School Counselor Connection

Happy New Year! We hope you had an enjoyable winter break and hope 2024 is off to a good start for you.

We need your help in identifying lead counselors in districts across the state. Please take a minute to complete our survey. ADE is looking to provide additional support to lead counselors by hosting quarterly meetings in which lead counselors can connect with others across the state in similar roles. We will have discussion topics set for each meeting, as well as time for networking and connection. We are looking forward to starting these meetings in 2024. Please complete this survey by January 16 to let us know if you have a lead counselor in your district. This may be someone who oversees the school counselors and student services staff, or is the point of contact for district college and career readiness initiatives. Thank you for your cooperation in this endeavor.

School Counselor Connection is brought to you by: Andrea Glenn, Director of Post-Secondary & Community Engagement and Emily Brown, School Counselor Director at the Arizona Department of Education.

Congratulations to the winner of 2023 ACTE National Counseling & Career Development Award, Kristina Guy. Kristina currently serves as a counselor at the West-MEC Northwest Campus. Additionally, Kristina serves on the AzSCA Executive Board. We are so proud of Kristina's accomplishments!

For those of you working with students in grades 9-12, Education and Career Action Plans will be due by April 30, 2024. If your plans are complete, you can submit at any time prior to the due date. We recommend logging into EMAC and familiarizing yourself with the EMAC system before the due date to ensure your tasks are submitted on time. ECAPs are required for all public high schools including charters. Plans need to be uploaded in the EMAC system. Please ensure that your current staff is assigned the correct role and anyone that has left your district has been removed. The two required compliance tasks are the Implementation Plan and the Student Sample Plan. Please note that the Student Sample Plan is only required for schools NOT utilizing the My Future AZ platform.

We have compiled a variety of resources to ensure you find success with ECAPs this year.

Questions about ADE Connect

EMAC Administrator Guide

ADE ECAP Website

ECAP FAQ's

ECAP Compliance Video

Sample Implementation Plan

Implementation Plan Template

Every month ADE and Pipeline AZ host virtual trainings for users that will demo the My Future AZ platform, review the types of accounts available, and show how a district/charter/school can continue using the program. Please mark your calendars for our spring 2024 trainings.

We are currently offering two virtual trainings a month.

Returning User Training: Provides a more in-depth overview of the different user types and features of our platform. Time will be given for questions and answers at the end of the session.

January 10

February 7

March 6

April 3

May 1

Best Practices/Office Hours: Highlights one feature of our platform and some strategies for implementation. At the end of this session, we will have a question and answer session.

January 11

February 8

March 7

April 4

May 2

If your school or district is looking to onboard with My Future AZ, please send an email to MyFutureAZ@azed.gov for next steps.

The Hatching Hour: Tuesday, January 9, 2024, 9am-10am Pacific Time / 12pm-1pm Eastern Time

Register for this FREE webinar.

Virtual Events: https://www.hatchingresults.com/virtual-events

Use of Data in School Counseling Institute: Virtual learning sessions

March 11, 2024, https://www.hatchingresults.com/uodof-mar-2024

The Use of Data in School Counseling 2e: 7-Part Series:

• Wednesday, January 12, 2024 - Tier 2 Interventions and Root Cause Analysis
  

• Wednesday, March 8, 2024 - School Counseling for Systems Change

• Wednesday, April 26, 2024 - Sharing Results and Flashlight Presentations

The Use of Data in School Counseling 2e: Intermediate/Advanced: April 19, 2024

Continuing Education Classes: https://arizona.hatchingorders.com/

Sign up today for the monthly, virtual Lunch and Learn sessions presented by AzCAN and Ask Benji. The next Lunch and Learn will be: Better FAFSA Best Practices for Special Populations

Date: Wednesday, January 17th

Time: 11:30-12:30 PM

11:30 AM - Start of Session (Welcome and Icebreaker)

11:40 AM - Speaker One Foster Care students resources and facts about the FAFSA by ADE's Joey Taylor (25 minutes w/ questions)

12:05 PM - Speaker Two CSS from review by Aliento's Pedro Gonzales Aboyte (20+ Minutes w/ questions)

We hope you are able to join us!

Please see the flyer below to get registered.

With the start of the 2023-2024 school year comes the opportunity to embark upon a new year of learning and impacting the lives of Arizona students. Consider taking advantage of one of the most valuable AzCAN member benefits by registering for one or more of the newly redesigned and updated College Access Professional (CAP) Training courses.

If you have not had the opportunity to become an AzCAN member, you can join here for free!

Some noteworthy features of the new CAP courses include:

CAP scholarships are available, and the request is built into each course registration.

• Courses are accessed on the Canvas platform.

• Courses are completely updated and redesigned to meet the needs of Arizona college access practitioners – course content is relevant, timely, and focused on immediate implementation with Arizona students and families, middle school through high school.

• Courses only require a maximum of 15 seat hours to complete.

The 2023-2024 CAP Training Course Schedule is now available and all fall courses are open for registration.

We offer two options for removing the 6 semester hour deficiency from your certificate.

• Hatching Results: Hatching Results partners with California State University San Marcos (CSUSM) to offer courses for school counselors for continued education. These courses allow Arizona School Counselors to complete the 6 semester (credit) hour deficiency to renew their certificates in the three-year window who apply for certification under options B, C, and D.

• AZCAN College Access Professionals Training Courses: AZCAN partners with Lindenwood University to provide CAP Training Courses. Arizona School Counselors can complete the 6 semester (credit) hour deficiency to renew their certificates in the three-year window who apply for certification under options B and C. If using the CAP courses to remove deficiencies, there will be an option to pay Lindenwood University $75 for each course to receive one graduate semester (credit) hour starting January 2024.

Option B: Completion of a graduate program in counseling, social work, or psychology; or Option C: A valid license as an associate counselor, professional counselor, master or clinical social worker, or marriage and family therapist issued by the Arizona Board of Behavioral Health Examiners.

Options B and C require completion of six semester hours of courses in any of the following areas: school counseling, college and career guidance, or academic advising. These courses would fall under the categories of college and career guidance or academic advising.

The courses would not be accepted for the Standard School Counselor certificate under the

Option D: Completion of a graduate program in academic advising. This option requires six semester hours of courses in any of the following areas: social and emotional development, mental health counseling, trauma and disaster counseling, multiculturalism in counseling, theories of counseling, the foundation of school counseling, or child and adolescent counseling.

For additional certificate questions check out the ADE Certification Unit website.

Don't miss out on the ACTEAZ Summer Conference this year! Mark your calendars for July 12-17 in Tucson, AZ. Our School Counselor Track is back and will feature a range of sessions on different school counseling topics. There will also be a school counselor luncheon, a fantastic chance to network and connect with peers. Whether you're a seasoned veteran or new to the field, this conference is perfect for you. We're excited to see everyone again!

ASCA National Model presented by Marci Bieber, Lead Counselor for Peoria Unified School District, will be held on January 23 from 9:00am-10:00am on Zoom. If you are interested in attending, please register on the AZSCA website.

Celebrate National School Counseling Week 2024 from February 5th to February 9th! Don't forget to mark your calendars and spread the word. For additional resources, be sure to visit the ASCA website.

National School Counseling Week - American School Counselor Association (ASCA)

A huge shout-out to our amazing professional organizations in the collaboration of this one-page document outlining the roles of mental health providers within schools. The document was a collaborative effort of the Arizona School Counselors Association, the Arizona Association of School Psychologists, the School Nurses Organization of Arizona, the School Social Work Association of Arizona, and the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System. We hope you find this document useful in trainings and meetings with various stakeholders.

Suicide Prevention Training for Schools: All school staff working with students in grades 6-12 must complete a suicide prevention training at least once every three years. AHCCCS has the requirements and approved training programs on their website. Please read more by visiting: Suicide Prevention Training for Schools.
Accessing Behavioral Health Services in Schools: AHCCCS has everything you need to know about accessing behavioral health services. Please visit their page: Accessing Behavioral Health Services in Schools to gain information for schools, parents, universal referral form, approved providers, and more.
School Feedback Form: AHCCCS wants to hear from you and help! Please share your feedback with them on your experience working with community behavioral health providers. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScSjIRzPfSFksMRjwYa6XVchmK471g6Oe7fL0cSURTDaq_Azg/viewform

In partnership with ADE, the College and Career Competencies (CCCs) Project invites you to tune into the Fall 2023 and Spring 2024 Professional Learning Series, The Skills that Matter: Developing College and Career Competencies in Students. We plan to share various information and strategies to support your understanding and implementation of self-efficacy, assertiveness, and self-regulation.

Registration is required for each session. Please view the attached flyer with details of upcoming sessions and registration links. Sessions will be held on Tuesdays from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. Each topic will be a two-part series. Consecutive attendance is encouraged but not required. The trainer will provide a brief overview in Part Two of each series for attendees who could not attend Part One.

Topics include:

Teaching Students Respectful Communication: A Two-Part Series in Assertiveness

• Part One: February 6, 2024

• Part Two: February 13, 2024

For more information or if you have any questions, please email Pattie Noonan.

Do you have students that could benefit from tutoring? Study Smart Tutors is providing through ADE. Tutoring begins Mid-January. Please view the flyer below for more information.

Study Smart Tutors is also looking for tutors. If you or someone you know is interested in becoming a tutor, learn more here.

FREE to all Arizona high school and home school students. Tuition, fees, books and instructional materials covered. Tribal colleges are fully accredited and meet the accreditation standards ensuring credits can be transferred to other post-secondary institutions. For more information, visit the Tribal College Dual Enrollment Program website.

Better FAFSA resources:

Better FAFSA Resource Hub

AzCAN CAP Courses (FAFSA courses in Spring 2024)
NCAN Better FAFSA Toolkit
Ask Benji Educator Toolkit
Financial Aid Toolkit
ABOR FAFSA Tips
2024-2025 FAFSA Guide

2023-2024 Arizona FAFSA Challenge

Exciting news! We're delighted to announce our second-year partnership with the Arizona Cactus League to boost FAFSA engagement for the high school class of 2024.

The first 750 Arizona high school seniors who complete the FAFSA and submit a spring training submission form will receive four tickets to attend a spring training game this season – a fantastic home run for all!

This promotion kicks off on January 8, with FAFSA submissions accepted before that date. Spread the word about this fun and exciting FAFSA incentive, and help your seniors score tickets to a memorable spring training experience!

Ask Benji is looking for any Spring or Winter nudges that your students/users will want to know. Submit a nudge by completing the form below if you have an event about Vocational & trade school, College, FAFSA, or Career resources!

If you are new to Ask Benji check out their School Resource page to get started.

ACTEAZ is hosting a video contest for CTE students to promote Career and Technical Education by creating a video public service announcement (PSA) to support CTE Month® by increasing awareness and understanding of the benefits of CTE.

The online submission system for the video contest is now open. All videos and included forms must be submitted by January 8, 2024.

Grand Prize:
$500 awarded to the Team or Student
Video will be publicized on ACTEAZ media outlets
Video will be shown at the 2024 Arizona CTE Summer Conference

Second Place:
$250 awarded to the Team or Student
Video will be publicized on ACTEAZ media outlets

Third Place:
$150 awarded to the Team or Student
Video will be publicized on ACTEAZ media outlets

Winners will be announced February 1, 2024.

Visit the CTE Month website for more information.

Check out these amazing scholarships for FFA students and agriculturally related scholarships that your students may be eligible for.

Current Phoenix high school students committed to making Phoenix a better place should apply for this prestigious award. Application is open until February 23. Interested students can learn more on the website.

If you no longer want to receive these emails, please email me at Emily.Brown@azed.gov

Do you have colleagues who didn’t receive this email? Please use this form to add/update their information in our database.

Email: Emily.Brown@azed.gov
Website: https://www.azed.gov/cte/counselors
Location: Arizona Department of Education
Phone: 602-542-5353

Email: Andrea.Glenn@azed.gov
Website: https://www.azed.gov/ccr
Location: Arizona Department of Education
Phone: 602-364-4799