Philosophy:
All students will achieve personal/social, academic, and career success through meaningful and thoughtful intervention strategies in a safe and welcoming environment (Ravas et al, 2018).
Mission Statement:
The mission of the school counseling program is to address the academic, career and personal/social needs of all students. School Counselors will advocate for our students with support from teachers, administrators, parents, and the community by removing barriers and ensuring all students have equal opportunities for success while promoting individual uniqueness and multicultural diversity. We will strive to create a positive school climate; increasing school safety and supporting the development of confident and influential leaders.
Program Goals

 

PS:A1.1 Develop positive attitudes toward self as a unique and worthy person
PS:A1.5 Identify and express feelings
PS:A1.6 Distinguish between appropriate and inappropriate behavior 
PS:A1.8 Understand the need for self-control and how to practice it
PS:A1.7 Recognize personal boundaries, rights and privacy needs 
PS:A1.8 Understand the need for self-control and how to practice it 
PS:A1.10 Identify personal strengths and assets
PS:A2.1 Recognize that everyone has rights and responsibilities 
PS:A2.2 Respect alternative points of view 
PS:A2.3 Recognize, accept, respect and appreciate individual differences
PS:A2.5 Recognize and respect differences in various family configurations 
PS:A2.6 Use effective communication skills
PS:A2.7 Know that communication involves speaking, listening, and nonverbal behavior
PS:B1.1 Use a decision-making and problem-solving model 
PS:B1.2 Understand consequences of decisions and choices
PS:B1.3 Identify alternative solutions to a problem 
PS:B1.4 Develop effective coping skills for dealing with problems
PS:B1.5 Demonstrate when, where, and how to seek help for solving problems and making decisions
PS:B1.6 Know how to apply conflict resolution skills PS:B1.7 Demonstrate a respect and appreciation for individual and cultural differences PS:B1.8 Know when peer pressure is influencing a decision 
PS:C1.2 Learn about the relationship between rules, laws, safety and the protection of rights of the individual PS:C1.3 Learn about the differences between appropriate and inappropriate physical contact 
PS:C1.4 Demonstrate the ability to set boundaries, rights, and personal privacy
PS:C1.5  Differentiate between situations requiring peer support and situations requiring adult professional help 
PS:C1.6  Identify resource people in the school and community, and know how to seek their help
PS:C1.7  Apply effective problem-solving and decision-making skills to make safe and healthy choices
PS:C1.9 Learn how to cope with peer pressure 
PS:C1.10 Learn techniques for managing stress and conflict 
PS:C1.11 – Learn coping skills for managing life events

Professional Competencies:
ASCA’s position statement, The Professional School Counselor and School Counseling Preparation Programs, states that school counselors should articulate and demonstrate an understanding of :
I-A-4. Leadership principles and theories 
I-A-5. Individual counseling, group counseling, and classroom instruction ensuring equitable access to resources promoting academic achievement, career development, and personal/social development for every student 
I-A-7. Legal, ethical, and professional issues in pre-K-12 schools 
I-A-8. Develop mental theory, learning theories, social theory, multiculturalism, counseling theories, and career counseling theories 
I-A-9. The continuum of mental health services, including prevention and intervention strategies to enhance student success 
 
An effective school counselor is able to accomplish measurable objectives demonstrating the following abilities and skills: 
I-B-1. Plans, organizes, implements, and evaluates a school counseling program aligning with the ASCA National Model 
 I-B-1h. Demonstrates multicultural, ethical, and professional competencies in planning, organizing, implementing, and evaluating the comprehensive school counseling program 
 I-B-2c. Identifies and demonstrates professional and personal qualities and skills of effective leaders 
I-B-2d. Identifies and applies components of the ASCA National Model requiring leadership, such as an advisory council, management tools, and accountability 

 School counselors believe:  I-C-4. Every student should have access to a school counseling program 
I-C-5. Effective school counseling is a collaborative process involving school counselors, students, parents, teachers, administrators, community leaders, and other stakeholders 
I-C-7. The effectiveness of school counseling programs should be measurable using process, perception, and outcome data 
School counselors demonstrate their attitudes and beliefs that all students deserve access to a comprehensive program that: 
II-C-1. Has an impact on every student rather than a series of services provided only to students in need 
II-C-3. Promotes and supports academic achievement

An effective school counselor is able to accomplish measurable objectives demonstrating the following abilities and skills: 
III-B-2. Establishes and convenes an advisory council for the comprehensive school counseling program
III-B-5. Develops calendars to ensure the effective implementation of the school counseling program  III-B-6. Designs and implements action plans aligning with school and school counseling program goals  
III-B-6c. Creates lesson plans related to the school counseling core curriculum identifying what will be delivered, to whom it will be delivered, how it will be delivered, and how student attainment of competencies will be evaluated 
III-B-6f. Identifies appropriate resources needed 
III-B-6g. Identifies data-collection strategies to gather process, perception and outcome data 

School counselors believe:  III-C-3. Management of a school counseling program must be done in collaboration with administrators 

School counselors should articulate and demonstrate an understanding of: 
IV-A-7. Principles of working with various student populations based on characteristics such as ethnic and racial background, English language proficiency, special needs, religion, gender and income 
IV-A-8. Principles of multi-tiered approaches within the context of a comprehensive school counseling program 

An effective school counselor is able to accomplish measurable objectives
demonstrating the following abilities and skills:
IV-B-1d. Develops materials and instructional strategies to meet student needs and school goals 
IV-B-2. Facilitates individual student planning 
IV-B-2g. Understands methods for helping students monitor and direct their own learning and personal/social and career development 
IV-B-3. Provides responsive services 
IV-B-4a. Understands how to make referrals to appropriate professionals when necessary
IV-B-6b. Conducts in-service training or workshops for other stakeholders to share school counseling expertise
IV-C-1. School counseling is one component in the continuum of care that should be available to all students 
IV-C-4. School counselors should refer students to district or community resources to meet more extensive needs such as long-term therapy or diagnosis of disorders 

Resource officers can be a visible resource that gives students a sense of safety and security. Also, schools that have a secure locked outside door policy also gives students a sense of safety.
EMPOWERING EDUCATORS:
“We believe in empowering all the educators, and some of that comes out of the sad reality that the principal at Sandy Hook was killed in the first few minutes of that event. Superintendents, principals and school boards must invest as much, if not more, in their people and in dedicating time to safety and preparedness planning as they do in physical security enhancements. Practicing safety such as fire drills, lock-downs, shelter in place are great examples of preparing the educators and the student's how to be prepared in a crisis situation such as a school shooting. School safety experts also stress the importance of schools planning ahead, rather than waiting for a safety issue to arise.
Employing CPTED [Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design:
Concepts in new school construction and renovations can make substantial improvements, ranging from reconfiguring main entranceways to funnel visitors into the office to enhancing hallway supervision with improved line-of-sight, and reducing bullying by putting restroom sinks in a common area on the outer portion of the bathrooms so adults can better supervise kids washing their hands after using the facilities,” 

MEASURE is an acronym for

Mission: connect the comprehensive K-12 school counseling program to the mission of the school and to the goals of the annual school improvement plan

Elements: identify the critical data elements that are important to the internal and external stakeholders

Analyze: discuss carefully which elements need to be aggregated or disaggregated and why

Stakeholders - Unite: determine which stakeholders need to be involved in addressing these school-improvement issues and unite to develop strategies

Reanalyze: rethink and refine the strategies, refocus efforts as needed, and reflect on success

Educate: show the positive impact the school counseling program has had on student achievement and on the goals of the school improvement plan.