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The results of this test make me smile. When my daughter came out to me in 2015, I was not surprised. However, in 2017 when she wrote me letter explaining how she believed she was transgender, I was not ready to hear that information nor did I know how to respond. Together, over the years, we have grown and learned together. I am not more proud of him today than I was the day he was born. This person will always be my child and absolutely nothing will ever change that. In this life we all need to feel acceptance and as a school counselor, I can use my experience to relate to other families. I hope to be able to use my own successes to improve the relationships for other families. I am honored to be his mother today, then, and as his future continues.

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These results to the Race Preference test are a bit disappointing to me however, not unexpected. I grew up in a very racially divided town in the south. My parents did not "teach" hate however, racial slurs were not uncommon. I understand the feeling of fear as it was associated with all other races. My grandparents grew up in a time of slavery and as child, I could sense their apprehension toward that race. Fast forward to today, my African American husband and I have been together for 11 years. We have 5 children and have raised them to believe that all races are equal. I truly feel I am one of the lucky ones that was able to break the cycle in my area of the world.

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Since I am already a school counselor, I like to think I am already doing an amazing job.  After some self-evaluation, I can see that, as a team, my principal and I will need to collaborate in making my position beneficial to our school and most importantly to our students.  We have a lot of work to do but I believe a good starting ground would be to establish an agreement with the principal and other administrators about the comprehensive school counseling program.

On the other hand, coming from the classroom for the past 18 years, I can see how my knowledge on teaching, the testing process, and use of lesson plans will prove to be very valuable once I begin my counseling lessons.  Being with students and having a firm grasp on creating lessons will obviously benefit everyone involved.  I feel confident in being able to manage the group and have the “with-it-ness” to maintain structure and assess my lessons.  I am also a member of our school leadership team.  This will allow me to see our school goals, mission and vision plans, and data needed to establish the greatest area of need when it comes to what our students need to be successful.

This is certainly going to be a learning process for everyone involved.  As a new counselor, working with a new principal, we are going to grow and better ourselves as a team.  Flexibility and patience are going to have to be at the forefront of our process together!

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“A safe, inclusive, and collaborative school community that has high expectations for all students, and supports, engages, and celebrates learners.”  This is the vision statement for Eustis Elementary School.  What I believe most about children is that they all have the ability to learn and grow given the right resources in the right environment.  Our job as counselors is to insure that the educational path is supportive enough that when obstacles arise, the students feel understood, accepted, and empowered enough to overcome and continue to grow.  Children have an amazing capacity to learn and can thrive even in the most desperate of situations.  As a teacher, I have seen students achieve high levels of learning even at the most trying of times, including a world pandemic!

As the school counselor, I know it is my responsibility to advocate for every student.  Regardless of their nationality, race, religion, sexual orientation, or cognitive ability, everyone strives to feel accepted.  In an elementary school environment, many students are just beginning to recognize differences in each other and feel the push to conform.  For the student, this can be very challenging, especially when friendships are tested or differences become more obvious.  Students need an ally.  They need someone who will listen and help them sort out these feelings.  Not always to give them all the answers but to guide them in a way that creates safety in their opinions. The educational journey will never be without challenges.  My job is to help navigate these challenges as they arise.

The ASCA Ethical Standards is a guide for how school counselors provide services to students and their families.  As the counselor, we are tasked with creating a school counseling program that includes a set of beliefs, a vision statement, and a mission statement that align with the school or district’s vision and mission statement (Standard BPA1)  With this guide, we can focus on what is important as a school family.  We can collaborate as a school leadership team so that each member is working toward a common goal. Often times the school counselor is tasked with things that are not within the framework of the counselor’s role.  This guide will be vital when refocusing on what the counselor roles entails.

Of course this is my first attempt at a mission statement, so I’m sure it will evolve as my education continues but using my school as a model, I would say,

“My mission is to deliver a comprehensive counseling program to ensure social, academic, and emotional needs of all our students.  I will collaborate with teachers, students, and families to advocate for the success of all learners.”

References:

American School Counselor Association (2019). The ASCA national model: A framework for school counseling programs (4th ed.). Alexandria, VA: American School Counselor Association

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This document presents a number of journal articles that describe research examining the impact of school counselors and school counseling programs on K-12 student outcomes. It breaks down the importance of the role counselors play in the classroom with data-based research, articles drawn from national peer-reviewed journals, and research reports. There are links for each sub article and abstract summaries to give you a brief over view of what the article will present. I believe this article will be very valuable as I get deeper into my master program and need to reference certain studies. It is all based on the beliefs in the ASCA model and provides take-aways that explain the rationale and support for the research done in each area.