Office of School Counseling

MUST DO ITEMS - Please read this section carefully

The Semester 1 Use of Time survey is due on January 31st.

Please read the instructions carefully before completing the survey:

Each Counselor will need to individually complete the survey.
If you are split between 2 schools, you will need to complete the survey twice.
It must be completed no later than January 31st.
College Counselors were sent a separate Use of Time Survey (via email).
Please note that the day after you enter your semester 1 Use of Time data, you should begin collecting for the spring survey. For example, if I enter all of my contacts and data from September 2nd through January 21st, then I should begin tracking my use of time for the spring on January 22nd.
We attached a PDF version of the survey for you to print out and take notes before submitting, if you wish to do so. (see attachment below)
All Use of Time data must be submitted electronically using the form in the link below.

If you have any questions or concerns about this process, please be sure to reach out to your Specialist for assistance and allow yourself time for support so that you are still able to complete it on time.

Click on the link below to complete the survey:

2019-2020 Semester 1 Use of Time

Elementary Counselors Meeting

When

Wednesday, Feb. 19th, 9am-12pm

Where

323 Sollers Point Road

Dundalk, MD

More information

https://registration.bcps.org/Event.aspx?Event_DetailID=29405

This is a mandatory meeting for all elementary school counselors, which includes schools with more than one elementary counselor.

Get Directions

High School Chairs Meeting

When

Thursday, Feb. 27th, 8-11am

Where

11640 Crossroads Circle

Middle River, MD

More information

https://registration.bcps.org/Event.aspx?Event_DetailID=29406

This is a mandatory meting for all high school department chairs.

Get Directions

Middle School Chairs Meeting

When

Thursday, Feb. 27th, 12-3pm

Where

11640 Crossroads Circle

Middle River, MD

More information

https://registration.bcps.org/Event.aspx?Event_DetailID=29407

This is a mandatory meeting for all middle school department chairs.

Get Directions

**NEW** SAVE THE DATE!!! The annual Thelma T. Daley Summer Academy will be held on August 21st and 24th. The tentative location is Loyola Graduate Center in Timonium. FREE CEU's will be available for all sessions. Topics will be announced in the coming months.

**NEW** Welcome back Mike Linkins!! We're happy to announce that Mike Linkins will be back to facilitate site visits again this year. Those schools who haven't had a visit, will receive an email directly from Mike to schedule a time that is convenient for you and/or your department.

**NEW** Name Changes - If you have a name change that results in an email change or not, please let Sharon know so she can update our records.

Substitute Counselor Positions - With several counselors going out on leave, we're in need of qualified subs to support students until their counselor returns. We experienced challenges with assignments so we're asking that if you have a great intern, refer them to our office and not directly to a school. We will contact the appropriate office based on whether they have been screened.

Certification Renewal - If you are within one year of your certificate expiring, you should touch base with the certification office to ensure you have what you need to remain employed. The certification office sends a letter to you and your principal alerting you to your pending expiration date. They can provide you with a growth chart so you know what's on file leading to your renewal. This is a great opportunity to utilize the certification worksheet in your school counseling program plan. It is your responsibility to maintain CEU's after our PD's and submit all information before certification. The Office of School Counseling we will not be able to research old CEU forms beyond 2018.

Stella Maris Grief Day Camp for kids ages 6-12 Saturday, February 1 at 10:00 - 3:00 a the Senior Day Center on the Stella Maris campus in Timonium (see flyer and registration form attached below).

**NEW** CCBC LEAP Programs The LEAP program provides free training and certification for Pharmacy Technician, CNA/GNA, Dental Assistant, Child Care, Logistics/Warehouse, Certified Apartment Maintenance Technician and Medical Front Office for out of school youth, ages 18-24. Each student is assigned a case manager and a job developer during their time in the program. Students also attend financial literacy, computer literacy, academic skills, and job readiness classes at CCBC. (flyers/postcards attached below)

**NEW** Career Day Presenters The CCBC LEAP staff has volunteered for interview and career days at various schools throughout the County. The team enjoys speaking to students about their future goals and how CCBC can play a vital role in their professional and personal lives. Please contact (dolson3@ccbcmd.edu) or Julia Moon (jmoon@ccbcmd.edu), to schedule presentations and/or to attend career events.

**NEW** Social Media Activity to Use in Lessons or Small Group Counseling Check out this free resource to use either in a lesson or in group counseling.

Baltimore County Youth Employment Summit for Baltimore County youth ages 14-21. There are two summits to help kids prepare for applying to the program. (flyer attached below) Attendance at the summit is not required in order to apply for the summer employment program. Registration is required for the summits, and space is limited.

Ice Cream University is an opportunity for college-bound students with an interest in science or marketing to learn about the science of food. This is a great opportunity for kids who are interested in chemistry or culinary-related careers. Students also learn marketing and presentation skills. (flyer attached below)

5th Annual Teen Job Fair Students will have an opportunity to meet recruiters, employers and hiring managers. Potential interviews and onsite hiring. Learn about businesses that are hiring and what their needs are, get immediate feedback and maybe even a job offer! March 14, 2020 @ 11:00 pm to 1:00 pm at Woodlawn High School. Interested students should contact 410.887.1336 or woodlawn@bcpl.net

**NEW** Materials and Resources for your Counseling Program If there are materials/resources you'd like to purchase for your department to use, such as group counseling programs/curriculum, books, fidgets, parent resources, etc. We have some money in our budget to purchase these things. Please send requests/questions to Sharon Holter. Keep in mind that Amazon is not an approved vendor.

6 Year Plan Completion We are now at the halfway point in the school year. This means that your 6 year plan completion rates should be at 40-50%. If you are having challenges in meeting the goal of 100% completion by June, please reach out to your specialist sooner rather than later. We are here to support you!

**NEW** Great video for students interested in a career as a technician Think you know what it’s like being a technician? See what a day in the life of a race team mechanic and Cat® dealer technician is really like in their Tech Swap series. This video is short enough to show in a 6 year plan session!

The link to the January College and Career Newsletter is: https://www.smore.com/svqm5

Please share with students, staff, parents, and stakeholders!

**NEW** Access to Well Rounded Curriculum (WRC) - Access to WRC is worth 10 points towards your school's rating on the Maryland Report Card. This includes enrollment in AP, IB Dual Enrollment or CTE courses at the concentrator level or higher. Points are based on if students accessed/enrolled in the course, not completed the course. This means a students course should not be completely deleted. If a student is withdrawing completely or for less rigor, they should be withdrawn from their last day of attendance.

Well Rounded Curriculum: The ASVAB assessment - The ASVAB assessment can be used towards your WRC score. The ASVAB is the test which produces a score for 10 components: general science, arithmetic reasoning, word knowledge, paragraph comprehension, mathematics knowledge, electronics information, auto information, shop information, mechanical comprehension, and assembling objects.

MSDE recommends a cut score of 31 for ASVAB

If you're scheduling an ASVAB event, please use the newest form with the reporting option of OPTION 8

Construction Internship for current seniors who are successfully graduating in 2020. The Internship is for graduates who are interested in a career in construction with a focus on several of our divisions-Paving, Excavating, Utilities, Stone/Concrete, and Maintenance of Traffic Flagging. Interns will have a full week of training and field visits before working in the field. This Internship has great potential to turn into a permanent position with the company after 90 days. (flyer attached below)

Cadet Information Night for students interested in careers in law enforcement on 2/5 at 6:00 at Patapsco High School (flyer attached below)

**NEW** FAFSA Frenzy Please communicate the day/week, time(s) of the day, and location of your FAFSA Frenzy events to Sharon Holter by January 31st. This will allow us to advertise on the BCPS website.

**NEW** MSDE Senior Survey - We are working with Naviance to prevent the glitches that you experienced with last year's survey. In the meantime, we're waiting to see if MSDE will make changes to the survey questions. For planning purposes, please schedule your dates after Spring break to allow them time to confirm the survey. We need 100% school participation as CTE and senior leadership reviews the information that's imported to MSDE.

Online Transcript, Diploma and Graduation Verification Process BCPS has implemented an exclusively online process for former students to request graduation verifications, duplicate diplomas, and transcripts. Additional information is available on the Official Transcripts, Duplicate Diplomas and Graduation Verifications page. This process is exclusively online, there are no longer walk-in services. High School staff may continue to serve graduates throughout their first year after graduation with transcript requests.

**NEW** Partial Matches - When you review your FAFSA completion list, you may notice that some seniors are a "partial" match and therefore, more information couldn't be provided. A partial match means their FAFSA entry from one of the categories below, didn't match what we uploaded from SIS:

FIRST_NAME
LAST_NAME
DOB
ZIP_CODE
HIGH_SCHOOL_NAME

To resolve partial matches, have the student open their FAFSA application so you can see what they entered in the fields above and if it matches what's in your excel document. The slightest deviation like Tom and Thomas or 01/01/2001 and 1/1/2001 may contribute to partial matches.

FAFSA Completion lists - This week you will receive your MHEC FAFSA completion list from our office. In preparation for your FAFSA Frenzy event, use the list to meet with students who did not complete the FAFSA form or who's form is incomplete. Refer to the department chair note for more information. Below are links to videos that can help you and your students navigate the FAFSA form:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liO5RKKNrhE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8nfk5ApcQ4

Post-Secondary Decision Day 2020

One of the last initiatives for the MD College Application Campaign are Decision Day activities. This can be as elaborate as a ceremony to pictures posted to your social media. Please note that this is a separate event held in conjunction with MCAC that's separate for athletic related decision days. For more information visit:

https://www.bettermakeroom.org/collegesigningday/

https://ctcl.org/national-college-decision-day-and-next-steps/

https://www.fastweb.com/college-search/articles/gear-up-for-national-decision-day

MHEC Financial Assistance Programs

State Financial Assistance Programs and Applications

Tuition Waiver for Unaccompanied Homeless Youth

Tuition Waiver for Foster Care Recipients

NACAC Request for Admission Application Fee Waiver

Students who have limited financial resources may use the NACAC Request for Application Fee Waiver Form when applying for college. The form — aimed at students planning to enroll in post-secondary education immediately following high school graduation — helps ensure that access to college is possible for all.

**NEW** CHAMP Training- Toxic Stress and Trauma - Informed Care (FREE) Participants will explore the various components of trauma-informed care and how to apply it to their practice. 2/12/20 at 12:30 - 5:00 in Baltimore. Click on the title to register.

Supervision Training for LCPC's looking to become Board Approved Supervisors 18 CEU's available on 3/19 and 3/20

Identifying Students in Crisis 1.5 CEU's (Lauryn's Law - Depression category) at Ridgely Middle School on 1/28 at 4:45 - 6:15. (flyer attached below) RSVP to hstackus@bcps.org.

Footprints In Our Lives: 125 Grief Journal Prompts for Teens The grief of a young person is intense and often confusing. These questions can help with that process of recalling and remembering. This book can be a place to write down the footprints that the loved one left in our lives.

Kids Grief Journal and Coloring Book is a coping tool for exploring grief and the emotions behind it.

Healing Activities for Children in Grief is an activity book designed to help counselors in a group setting help children following a death. The book is divided into three sections: children's activities (ages 5-8), preteen activities (ages 9-12), and teen activities (ages 13-18). In each section counselors can choose from a variety of opening activities designed to promote discussion and main activities that involve a specific topic or theme. There is also a special holiday section.