
School Counseling Program Update
October 2022
Counselors
- Primary: Karri Amelunke & Kathleen Downey
- Elementary: Sharon Horton & Ashley Roth
- Middle School: Brett Strauser & Sarah Williams
- High School: Krista Massman & Erin Morris
Southern Boone Primary Updates
What data/evaluation criteria illustrates the effectiveness of this area?
Our classroom teachers complete the mental health checklist for each of their students in the fall and winter through the Boone County Mental Health Coalition. We then see comprehensive mental health data that reveals our areas of strength and concerns building-wide. We can then use that data to help plan our PBS focus lessons throughout the year as well as planning for counseling groups and other interventions. Our checklist data is consistently green (low risk) in almost all areas such as social skills and peer relations, internalizing behavior, externalizing behaviors and self-regulation, and attention and academic competence. I feel this shows that we are able to effectively use our data to address building-wide issues and catch individual students who need additional support through tier 2 or tier 3 interventions.
The counselors are very active in all 3 tiers of the Primary PBS program. We serve on the Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 teams and provide input on school wide implementation of expectations and solution plans as well as tier 2 and tier 3 supports. Our building has received recognition from the state for PBS implementation every year since 2008 including the highest recognition at the gold level for the last 4 years. Our district was also recognized this summer as a District of Distinction receiving the PBiS Mary Richter Award. Through our PBS efforts each year our data shows decreases in behavior referrals, both major and minor.
What has changed since the last program evaluation?
We are starting our 3rd school year teaching the Second Step-Skills for Social and Academic Success curriculum through our weekly GROW classes K-2. We have also included (K-2) the Child Protection Unit through Second Step where students learn the ways to stay safe from unsafe and abusive situations.
We now have a district 504 coordinator who manages the entire district’s 504 caseload. The counselors still attend 504 meetings, but are no longer in charge of planning and facilitating 504 meetings or completing the paperwork. This allows us to focus on our school counseling responsibilities. Now that we have one coordinator it allows for more consistency and quicker response to referrals.
Our district has added a Family Intervention Specialist through FACE. She helps provide wrap around support for Tier 3 students and their families. She has the time and resources to devote to these families that school counselors cannot always provide.
This year the counselors, nurse and a classroom teacher put our ideas together and were able to create a space that is centrally located in the primary building specifically for staff to go when they need to take a minute or two for self care. We call it the staff Zen Den. This room has two massage chairs, couch, low lighting, books, coloring, puzzles and peace and quiet. It has already been utilized frequently and we have had a very positive response.
On September 15, the primary and elementary counselors offered a family counseling night to all primary and elementary families. It was a night of make and take calming items and ideas for positive family interactions. 40 adults, 25 students from the Primary, 27 students from the Elementary, and 2 students from the Middle Schools attended this event. We had a larger turnout than expected and felt that it was a success. This was one comment we received afterward from a parent who attended with her first grader:
“What a great event you all put on tonight! So many cool tools that we came home with and new coping ideas to talk about. The love and care you all put toward our kiddos was so apparent in the work and thought that went into this. Thank you!!”
What next steps would better serve our students?
We currently have 2 rounds of the teacher mental health checklist data points through FACE- one in October and another in January. We would like to bring back the spring teacher checklist so that we have an additional data point as reference for the end of the school year into summer school and to begin the following school year. We feel that the gap between January and October is too large. We use this data to help identify students for tiered interventions, track student progress and also plan for building-wide interventions and lessons.
We were disappointed that the position of district social worker was not filled for this school year. We still feel that a social worker would be a great asset and resource for our most at-risk families.
High-quality Learning in Action
- 2nd grade Home Link-Unit 1 Lesson 3
- Belly Breathing picture Emotion Management Unit (first grade)
- Skill Practice picture Fair Ways to Play Unit (first grade)
- Self-talk Skill Practice Using self-talk to remember directions from Skills for Learning unit (kindergarten)
Southern Boone Elementary Updates
What data/evaluation criteria illustrates the effectiveness of this area?
In the Elementary school, our teachers and students complete the MU Coalition Checklist three times each year. We use this information to help determine which of our students need extra support. In the past, the counselor would meet with the top ten students in each grade level who were red flagged (which showed that they were needing extra help and support). Then after meeting with them, we created an internalizing group to help meet these students’ needs with parent permission.
Our Tier 2 Team will be looking at this data to determine which students need extra resources and support. This is a part of their referral process. This information is also shared with Burrell to provide additional support.
What has changed since the last program evaluation?
Last year, we had 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade in our building. This year, we only have 3rd and 4th grade. As a way to help support the Middle School, Ashley Roth is in our building on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings each week. So we have 1 ½ counselors assigned to our building.
Our building has added Emily Plank as our Life Skills teacher. In the previous years, more than half of our students who received 3 or more office major office referrals were Special Education students. So we want to say Thank You for providing the additional support where students can come and learn about the emotions in themselves and others and how to handle these feelings.
What next steps would better serve our students?
As we continue to grow as a district, we hope to be able to return to having 2 full-time counselors at the elementary school to meet everyone’s needs. At the beginning of September, we had 348 students in our building. We have 8 sections of 3rd grade and 9 sections of 4th grade. The counselors go into each classroom for 30 minutes each week for a counseling lesson. They also meet with students in small groups and for individual counseling.
According to the DESE website (https://dese.mo.gov/college-career-readiness/school-counseling/school-counseling-index#ratio), this is the MSIP 6 goal.
High-quality Learning in Action
Primary & Elementary Family Counseling Night with the Primary Building (Sept. 15 from 5:30-6:30) - 40 adults, 25 students from the Primary, 27 students from the Elementary, and 2 students from the Middle Schools attended this make and take event. There were 15 different stations students could choose to go to and do the tasks at the table. The topics included mindfulness, ways to calm down, kindness, and other activities to engage the family.
Southern Boone Middle School Updates
What data/evaluation criteria illustrates the effectiveness of this area?
At the middle school, our teachers and students complete the Boone County Mental Health Coalition Checklist each year. We use this information to help determine which of our students need extra support. The Tier 1 team meets to look at school-wide minor behavioral data to determine what interventions would benefit students by being implemented throughout the whole building. The Tier 2 team meets bi-monthly to review and identify students who are not making adequate progress, behaviorally and/or academically, that could benefit from more intensive support and assistance to be honorable and successful students and citizens. Students are identified through a nomination form submitted by the middle school staff as well as an indicator list that utilizes student attendance, major discipline referrals, and tardies. The team then monitors students within Tier 2 interventions through progress monitoring and/or goal tracking forms. The middle school also utilizes student and staff surveys to determine effectiveness and provide feedback.
The Eagle Ethics team was able to implement and enhance the school wide events to create a positive and inclusive culture. These events helped to increase the safe, respectful, and responsible behavior in staff and students throughout the year. School wide events included assemblies, teacher vs student games and activities, Eagle Bill Cart, and field days.
What has changed since the last program evaluation?
The student and teacher numbers have increased since our last evaluation. Currently, we serve 635 students in the middle school. The Boone County Mental Health Coalition has been helpful with identifying more students with mental health needs through the checklist. Their services include assisting with groups and individual counseling by providing supplemental curriculum for individual and group counseling sessions. The partnership we have with Burrell has shown to be extremely helpful with our students who are most at-risk.
Specifically, the addition of 5th graders to our building has added 160 students in addition to the yearly increase of students in 6th, 7th and 8th grade. This large increase of students has shown us the need to reevaluate and update the systems within the Counseling Department. The district added a half time counselor to the middle school building. We had to adjust and restructure our Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 teams for the Positive Behavior Support systems. Each full time counselor has two grade levels assigned to them to help ensure that all students' needs are met through the Missouri Comprehensive School Counseling Program.
Career exploration has been a focus since the last evaluation by creating opportunities for students to explore career paths. 8th Grade students visited the University of Mizzou’s campus and were hosted by the College of Education and Human Development. The students experienced a STEAM day which included a tour of the campus and lunch in Plaza dining hall.
The addition of more exploratory options for our 7th and 8th grade students has proven to be beneficial by allowing students access to experience a variety of classes. The use of technology has seen a large increase in the last two years with all students being one to one with a Chromebook and all teachers using Google Classroom in the same format. We implemented the counseling curriculum solely through technology driven resources. Class sizes have decreased significantly this year due to the restructuring of teachers and addition of staff members along with the addition of 5th grade to the building. All core classes in 5th and 6th grade are 21 students or less and all core classes in 7th and 8th grade are 24 or less.
What next steps would better serve our students?
5th and 6th Grade
Counseling Curriculum will be created and restructured to continue to provide counseling lessons
Establishing Year Long Event Calendar
Look into STEAM Day off-campus
7th and 8th Grade
Creating a student leadership team
Continue Career Exploration events
All Grades
Small groups implementation appropriate for middle school students
Addition of a Math Interventionist for all 4 grade levels
Addition of Special Education teacher
According to the DESE website (https://dese.mo.gov/college-career-readiness/school-counseling/school-counseling-index#ratio), this is the MSIP 6 goal.
High-quality Learning in Action
Southern Boone High School Updates
What data/evaluation criteria illustrates the effectiveness of this area?
The counseling department utilizes data collection aspects of PBS to gain information about students, teachers, and overall school climate. One of the tools we used last year was a staff and student culture survey. From the survey results, the counseling team in collaboration with administration are working to address concerns and help better serve the high school. We also utilize Tier 1 and 2 data collection to determine deficits as a whole and pinpoint students who may need extra support.
As in previous years, the high school counseling department utilizes the mental health checklist students are asked to take twice per year. This provides us with data in a number of categories regarding our student population ranging from academic to social to emotional. It also helps identify any students that need to be checked in with that might benefit from additional support or resources.
We utilize data pulled from SIS to implement our Academic Support program. Each week both grade and attendance data is pulled for each student. If a student has missed more than one day of school in the previous week or has a D/F in a class, that student spends 3rd hour with the teacher to gain more individual instruction. Students attend academic support 4 times a week. Any student not in Academic Support can spend time in our privileged areas which include the gym, commons, library, and outside if the weather permits. This data is pulled weekly so it helps track what students consistently need Tier II and Tier III support.
What has changed since the last program evaluation?
The counseling office has seen some major changes and improvements in the past two years. We have pulled focus to a number of topics including college and career readiness for our high school overall, improvements to our senior processes, the relocation of the A+ program, and the use of technology in several aspects of the counseling department.
In an effort to help students prepare for life after high school, the counseling department has incorporated more college and career related opportunities for students. Last year all of our juniors took the ASVAB. The ASVAB assessment allowed students the opportunity to learn about themselves and the world of work, explore occupations within their area of interest, and develop effective strategies to work towards their career and educational goals. We plan to continue hosting the ASVAB annually for our Junior class.
Last year was also the first year the counseling department partnered with the Ashland Chamber of Commerce to host Mock Interview Days. Seniors utilized skills learned in English IV class to create resumes and participate in professional mock interviews with members of the community. In addition, the counseling department has been attending more college and career events. One of the events that students had the opportunity to attend was the Central Missouri Build My Future Fair. The event allowed students hands-on experience in multiple manual and skilled labor career fields.
The past two years we have worked to give seniors all the resources they need to be successful during their senior year and life after graduation. We have moved to the format of holding an individual senior meetings with each senior during the first quarter of school. This allows us to visit with each student directly to hear where they are at in their planning process. We are able to hand the resources directly, answer any questions they may have, etc.
We’ve also added some other paths to graduation for students who may not be on track for graduation in the regular classroom setting. We have partnered with Job Point in Columbia this year, as well as utilized the Missouri Options program through our Alternative School.
One of the school counselors has also taken on the role of A+ Coordinator in the last two years. Moving this position to the counseling office has ensured that all students who are eligible for the A+ requirements end up qualifying.
Since students have moved to 1:1 devices, we have tried to incorporate technology into our department to create easier access to resources for students. Each grade level has a Counseling Department Google Classroom where we post necessary information, enrichment and leadership opportunities, academic and social/emotional resources, as well as complete all enrollment for upcoming school years. Students create and update their ICAPs each year that are required by DESE to keep them on the path to graduation. We also purchased resource folders for each student this year that have QR codes to sites and documents students will need to access throughout the year, such as the student handbook, course guide, counseling website, ACT, etc.
What next steps would better serve our students?
Over the next two years, the high school counseling department would like to make improvements in the areas of career exploration, mental health services, and overall recognition. Specifically, we would like to continue advancing our partnership with the Boone County Mental Health Coalition in order to provide more individual and small group counseling sessions for our students. We would also like to give our students more opportunities for career exploration. We plan to continue hosting the ASVAB for our Juniors and utilizing the Career Exploration Program (CEP).
Missouri Options is a great tool for students to take personality inventories and explore occupational outlooks that we would like to incorporate into the classroom. We plan on attending more career related events/field trips and hosting more career readiness events (mock interview day, job shadowing day, etc.). We hope to involve the community in these events in order to grow our relationship between the school and community, while promoting occupational growth in Ashland.
Lastly, the high school counseling department would like to enhance our student recognition system. This will be done by utilizing resources like Journey to College, Apply Missouri, Decision Day, and Signing Day to recognize students who have made a post high school decision (college, career, military, etc.).
High-quality Learning in Action
- The first picture is of a student at the Build My Future fair last year. Students had a great time learning about career fields through hands-on learning experiences. This student navigated the bucket of a mini excavator through an obstacle course.
- The second picture is of the 8th grade visit day we hosted last year. 8th graders attended small breakout sessions led by high schoolers that covered several topics. This breakout session was about Agriculture courses and FFA.
- The third picture is the new enrollment folders students were given. There are several helpful links on the folder that students can use for college, career, academic, and mental health needs.
Upcoming Events
- We are partnering with the Elementary School Counselors for the Counseling Advisory Council. Our first meeting will be on October 4 in the Primary Building’s Eagle Room. All are invited to attend to learn more about our programs. We will meet a total of 3 times during this school year to share with our stakeholders our data and to answer any questions they might have regarding our program.
- Karri Amelunke will be recognized as Missouri’s Elementary School Counselor of the Year at our Missouri School Counselor Association’s fall conference in November and also at an MSCA gala event in Jefferson City on December 3, 2022.
Elementary:
- We are partnering with the Primary School Counselors for the Counseling Advisory Council. Our first meeting will be on October 4 in the Primary Building’s Eagle Room. All are invited to attend to learn more about our program. We will meet a total of 3 times during this school year to share with our stakeholders our data and to answer any questions they might have regarding our program.
Middle School:
- The middle school will be having some very exciting things happening throughout the school year with the new building and the addition of 5th grade. Please come by anytime!
High School:
Senior meetings
ASVAB
Build My Future