'NCTSC. ~ The Education Trust's. Center for Transforming School Counseling

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1 ~ The Education Trust's 'NCTSC National Center for Transforming School Counseling Professional Development for School Counselors School counselors and what they do are topics conspicuously missing from school reform initiatives. This omission is an enormous mistake--especially when school counselors hold the keys to students' dreams for brighter futures. Brighter futures, especially for students of color and poor children, are almost always inextricably connected to the course of study followed in school. The lack of proactive and focused assistance to place and support students in a rigorous curriculum can be a huge barrier, preventing them from participating unconditionally in the 21 st Century economy. Despite the crucial importance of making sure all students, especially the most vulnerable, receive the support and guidance needed to acquire a quality education, the function of school counselors has been ignored by most standards-based education reforms efforts. To date, reform efforts have focused on setting more rigorous academic standards, building new assessment strategies, and restructuring pre- and in-service experiences for teachers and administrators. Student achievement is everybody's business. However, in most states, only superintendents, teachers, and principals are included in the accountability system. This mistakenly signals that many important players - including school counselors, students, parents, and the community at large - do not have significant roles in education improvement. With the advent of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), school counselors, more than ever, need to be included in the accountability system. School counselors are often in the best position to identify barriers hindering academic success for all students. Issues of equity, access and lack of support for academic success come to rest on the counselor's desk. Thus, school counselors are ideally positioned to use data to advocate for traditionally under-served students. Educational equity in a democratic society requires that all children have equal access to quality teaching and curriculum and also the support necessary for achieving to high standards. This, indeed, is the goal of the standards movement. However, data from states and local school districts show that poor students and students of color are systematically denied the education that leads to lifelong success. The achievement gap that separates poor students and students of color from other young Americans is wide and getting wider. In spite of often dire circumstances in their communities, some schools serving children of color and low-income children succeed in equipping their students with high level academic skills. Invariably, these are schools where all students are held to high academic standards, pushed to stretch and achieve, and given support throughout this process. In these schools, there are significant adults who believe that neither the amount of money their parents make, nor the color of their skin should consign students to limited future opportunities. These caring adults, through advocacy and active concern, create conditions that support this belief. School counselors are ideally positioned in schools to carry out this advocacy function. We are challenged by the principles of social justice to ensure that all students have access to a quality education. Every student, regardless of race, color; ethnicity, or socio-economic status is entitled to a The Education Trust, Inc.

2 2 successful school experience that will ultimately increase their economic potential and positively impact their quality oflife. School counselors must examine their behaviors and accept the responsibility to work towards the common goals of eliminating the achievement gap and assure all students equity in educational opportunity. Merely doing the same thing for all students doesn't mean equity. School counselors must work for systemic change in the "system" in order that schools can change to better meet student needs. The National Center for Transforming School Counseling provides professional development for practicing school counselors. The primary goal is to make school counseling essential to the mission of schools. This means preparing school counselors to eliminate the barriers to access and equity for all students. Through the training, practicing school counselors acquire and apply skills and knowledge in leadership, advocacy, teaming and collaboration, and use of data to create systemic change. Participants will develop and implement an advocacy action plan in their building or district. In addition,. they will create data-driven school counseling program activities designed to show how school counseling contributes to student academic success. The one and a half to two year training program includes a follow-up session where the school counselors present the data from their school counseling activities and advocacy project action plans. Technical assistance is provided throughout the training process to help the school counselors during the implementation portion of the work. School administrators and counselors need to work closely together to create systemic change. Thus, we ask school principals to attend the first half-day of the training and work with their school counselors through the implementation of an advocacy project. The modules are titled: 1) Working as Leaders to Promote Access & Equity for All Students; 2) Using Data to Change Policy & Practice; 3) Designing a School Counseling Program to Help All Students Meet High Standards; 4) Advocating for Systemic Change; and 5) Using Results to Drive Next Steps. Each of the modules has specific objectives. The overall goals are: To develop knowledge and understanding of the critical importance for school counselors to be central participants in educational reform; thus, effectively contributing to the mission of schools: educating all students to high levels. Objectives: 1. Understand education reform issues and initiatives and develop strategies to ensure that reform policies are equitable. 2. Learn ways of connecting school counseling to the mission of schools. 3. Understand the impact of counselor action on equity and student achievement. 4. Recognize that traditional counselor skills contribute uniquely to education reform. 5. Learn how to work with all stakeholders in schools & communities to achieve educational equity and excellence. Challenge the belief systems of participants Objectives: 1. Understand the imperative for change and be able to communicate it to others. 2. Examine their own belief systems The Education Trust, Inc.

3 3. Understand that belief systems can have positive or negative consequences for students and their life chances. 3 Provide participants with the knowledge and skills needed to implement the ASCA National Model for School Counseling Programs Objectives: 1. Know how to implement the four components of the ASCA National Model: Foundation, Management, Delivery and Accountability 2. Collaborate with faculty, students, parents, administrators and community members in the development of the school counseling program. 3. Develop belief, philosophy and mission statements for the School Counseling Program that connects the program to the mission of the school. 4. Design a data-driven school counseling program that is accountable and aligned with the student achievement goals of the school. Provide participants with skills and knowledge to work systemically as well as individually in leadership, advocacy, teaming & collaboration and to utilize data to help schools and school systems achieve educational equity and excellence for all students. Objectives: A. Leadership 1. Learn how to articulate counselors' role in the leadership of schools. 2. Understand the importance of school counselors having a strong voice for equity and excellence for all students in the leadership of schools. 3. Learn how to influence the education system through systemic changes that increase students' achievement. 4. Learn strategies to benefit students who are not well served by the system - including high as well as low-achieving students. 5. Develop a plan and strategies to facilitate systemic change including school policy and instructional programs. 6. Apply leadership skills to ensure that every student is on track to be successful in both college and career post-high school options B. Teaming & Collaboration: 1. Learn how to use teaming & collaboration skills to promote educational equity and social justice in the educational system. 2. Identify the critical components of successful teaming & collaboration that can help schools become successful places for all students. 3. Develop a plan to provide leadership in collaborating with school faculty and staff to develop an effective advisory program so that every student is connected to a caring adult at school 4. Develop a plan to provide leadership in implementing teaming and collaboration principles to improve educational experiences and outcomes for all students.

4 C. Advocacy Objectives: 1. Understand advocacy and what it means to work systemically as an advocate for all students. 2. Learn a framework for working as an advocate to help schools achieve educational excellence and equity. 3. Identify the opportunities and overcome the obstacles in working as an advocate. 4. Learn strategies for shifting from focus on individuals to focus on changing those aspects of the system that are impediments to equity and social justice for all students. 5. Develop a data-driven advocacy plan that will change the system to be responsive to the academic and social needs of all students, especially students of color and students from lowincome families. D. Use or Data Objectives: 1. Understand the importance of using data in making systemic change. 2. Understand the importance of data driven school counseling programs and effective interventions to improve student achievement and development. 3. Learn the critical data elements that impact school-wide student outcomes. 4. Learn ways of accessing, analyzing, and presenting data to dispel myths about student achievement. 5. Learn ways of using data to demonstrate the relationship between school counselor behavior/interventions and student outcomes. 6. Devise an action plan using critical data elements to design an educational equity advocacy plan for systemic change. In addition to the emphasis on social justice and addressing the inequities in the system, at least three essential principles receive attention throughout the training. These principles apply to both the trainers delivering the modules as well as the school counselors participating in the workshops. 1. Commitment to diversity and multi-cultural issues is essential. Knowledge of changing demographics of the school district is a key factor in understanding and removing barriers to academic success of all student groups. 2. Technological competence is crucial to the success of school counselors in today's schools. Technology skills are critical for accessing and presenting data to advocate for systemic changes that will benefit all students. 3. Accountability for the work of school counselors needs to be included in school counseling programs. School counselors must collect and use data that support and link school counseling programs to students' academic' achievement. The National Center for Transforming School Counseling and the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) collaborated to integrate the ASCA National Model: A Framework/or School Counseling Programs into the professional development modules. The ASCA National Model provides the structure to implement a comprehensive approach to program foundation, delivery, management and accountability. The model provides the mechanism with which school counselors and school counseling teams design, coordinate, implement, manage and evaluate their programs for students' success. It provides a framework for the program components, the school counselor's role in implementation and The Education Trust, Inc.

5 the underlying philosophies ofleadership, advocacy, teaming & collaboration, and systemic change. When implementing a National Model-based program, school counselors switch their emphasis from service-centered for some of the students to program-centered for every student. It not only answers the question, "What do school counselors do?" but requires school counselors to respond to the question, "How has student achievement increased as a result of what school counselors do?" The National School Counseling Training Initiative professional development modules provide school counselors with the leadership, advocacy, teaming & collaboration, systemic change and use of data skills needed to go beyond just implementation the ASCA National Model. Utilizing the skills learned in these workshops, school counselors can help all students to access, equity and success. For school counselors to actively work to increase student achievement in the schools, building level principals and key Central Office staff must understand and support the appropriate role and function of the school counselor. A non-negotiable component of the professional development package is a minimum of one half day training for all building level principals, assistant principals and appropriate Central Office staff which explains the work that the school counselor will be doing as part of their training and how administrators can support school counselors in this transformed role. This professional development takes place over a period of 1~ to 2 academic years. Normally all school district school counselors participate in the training. Typically a full day workshop occur every 6 to 8 weeks during the first academic year. "Homework" is assigned at each training session and results are reported at the following session. Technical assistance is provided throughout the process to help school counselors effectively address any difficulties encountered as they implement the knowledge and skills that they learn during the training. By the end of the two year professional development experience, every participant presents data that demonstrate how students are different due to school counseling program activities aligned with the school's academic achievement goals that were developed and implemented during the training process. In addition, they report on their systemic change efforts that focus upon creating policies and practices that help the school better meet student needs. Peggy Hines, Director National Center for Transforming School Counseling The Education Trust 1250 H Street, NW Suite 700 Washington, DC Phone: , Ext 344 Cell: (preferred) phines@edtrust.org

6 ~ The Education Trust's N CTSC National Center for Transforming School Counseling Definition of School Counseling National Initiative for Transforming School Counseling a profession that focuses on the relations and interactions between students and their school environment with the expressed purpose of reducing the effect of environmental and institutional barriers that impede student academic success. The profession fosters conditions that ensure educational equity, access, and academic success for all students K-12. To accomplish this function, the trained school counselor must be an assertive advocate creating opportunities for all students to nurture dreams of high aspirations. The counselor assists students in their academic, social, emotional and personal development and helps them to define the best pathways to successfully achieve their dreams. The school counselor serves as a leader as well as an effective team member working with teachers, administrators and other school personnel to make sure that each student succeeds. The school counselor as consultant empowers families to act on behalf of their children by helping parents/guardians identify student needs and shared interests, as well as access available resources. The function necessarily requires focused attention to students for whom schools have been the least successful-poor students and students of color. A concentration is required on issues, strategies and interventions that will assist in closing the achievement gap between these students and their more advantaged peers. Measurable success resulting from this effort can be documented by increased numbers of these students, as well as other students, completing school academically prepared to choose from a wide range of substantial post-secondary options, including college. The Education Trust, Inc., 1250 H Street NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC (202) x 344, phines@edtrust.org

7 ASCA National Model for School Counseling Programs

8 Project 720 Model School Counseling Program Training The Perms)lvania Department of Education and the Education Trust are collaborating to offer a unique opportunity to Project 720 schools and their associated CTe's. We are going to work with nine school districts across the Commonwealth to develop model Transformed School Counseling Programs that other school districts can look towhen developing effective school counseling programs that ensure college and career readiness and success foi every student. Three identical trainings will be held across the Commonwealth: one training in the East, one in central PA and one in the \Vestern region. Specific training sites will be announced once the participating districts have been chosen so that we may choose sites as convenient as possible. The PenI1sylvania Department of Education will provide for the cost of the training. The only costs for which a participating district will be responsible will be mileage to the training site and lunch for participants. Districts and CTe's wishing to participate in this professional development opportunity must commit to the following: Participating in one, two-day training session in June 2007 All school principals and assistant principals and all school counselors are required to attend entire first day of training All school counselors are required to attend the entire second day of training Participating in three, one-day training sessions in August, October, and December, 2007 All school counselors are required to attend the entire day of each training All school principals and assistant principals are required to attend the entire day of the December, 2007 training Participating in up to three additional days of training for school counselors from January June 2008, pending funding Supporting the school counselors as they: Analyze disaggregated school data Become data driven and align their activities with the school's academic goals Team and collaborate with school faculty Team and collaborate with parents and members oflocal businesses and the community Review and revise school counselor job description Review and recommend revisions for school policies and practices that impede academic achievement Evaluate and recommend revisions for advisory program Evaluate and recommend revisions for college and career readiness for all students Evaluate and recommend revisions for the master schedule The Education Trust, through PDE will commit to: Providing 5 days of training and related materials Providing technical support/coaching for school counselors and principals as they work to implement skills and knowledge gained through the training

9 Take all necessary action and expend adequate resources to redefine the role of guidance counselors and student service coordinators as school-wide facilitators of student advising to ensure that all high school students are well advised in school concerning post-graduation expectations and how to transition successfully into both college and career. In order for students to successfully navigate the more rigorous curriculum and transition to postsecondary education or career successfully, we must reconfigure and expand the roles and responsibilities of guidance counselors and other student support service providers, beginning in middle school, during 8 th grade at the very latest. To achieve this goal, the state should revise the counselor preparation program guidelines to require more expertise in postsecondary advising, as well as in facilitating school-wide advising. The curriculum of school administrator training programs should be revised to reflect these new requirements as well. Recognizing that too often the school counselor often plays multiple roles such as vice-principal, social worker, crisis manager, or therapist, the Commission firmly believes that other staff must be assigned to these roles, including the referral of students to outside social service providers. Counselors should instead serve as an educational professional focused specifically on advising students and faculty on postsecondary matters and connecting students to needed services and postsecondary experiences. Their specific duties should include: Ensuring that all students are proficient on the State Career and Work Standards Identifying and providing information to students on requirements and expectations of the postsecondary arena Facilitating the use of statistical information (students demographic information, performance data, etc.) to improve school programs and services Connecting students to internships, dual enrollment opportunities and other activities that encourage students to experience the postsecondary world while in high school Utilizing the state-required senior project as an opportunity for students to find out more about careers in which they are interested while giving real-world lessons about the education they are receiving To achieve these goals, the Commission recommends providing high-level professional development opportunities for counselors, on both a statewide and local level, geared toward assisting and educating counselors in their roles as school-wide facilitators. Districts should be encouraged to work together in regions to do in-service training for counselors, as opposed to "fitting in" their counselor to district-wide teacher training. PDE should develop a website which provides information on high quality professional development.

10 Inappropriate (noncounseling) activities: Appropriate (counseling) responsibilities: Registering and scheduling all new students Designing individual student academic programs Administering cognitive, aptitude and achievement tests Interpreting cognitive, aptitude and achievement tests Signing excuses for students who are tardy or absent Counseling students with or absenteeism excessive tardiness Performing disciplinary actions Sending home students who are not appropriately dressed Teaching classeswhen teachers are absent Counseling students with disciplinary problems Counseling students about appropriate school dress Collaborating with teachers to present guidance curriculum lessons Analyzing grade-point averages in relationship to achievement Maintaining student records Supervising study halls Interpreting student records Providing teachers with suggestions for better study hall management Ensuring student records are maintained in accordance with state and federal regulations Assisting the school principal with identifying and resolving student issues, needs and problems Collaborating with teachers to present proactive, prevention-based guidance curriculum lessons