School Counseling News & Stuff 1/7/12

Happy New Year everyone! I am sure we are all back into the swing of things in our schools.  Here are the items that have come across my desk (and a school counselor affirmation.)

• Do you have students whose family is a part of the Knights of Columbus wanting to go to a University of Missouri location (Columbia, Kansas City, St. Louis, or Rolla)? Have them check out this link for information on Missouri State Council Scholarships.
• Click here for the full text of a study that measured progress toward reducing unintentional injury and violence in adolescence. Indicators were things like wearing seat belts, riding with a driver who has been drinking, and physical fights. The short version is: some progress has been made, we have not met our goals. 
• Thank you to the following twits who are now following me on Twitter: @bolden227, and @cleverlsCool.
• Find Volume 9 Issue 10 of the Counseling and Guidance Digest here. (Note: Issue 11 is out but has not been put on the website yet, hopefully I can include it soon).
• Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) just turned 30! I remember being a member in High School...I won't mention when that was...Check out their website here.
• Affirmation: National School Counseling Week is February 6-10, 2012. This week is a chance to advocate for your role in the schools. A mentor once told me (and I paraphrase) "The important thing to remember about the work you do is that it saves lives, it might save a life today, but even more so what you do will impact development and save lives down the road." Keep up the good work everyone.

School Counseling News & Stuff 12/17/11

Merry Christmas (and other sundry holidays) to all the school counselors out there. This will be my last post until the holidays are over. I've had several things come across my desk since my last post. Enjoy:

• The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) changed the formula for figuring graduation rates. In general, the new formula means that graduation rates in Missouri will look lower, because it only reflects those who graduated within four years of entering high school. The change is part of a nation-wide movement to have all states report graduation rates in the same way so they can be easily compared.  Read the DESE press release here.
• Last month I told you I am always a little behind on posting the Guidance Digest. Well, this is the month I catch up. Read the November edition here and the December edition here. This is of most interest to Missouri school counselors, but has good information for any school counselors.
• How about a nice way to show your students career pathways and career clusters online? Click here for a great resource that Missouri supports.
• March2Success, developed by the U.S. Army, can help your high school students raise English, math, and science test scores. 
• If your students and parents are trying to get a grip on what is happening at Penn State and how to protect themselves, click here for information you can send home (including a parent letter and discussion guide).
• Click here if you would like to apply to be an intern with ACT (scroll down the page to find the link).
• Finally, don't forget that while the holidays may be a time of joy and relaxation for us, some of our students are not so fortunate. Make sure to check in with students you are concerned about on the first day they are back in school.

School Counselor News and Stuff 11/20/11

Here are some things of note for school counselors that have come to my attention:

• Here is Volume 9, Issue 7, of the Guidance Digest. It seems I am always posting these right before the new issue comes out. Check it out here.
• Seems several students have been caught cheating on the SAT. Click here for a news story about it.
• I'm always looking for good information on helping kids with ADHD through school counseling. Click here for free information online.  Or, if you prefer to own a book, this one looks promising:

• Finally, have a good Thanksgiving! If you are interested in a good book about the history of America, I suggest:

School Counselor News and Stuff 11/6/11

Here are some current school counseling items that have come to my attention:

• Don't forget to join the ASCA Scene if you haven't done so already. I don't visit it often enough, but it is a great way to get ideas from other counselors. 
• This is my last reminder on this one: It's time to vote for the ASCA Governing Board. You can login with your ASCA id and vote here. Voting ends on November 14th, 2011 at 5 pm pacific time.
• Guidance and Counseling Services Digest Volume 9(6) is now available here. It is written for Missouri counselors, but has plenty of national relevance too. 
• UCLA has put out a report on Dropout Prevention. Click here for the report.
• How about a video on Solution Focused Parent-Teacher Conferences? Click here for the video, then check out Russell Sabella's website here.
• Are you (or the teachers you work with) the classroom bully? Click here to read about the possibility.
• Finally, if you need a good book for 3-5 school counseling groups, then follow the link below for Groups to Go. I have been using it a lot this year. I have the book for the lower grades as well, but I have not used it yet. I'll link to that one too for prosperity.

Here is the 3-5 version:

Here is the K-3 Version:

School Counselor News and Stuff 10/16/11

Here are some things of interest for school counselors:

• It's time to vote for the ASCA Governing Board. You can login with your ASCA id and vote here. Voting ends on November 14th, 2011 at 5 pm pacific time.
• October is Bullying Prevention Month. Don't forget about the great Stop Bullying Now videos on YouTube. Find the first video here.
• If you are on twitter, be sure to look out for #sctweetchat. Many school counselors are using this hash-tag to point you to good information.  Also, while you are there, be sure to follow me (thomascounselor).
• The Missouri School Improvement Plan is being updated and this is the time for public comments. Even if you are not from Missouri, this review is an interesting read to see how Missouri counselors advocate for themselves.
• Finally, I want to remind you to join your local school counselor association (mine is GKCSCA). They provide you with much needed information and the cost supports advocacy programs.  Just this past week, I was able to attend a training put on by The Joshua Center and the training was free with my local chapter membership.