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Specialized Resources for Oxford Counselors
Oxford, Mississippi (September 16, 2019) — Oxford School District’s school counselors have begun an intensive training that will last for the next two years designed to meet the district’s unique needs based on school-specific data. The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) National Model Training began for Oxford’s school counselors on Thursday, September 12. The training consists of six full-day workshops presented over the course of two school years.
This training will facilitate each school in the district in attaining Recognized ASCA Model Program (RAMP) status. This training is intensive and will require counselors to evaluate their current practice and to work with their administration to adopt nationally recognized best practices. This effort is to ensure that the OSD is meeting the needs of each and every child in a full range of services from social/emotional through college/career guidance.
Deirdra Williams, a certified trainer for ASCA, presented the session last week and explained “these counselors are going to be taking a look at specific student goals to help achieve the 95 in Five goals set by Oxford’s administration. Whether at elementary, middle or high school- a counselor’s work plays a role in academic support, career development, and social/emotional work.”
This new training has been put in motion by Oxford’s Director of Career Technical Education, Dr. Steve Hurdle. “This work is critical to ensure our school counselors are focused on the work which students most need to be successful in their academics and life. This training will assist us in developing and implementing a district-wide counseling plan to serve our students, families, and staff at all age-levels and developmental stages,” said Hurdle.
In addition, the Oxford School District has entered into a partnership with the University of Mississippi Counseling Department to provide extra resources for social/emotional supports for Oxford students. Starting this semester, schools will have access to Master’s Mental Health Counseling candidates to help support students who may be experiencing mental health concerns. OSD school counselors will be coordinating with a UM Counseling Doctoral candidate who will serve as the supervisor for the counseling interns. School administration and behavior coaches will also collaborate with counselors to identify students who may benefit from these services. This extra support comes at no expense to families.