Hebron High School
CREST Application
A continuous improvement document sponsored by the Texas School Counselor Association
4207 Plano Parkway
Carrollton, TX 75010
Website: https://www.lisd.net/hhs
Phone: 469-713-5183
Twitter: @HawksCounselor
Department Contact Information
Marlene Hood (Last Names Com-Haq): 469-948-2831
Tracey Shinkle, Lead Counselor (Last Names: Har-Lal): 469-948-2828
Tracey Jackson (Last Names: Lam-Ngu): 469-948-2826
Kimberly Clingan (Last Names: Ni-Sha): 469-948-2825
Janel Renee (Last Names: She-Z): 469-948-2830
Category 1: Principal's Comments
Hebron High School’s (HHS) Counseling Department is invaluable in guiding our students to success now and in the future through their expertise in topics related to academic achievement, personal/social development, and college and career readiness. They also support the safety of our students through providing awareness education related to concepts such as bullying prevention and suicide prevention. These examples of preventative education often lead to crucial referrals of students in crisis from classmates, faculty, and families. In many of these instances, our counselors are able to conduct screenings for safety, contact parents/guardians, and provide information to help link families with the resources necessary to support students. The counselors have worked with our administration to support the campus improvement initiative of providing opportunities for students to feel connected and engaged at school during block lunch, leading our college exploration events, providing evening informational meetings for parents at each grade level, and providing guidance for course selection and college preparation. The HHS Counseling Department believes in and uses the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs and the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) National Model to support a student in a comprehensive and developmentally appropriate manner. Through this adherence to the State and National Models, they strive to engage students to meet their future goals.
Category 2: School Counseling Advisory Council
The HHS Building Leadership Team (BLT) acts in lieu of the School Counseling Advisory Council. The BLT is a representative group comprised of faculty and staff who are elected members, as well as counselors, students, parents and community representatives who are invited to provide expert input and allocate necessary resources to support a strong and safe learning environment for all students at HHS. In addition, the BLT provides a venue for a variety of stakeholders to provide insight to administrators, teachers, and counselors about student and building needs. The BLT members meet monthly with varying focuses including school morale, image and climate, and student engagement and achievement. One agenda item that was an ongoing discussion item during the year was the Campus Improvement Plan (CIP). The BLT committee continued to discuss the implementation of ideas that would contribute to meeting goals identified on the CIP. One specific topic included helping students to feel included during the block lunch portion of the daily schedule. While many clubs and activities host meetings during that time, the HHS counseling department developed ways for students to interact with counselors through open computer labs and walk-in appointment opportunities. These new measures allowed even greater opportunities for students to work on academic, personal/social, and college/career goals. Counselors continue to implement ideas that are put forth by the committee and give feedback to the committee.
Hebron High School Building Leadership Team Members:
Scot Finch, Principal
Mike Ball, LISD CFO
Shawnda LaRocque, Assistant Principal
Julie Cone, Science Teacher
Sandra Lee, AP
Karen Gray, Social Studies Teacher
Michael Flores, Math Teacher
Kate Mayo, English Teacher
Gerrod Cleburn, Social Studies Teacher
Amy Obenhaus, Assistant Principal
Jay Cheatham, Career & Technology Education Teacher
Vanessa Robichaux, Assistant Principal
Donna Friend, English Teacher
Ed Morales, NJROTC Teacher
Stephanie Smith, Parent
Ben Stroud, English Teacher
Jacob Garlinger, Assistant Principal
Tracey Shinkle, School Counselor
Brian McCoo, Assistant Principal
Cindy Smith, Parent
Andrew Forbus, Math Teacher
Karen Robinson, Special Education Teacher
Rebecca Robbennolt, Career & Technology Education Teacher
Laura Green, Parent
Nhi Pham, Student
Madison Green, Student
Category 3: School Climate and Safety
School climate and safety are related to the sense of community established between students and staff. The HHS Counseling Department believes student safety and a positive school climate encourage inclusiveness and are vital to school success. The HHS counselors play an important role in developing a safe school climate and achieve this by collaborating with students, student organizations and clubs, faculty, the campus crisis response team, community members and parents. Through this collaboration, the counselors are prepared to establish caring environments at the campus level and to empower students and staff to take ownership over the school climate. This ownership can lead to proactive behaviors that maintain balance throughout the school climate.
One way that students demonstrate that they feel comfortable in their school environment is by attending school regularly. Through good attendance, students not only demonstrate their comfort in the school environment, but they also create opportunities to develop important and meaningful relationships with classmates and school professionals. These relationships are a crucial part of building safety as students who can identify good relationships with adults on a school campus may be more likely to reach out to them when they or someone they know is experiencing a safety-related issue (abuse, suicide ideation, etc.).
The HHS Counseling Department set a goal to help increase the 2017-2018 HHS campus attendance rate by 1% compared to the rate in the 2016-2017 school year. HHS counselors tracked attendance rates through collaboration with the attendance office and met with students who were at risk for losing school credit due to excessive school absences. HHS counselors were also crucial in communicating with these students’ parents and encouraging improved attendance. For students who were over the limit for absences, HHS counselors provided additional opportunities for them to recover seat time. Finally, HHS counselors participated on the school’s attendance committee to assist in advocating for students who were experiencing specific issues that were negatively affecting their attendance. Figure 1 shows the attendance rate for HHS from 2014-2018. During the 2016-107 school year, HHS had a campus attendance rate of 94.4%. For the 2017-2018 school year, the attendance rate increased to 96%, a 1.6% improvement from the previous year.
Category 4: Student Results
The Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs and the ASCA National Model suggest school counselors use data to make informed decisions about their respective counseling program. To this end, the HHS Counseling Department relies on the use of such data to determine student needs and the effectiveness of interventions and programming in addressing those needs. During the 2017-2018 school year, the HHS Counseling Department focused on two goals related to its students’ futures.
The first counseling team goal was to increase the number of senior students who applied to 4-year colleges during the 2017-2018 school year by 5% compared to the 2016-2017 school year. Students who complete a college degree of any kind after high school are more likely to be employed and to earn a higher wage compared to those who do not. While the 2-year college network provides a great opportunity for postsecondary education, the bachelor’s degree completion rate of students who first attend a 2-year school falls short compared to those who attend a 4-year college directly after high school. Therefore, encouraging more HHS students to apply to 4-year colleges can give them more options to pursue personal and career goals after high school graduation.
The HHS Counseling Department supported student’s college application process through a variety of activities. First, students were able to meet with counseling department members each Wednesday during the Fall semester in a computer lab to get assistance with college applications. Counselors collaborated with students on their applications, essays, or other questions related to the application process. The Counseling Department also hosted a college panel for senior students and their parents to ask questions related to the college exploration, application and enrollment process. HHS has also benefited from the placement of a part-time College/Career Counselor on campus who is employed by Collin College, a local 2-year college. She provides ongoing programming for students to learn about financial aid, the college application process, and a variety of other topics pertinent to college-bound students. Finally, HHS provided a financial aid workshop for senior students and their parents to help them better understand the benefits of financial aid and to assist in the completion of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Figure 2 shows the percentage of senior students who applied to a 4-year college by school year. At the end of the 2017-2018 school year, 78% of HHS students had applied to at least one 4-year college. This application rate represented an 18% increase from the number of seniors students who applied to at least one 4-year college in 2016-2017 (60%).
The HHS Counseling Department also wanted to increase student enrollment in dual credit classes for the 2018-2019 school year by 10% compared to the 2017-2018 school year. Dual credit courses offer a good academic and financial benefit to HHS students. By taking college level classes as high school students through our dual credit relationship with Collin College, HHS students are better prepared for the rigor of college-level work. Furthermore, if they are able to earn college credit through these courses they can begin making progress toward college degrees while they are still in high school. Finally, the cost that HHS students pay for dual credit courses and subsequent opportunity to earn college credit is cheaper than the cost that they would pay for the equivalent courses if they were a full-time college student.
The dual credit program at HHS has been growing over the last several school years, but room for growth remained. The HHS Counseling Department took steps to make the dual credit enrollment and registration process easier for students and families. Specifically, they opened computer labs on multiple days leading up to the registration deadline and staffed it with counselors and a Collin College representative. An evening event was also held for parents to present the potential benefits of dual credit and details about the registration process. HHS also offered the Texas Success Initiative (TSI) assessment on its campus. The TSI is an assessment that allows students to demonstrate their college readiness in the areas of Reading, Writing and Mathematics, which are required skills for dual credit enrollment. Finally, the format of the English 3 and United States History course was adjusted to a year-long course. Figure 3 shows the changes in dual credit enrollment at HHS from 2015-2019. Enrollment surged from 230 students in 2017-2018 to 384 students 2018-2019, demonstrating a 66% increase from the previous school year (See Figure 3). Furthermore, the number of course sections offered increased. Specifically, HHS offered 4 more sections of US History and English 3 respectively and 2 more sections of Government and Economics compared to the 2016-2017 school year. Finally, HHS added Sociology and Psychology courses to its dual credit offerings.
Category 5: Major Achievements
Other Major Achievements
- Earned distinctions from the Texas Education Agency for Postsecondary Readiness measures such as enrolling students in Advanced Placement and dual credit classes, student performance on AP exams and in dual credit classes, participation in the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and ACT tests, and demonstrating a high graduation rate
- Earned the Counselors Reinforcing Excellence for Students in Texas (CREST) Award for the 2017-2018 school year
Category 6: Community Partnerships/Resources
Community partnerships have been a priority for the Lewisville Independent School District (LISD) and the HHS Counseling Department has embraced them as a way to enhance the counseling program. The HHS Counseling Department develops partnerships with the community that are unique and positive for our students, school, and surrounding community..
ACADEMIC: HHS benefited from a developing relationship with Collin College. In particular, HHS is fortunate to have Ashley Stevens from Collin College work on its campus for two days per week. Her presence at HHS allows her to meet individually with students and parents who have needs related to the college application process. Additionally, Mrs. Stevens helped to coordinate a series of college exploration, application, and admissions presentations for students and parents called “Destination College.” HHS counselors also continue to develop partnerships with college admissions representatives from the colleges that HHS students have attended with the greatest frequency over the past several years. In particular, they attend update sessions from each of these schools to stay informed of any important admissions or financial aid requirements that may impact HHS students.
CAREER: HHS continued to support students’ career goals through partnerships with branches of the military and community businesses. For example, HHS offered the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) to any interested student who may consider future options with a branch of the military. By completing this assessment, students are able to proactively assess and consider their postsecondary options related to the military service. HHS also reached out to community businesses to establish a way to promote job openings to students. A Job Board was developed that posts job openings in the community for young people. This tool has been a good way to demonstrate the mutual interest that schools and local businesses have toward one another.
SOCIAL/PERSONAL: The HHS Counseling Department worked with two different organizations to provide students with an opportunity for personal development. First, a local American Legion post partnered with HHS to identify junior male students and sophomore females students for selection to the Texas Boys State and Texas Girls State program respectively. Similarly, HHS partners with the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY) organization to nominate students for leadership training, service learning opportunities, and motivational experiences. These programs provide meaningful opportunities for students to develop leadership skills that can provide many benefits as students progress through high school.
HHS also strives to recognize students who are demonstrating a healthy balance of academic and extracurricular balance. HHS students are nominated for Student of the Month Awards and they are recognized by the local rotary club. Similarly, eligible students are nominated and recognized by the Daughters of the American Revolution for good citizenship awards. Finally, HHS recognizes the Carrollton Police Department as a valued partner. A School Resource Officer (SRO) is stationed on the HHS campus each day of the week. This SRO is a crucial partner in helping our staff, students, and parents understand current issues facing young people such as drug trends. To help build an important relationship with students, the HHS SRO hosts monthly “Coffee With A Cop” meetings to encourage students to have a dialogue with campus leaders.
Category 7: Parent Collaboration
The HHS Counseling Department believes that parent collaboration is one of the most important components to a successful counseling program. Parent collaboration educates and provides critical supports for our students, informs HHS counselors about student and family needs, reinforces messages and information distributed by the counseling program, and provides a venue for feedback about student and school interventions. The HHS counseling department collaborated with families in a variety of methods during the 2017-2018 school year.
GUIDANCE CURRICULUM: The HHS Counseling Department submits a needs assessment to the Hebron community to evaluate current counseling department programs and to determine new needs for the guidance curriculum. Furthermore, a member of the counseling department participates on the BLT which includes valuable parent voices. Participation on this team provides HHS counselors with an opportunity to both receive and provide input on important issues related to the counseling program. Finally, access to presentations, handouts, and other curriculum materials were made available via the counseling department website in accordance with Texas Education Code 33.004(b).
RESPONSIVE SERVICES: HHS counselors make a point to involve parents in the response to any student crisis on campus. In instances of student crisis, HHS counselors debrief parents about the circumstances, provide counseling support to better understand the perspective of the student and the situational dynamics, and provide resources for continued student support. Furthermore, counselors are available to communicate with parents constantly through phone, email, and in person conferences for issues related to academic, personal/social, and career/college issues.
INDIVIDUAL PLANNING: The HHS Counseling Department provides informational sessions geared toward individual planning to parents throughout the school year. These sessions address topics related to sophomore, junior and senior parent meetings, financial aid and FAFSA workshops, College Panel Night, dual credit enrollment, the College and Career Fair and course registration meetings. The intention of these program options is to help parents be proactive with their planning and to provide opportunities to engage with counseling team members.
SYSTEM SUPPORT: The HHS Counseling Department uses a number of means to inform parents about upcoming events, programs and deadlines throughout the year. Resources used to accomplish this include the Skyward Family Access system to email, call and text parents, the school and department website, and social media (Facebook, Twitter, Remind101).