authorities and there is a real mental health crisis in this area

with very limited resources.


counselor’s call on school counselors to advocate for, lead and create equity-based school


have been taken to achieve this in your school? I advocate strongly for services for our AG

students, I really believe they must be challenged. I also work a lot with students that basic

needs such as food and shelter are not being met. I have worked in “town” and it is a truly

urban environment within a rural area. That school had real urban issues, and where I am

not is more about basic needs.



types of activities have you coordinated to achieve this? I coordinate programs such as Career

days, Red Ribbon Week, PBIS, Pride Awards and Star 3. I think that empowering our

students and creating a safe respectful environment is very important when working with

our students. Confidentiality is very important when leading students and teachers and

making sure that everyone follows through on what they say they are going to do.


References

ASCA. (2012). ASCA National Model: A Framework for School Counseling Programs






A. Please describe your credentials and your work history/experience.

Lisa Wagoner: BA Psychology (UNCC) and M.Ed in School Counseling (UNCC).

Counseling since 1990 at elementary and high school levels (K-8 school, K-6 school, 9-12

school, early college). Current school, West Yadkin Elementary, rural K-6, 600+ students,

Title I school, 40% Hispanic, 1 full-time counselor, 6/8 elementary schools in Yadkin

country share counselors

Anna Gilkey: BA Psychology with teaching license from Mary Baldwin College,

taught elem school for 7 years; WFU, 2 yrs MA in Clinical/Mental Health with School

Counseling License, working as school counselor 4 years, 2 years at Starmount High and 2

years at N. Forsyth High. Current school, NFHS - 1250 students, Title I school, 40% black,

40% white, 15% hispanic, 5% other. 5 counselors total (1 full-time director, also 1 full-time

registrar, 1 full-time guidance clerk, 1 full-time social worker) 60% of working time

dedicated to counseling work

Melinda Vest: MA in Marriage and Family Counseling, worked as a family

counselor for a few years and then decided she wanted to be a school counselor so she took

some other counseling classes that were more geared to counseling in schools and took the

Praxis for School Counselors. Current school: Clemmons Middle school about 801

students; this school has two counselors each assigned a grade and they split 7th grade in

half by teams.





department consult with other teachers?

Consultation through PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention Support), Google Docs

calendars and student referral forms, School and Teacher websites, SWAT (School-Wide

Assessment Team). Consultation is often informal through email and face-to-face contact,

counselor makes herself available by moving throughout the school throughout the day.

Very involved, regularly check attendance, monitor report cards and weekly grades check

Everyday they communicate using various methods, e-mail, phone walking up, tons

of feedback, they are always making sure everyone that is needed is in the loop.


achievement and success? By which methods does this consultation occur?

Concerns are brought to parent attention openly and regularly, early stage contact is

crucial, counselor makes contact via phone or email (whichever method is preferred by parents)

Teacher is the expert, assist in the connection between hom and school, can observe

classroom environment to corroborate issues

each situation is different but parents are brought in when needed and they are also

notified by phone or e-mail or letter when needed for non-emergent needs.



teachers at your school?

multiple times daily, SWAT

Often, faculty meetings, School Improvement Team






collaboration in your school counseling department?

highly collaborative and supportive school environment, all faculty and staff work toward

helping the whole child

communication is important through all channels, the environment is a highly

cohesive one




contributions do you make to the committee or council?

SWAT, faculty meetings, monthly county counselor meetings, PLCs (Professional

Learning Communities)

Attendance, SIT, Rachel’s Challenge, serve on committees (any committee asked to join)

Between the two counselors at this school there is not a school committee that one of

this is not on or the head of.




school counseling program?


Hospice for low cost counseling services, Mobile Crisis Unit for psychological crisis (1-

888-235-4673), Juvenile Justice System for students who have behavioral issues that are out of

control, DSS (Department of Social Services) for homeless students, hypothetical concerns (to

report or not report), School Social Worker (only 2 for 14 schools in Yadkin County)

Big Brothers/Big Sisters for repeat 9th graders, Family Engagement Coordination

(Student Services), Senior Academy (at risk to graduate) part of Graduate at Pace program which

works members of the Chamber of Commerce to provide incentives to graduate on time

There is some referral to outside tutoring but they offer tutoring in house to any

student who needs it, they also refer out to Mental Health programs, they give the parents a

list of 7-8 agencies or therapists that they have previously gotten good feedback about.



these goals?

Juntos 4-H for community involvement for Hispanic students, Lunch Bunch for small

groups during lunch, to improve school community

Increase graduation rate, decrease dropout rates, improve attendance, decrease discipline

problems, increase academic achievement




department collaborate with parents in terms of college and career planning? not especially

applicable at this school


grade level meetings for parents in spanish and english, title i parent night meetings (both

languages), hold meetings for parents on nights when there are athletic activities already

scheduled, one-call now phone tree system, email addresses for as many parents as possible, all

paperwork and forms require parent signature, college nights, career planning nights, FAFSA

nights, Tax prep truck, FAFSA truck to the school

they meet with parents and students and develop a 4 year high school program.

They have a cost of living program called the School of Hard Knocks that the parents

really like to help out with. They give students a survey of what they want to be when they

grow up, then they take a month and they have to “live” off the “money” the average

person in that field makes, they are given a check and they have to buy groceries and pay

utilities and a house payment, basically learn what it is like to live in the real world.



support and encourage collaboration among students, teachers, administrators, staff and school

counselors?not a great deal of collaboration with students, but all others through SWAT and

faculty meetings

SIT meetings 2x per month (students and parents on the team and in attendance at the

meetings), Faculty meetings 1x per month, Parent-teacher conferences, Title I meetings with 4

parents of mixed background

always trying to include the students in their own learning and working with

parents and teachers to make sure the children is succeeding





program foundation?

counselor develops monthly themes in regard to character, school-wide projects that are

supported and encouraged in the whole school, counseling class schedule - each class of students

has at least one lesson per month with the school counselor (she has her own classroom, teachers

sign up for the time that works best for them, 30-45 min classes)

Departmental meeting weekly (counseling dept), director of the dept leads the meeting,

discuss patterns and procedural stuff, make data-driven decisions, promote equity, monthly look

at annual plan and address progress toward to goals

Support from staff, involving parents, teachers, kids. work as a team with the other

counselor, having a month to month plan of what is going to be done.



be made?handled mostly by administration in this specific school

included in response to question 10

by checking report cards and attendance




students?

keep kids involved in the school community, make thank you cards for staff members,

give them a sense of leadership and belonging within the school community


Friends of Rachel program - works toward student empowerment counselor attends

sutdent activities, senior info sheet and individual meetings in Sept and Feb

this school uses a group called Friends of Rachel which is a national program that

came in and trained staff to use this program to make school a safer and kinder place, it

also teaches good morals.




when complete?

Monthly schedule of classes, monthly themes, everything goes through the administration

(great administrative support for school counseling at this school)

Annual plan, whole dept included in plan, plan submitted to the central office

Creates a new plan every two years of a month to month plan.





you help your administrators and staff work with change in the educational arena?

all students attend monthly classroom lesson with counselor, counselor maintains strong

presence on campus, everyone works together through PBIS, SWAT, faculty meetings, signing

up for counseling lessons, participating in school-wide projects

indvidual studetn meetings, use voicemail, SIT and faculty meetings


has set classroom lessons maybe once every two or three months; school of hard

knocks touches every 8th grade student.



do you work to resolve this issue?

money always a problem, work with limited resources, charge students for copy of

transcript

No financial pressures or issues, more of a time issue.






are also made available to others, at your school, to use?counseling class schedule, PBIS before

and after school each day, use of google docs for calendars and referrals (to make it faster and

easier to request assistance)

Annual plan, dept meeting, individual meetins with students, departmental calendar

posted on the wall 2 weeks out

Trying to pull students during elective classes if possible, tries doing class lessons

around the same time of year.




technology does your program use to reach your students?website provided by county for each

school and faculty member, google drive resources, phone calls (all-call system)

Counseling website, scholarship newsletter, email, phone tree, info posted on the local

access cable channel

Power school, for report cards, Word-Excel, Survey that is given to students: info is

put into Counselor Tools program and it spits out career options based on likes and

dislikes.


esteem and other issues your students may face?

Relationship building with student, work with 504 coordinator

Situational- work with kids; ongoing- gives referral to parents of places they can get

more in-depth help.




no grant writer

none no grant writer



collaborating with other staff or community services?LEP students and parent (limited English

profeciency) due to language and cultural barriers


drop out risks who have no desire to remain in school (when the adults are working

harder than the students to keep them enrolled), LEP parents and students due to the language

barrier

Parents if they are part of the problem; teachers if they are set in their ways/difficult

to collaborate with.



you have to or do advocate for the most?homeless students and LEP students

LEP students (Limited English Proficiency), teen moms, middle of the road kids (under

the radar, maybe unnoticed because they are not bad or super good)

Students who are different behaviorally; trying to get the teacher to find something

to love about that student.


counselors call on school counselors to advocate for, lead and create equity-based school


have been taken to achieve this in your school?

Achievement Gap is part of 2 goals in SIT plan (especially hispanic students and black

male students), community and schools program, mentoring programs, individual meetings,

Parent-Teacher conferences, Hispanic Achievers Program with the YMCA working with Juntos

and touring businesses and it created an in-school community for hispanic students

Lots of tutoring: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays one hour after school and

Saturday Academy. During the week tutoring is offered to any student who maybe did not


understand a recent lesson or needs a bit more help to grasp, or just wants more practice.

Saturday Academy is more for students who are not on grade level.



types of activities have you coordinated to achieve this? regular schedule of classroom lessons,

lunch bunch, PBIS, regular use of referral system and online resource

visit classes to just be seen, CFNC accounts through English classes, 10th grade health

classes are reached through counseling dept, parent nights, individual student meetings,

departmental meetings and plans, college prep info in English 3 classes

School of Hard Knocks and Friends of Rachel

ReferencesASCA. (2012). ASCA National Model: A Framework for School Counseling Programs




Additional information: Lesson on heroes: who are our heroes in our lives, in the

community, at school? Unsung heroes, make thank you cards for unsung heroes at school (bus

drivers, maintenance workers, cafeteria workers

Schoo Behavior Plans: Eagle Bucks - earned for the whole class to get rewards. PBIS -

Personal Behavioral Intervention/Incentive Plan - morning check in with check sheet, set daily

goals, return signed sheet from day before, get new sheet - check out in afternoon, review check

sheet for the day, discuss what went well, have student explain what didn’t work, always use

positive encouragement (better day tomorrow), based on teacher referral, set personal goals,


encourages parent involvement by requiring daily signature, reward for “Great Day”, sign own

sheet to take responsibility for self, one-on-one discussion with counselor, builds personal,

positive relationships with an adult

Appendix C

Learning Project Log

Salem CollegeLearning Group Project Log

Project Title: The School Counselor: Advocating, Collaborating, Coordinating, Consulting, Leading, and Managing Resources: Interviews with Elementary, Middle, and Secondary School CounselorsProject Objective: Understand the practical applications and challenges of school counseling in the real world.Group: Group C: Emily Curtis, Julie New, Ashleigh StambaughSubmission Date: April 19, 2014Instructor: Anne Sourbeer MorrisMeeting Type: ___X__In-Person _____ E-mail Internet Chat _____ Phone_____ Online Classroom _____ Teleconference Other

Meeting Time*: Sunday, Apr. 13, 2014 - 10:00 am - 12:30 pm

Student Name (printed) X = ParticipatedS. Emily Curtis XJulie New XAshleigh Stambaugh X

Meeting Objective:

Objectives and Tasks 1. Finalize Paper2. Complete PowerPoint Presentation 3. Meet/Confer as a Group4. Proofread and review paper and PowerPoint


Activities and Timeline1. Review Sections of Paper, Review References2. Complete Conclusion, Format slides, add pictures, review info and sources3. Discuss ideas, clarify topic and objectives, and meet each other4. Review the paper and PowerPoint for minor issues and errors

Outcomes1. All sections were reviewed by all members of the group, everyone is satisfied2. Conclusion has been written, references were reviewed, paper is finalized and ready for submission, PowerPoint was formatted with pictures, flows with the paper, information and sources were reviewed by all members and deemed acceptable3. Members of the group met for the first time, shared ideas and thoughts on the project and the class, all members enjoyed a nice lunch and time together4. Paper was reviewed for minor errors, PowerPoint was reviewed, and both products were prepared for final submission

Delta Exercise: What went well? The group was able to meet and compare ideas to produce the best possible product.What didn't go well? There is nothing that was not to the benefit of the group or the project. What will we do differently next time? No changes necessary for the future.

ASM/February 2012 Adapted from University of Phoenix

Documents

School Counseling in the Real World · Web viewAs students of the school counseling profession, we work to learn competencies, counseling theories, and the ASCA National Model, but