IASFAA Webinars

The first two Iowa Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (IASFAA)  School Counselor Webinars are now available on You Tube.   Here are the links: 

1.       Understanding the Financial Aid Process- Tim Bakula, University of Northern Iowa (Dec. 17):   https://youtu.be/bFfeazQmOrE

2.       State Update- Tristan Lynn- Iowa College Student Aid Commission (Dec. 10) : https://youtu.be/53RtcwPiSwo

They are also available at:  http://www.icansucceed.org/en/professionals/webinars/

No-Name-Calling Week

Hello Educators, Did you hear the news? GLSEN's No Name-Calling Week is January 18-22, 2016! With about five weeks to go until we Celebrate Kindness, we wanted to take the time to remind you to register by THIS FRIDAY in order to receive your free set of classroom materials.       IN THIS ISSUE:       No Name-Calling Week - January 18-22, 2016

No Name-Calling Week - January 18-22, 2016

Register for No Name-Calling Week! Sign up to receive free lesson plans, planning guides and other helpful tools to incorporate during your weekly activities. Registrants will receive separate emails leading up to No Name-Calling Week. EXCITING NEWS: Register by THIS FRIDAY, 12/18, to receive a classroom set of No Name-Calling Week stickers and posters. If you are interested, sign up now! Join the conversation on the No Name-Calling Week Facebook page. See what's new with this year's No Name-Calling Week! Stay tuned for additional updates from the GLSEN team!

And as always, stay up-to-date throughout the school year by downloading the GLSEN 2015-2016 School Year Calendar. Be sure to let us know how your school year is going by engaging with us in the GLSEN Educator Forum on Facebook and@GLSEN_Education on Twitter. If you have any questions, email us at educators@glsen.org.

4H Foundation Scholarships

CONTACT: Taci Lilienthal

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Iowa 4-H Foundation announces its 2016 scholarship program for current or former 4-H


AMES, Iowa- The Iowa 4-H Foundation has announced applications are now available for its 4-

H scholarship program. Approximately 82 scholarship opportunities valued at over $75,350 will

be awarded.

The various scholarship awards range in amounts from $500 to $3,500. Some of the

scholarships are open to students pursuing any field of study, while others are open to students

pursuing degrees in agriculture, food and nutrition, ag business, animal science, and journalism.

Former and current 4-H members graduating from high school or currently attending college are

eligible applicants.

While a majority of the 4-H scholarship opportunities are available for students attending Iowa

State University, scholarships are available to students planning to attend an Iowa Regent

university, Iowa private college, Iowa community college, or any land-grant university.

Iowa 4-H members are eligible to apply for 4-H scholarships if they meet individual scholarship

requirements, as determined by the scholarship donors. Applicants must enroll as a full-time

student to receive scholarship awards.

Information and applications for the 4-H Scholarships are now available online through the Iowa

4-H Foundation at www.iowa4hfoundation.org/scholarships. Applications must be submitted

online no later than 11:59 PM, February 1, 2016 for consideration. Only one application form is

needed for all Iowa 4-H Foundation Scholarships. Eligible students may apply for more than one

scholarship, however, only one scholarship per individual will be awarded per academic year.

“Iowa 4-H scholarships acknowledge the hard work and dedication of young people who have

used their 4-H skills and experiences to ‘make the best better’ for others,” says Albert

Grunenwald, Executive Director of the Iowa 4-H Foundation. “We also are thankful for the many

scholarship donors who fund these important opportunities for Iowa 4-H’ers.”



Since 1949, donors to the Iowa 4-H Foundation have provided financial resources to fund

quality 4-H experiences and recognition opportunities for Iowa youth.

To further explore establishing a scholarship with the Iowa 4-H Foundation, please contact Taci

Lilienthal, Iowa 4-H Foundation Scholarship Coordinator at taci@iastate.edu or 563-343-1144.

The Iowa 4-H Foundation provides the private financial resources to develop and deliver quality 4-H youth programs

throughout the state of Iowa. These opportunities help young people enhance their ability to use critical thinking,

leadership, communication, and social skills – tools that will give them a competitive edge in their future endeavors.

Underage Drinking

Support HHS/SAMHSA's #WeTaled Thunderclap Campaign and Help Prevent Underage Drinking 

It’s never too early for parents to talk to their kids about the dangers of underage drinking – 10% of 9- to 10-year-olds have already tried alcohol,[1] and about one fifth of underage drinkers begin before they are 13 years old.[2] But parents have a significant influence on whether their kids drink,[3] and can help prevent underage drinking by talking to their kids early and often about the dangers of alcohol.

As part of its “Talk. They Hear You.” campaign, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is encouraging parents, caregivers, and other adult role models to have ongoing conversations with kids about underage drinking, and then share their experiences on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram using the hashtag #WeTalked. Using #WeTalked spreads the message about underage drinking prevention, and encourages other parents to have these important conversations too.

To amplify this important message, SAMHSA created a Thunderclap campaign. Thunderclap is a free online tool that enables Facebook and Twitter users to schedule #WeTalked posts to go live at the exact same moment as other parents’ posts – allowing a single message to be mass-shared, flash mob-style.

Please share your voice and support underage drinking prevention and the #WeTalked hashtag by signing up for the #WeTalked Underage Drinking Thunderclap, and inspire others to show their support by sharing this link on social media:http://thndr.me/0N6GeZ! 

You can also to check out SAMHSA’s underage drinking prevention website for resources to help guide the conversation, including the interactive “Talk. They Hear You.” app that helps you practice for some of the most important conversations you may ever have

[1] Donovan, J., Leech, S., Zucker, R., Loveland-Cherry, C., Jester, J., Fitzgerald, H., et al.  (2004). Really underage drinkers: Alcohol use among elementary students. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 28(2), 341–349.

[2] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012a). Summary health statistics for U.S. children: National Health Interview Survey, 2011. Retrieved fromhttp://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_254.pdf

[3] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking: A Guide to Action for Educators. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General, 2007.

Homeless webinars January and February

Register for NCHE webinars in January and February

The National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE) NCHE is pleased to offer the following webinars free of charge during the months of December, January, and February. We hope you'll join us for one or more of these sessions and share this information with interested colleagues.

• Trauma in the Classroom: Minimizing Disruptions to Learning
  Monday, January 11, 2016 | 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM EST (please adjust for your time zone)
• Paving the Way to College for Students Experiencing Homelessness
  Tuesday, January 19, 2016 | 2:00 PM - 3:15 PM EST (please adjust for your time zone)
• McKinney-Vento 101: School Access and Stability under the McKinney-Vento Act
  Friday, January 22, 2016 | 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM ET (please adjust for your time zone)
• Paving the Way to College for Students Experiencing Homelessness
  Friday, February 5, 2016 | 2:00 PM - 3:15 PM EST (please adjust for your time zone)
• McKinney-Vento 101: School Access and Stability under the McKinney-Vento Act
  Thursday, February 11, 2016 | 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM ET (please adjust for your time zone)
• McKinney-Vento 102: Support for School Success and Special Populations
  Wednesday, February 17, 2016 | 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM EDT (please adjust for your time zone)

Visit http://center.serve.org/nche/web/group.php for complete webinar descriptions or to register for any of the above sessions

Leverage the Counselor-Principal Relationship

Have you registered????

Leveraging the Counselor-Principal Relationship to Increase College and Career Readiness
FFA Enrichment Center DMACC Campus Ankeny

02/02/2016, 08:30 AM - 02/02/2016, 03:00 PM


FFA Enrichment Center, 1055 Prairie Trail Pkwy, Ankeny - directions
Load up your principal and join us!!!
Gain insight into the knowledge and skills necessary for success beyond high school from keynoter Frank Russell, CEO, Prositions.
Then collaborate in principal-counselor partnerships to study the eight components of college and career ready as defined by the College Board and establish a plan for moving forward at the school level.
Facilitators: Dana Schon, SAI; Sue Schirmer, ISCA; Meredith Dohmen, ISCA; Cindy Swanson, ISEA

To register, click here

First Lady Raps - Go to College

The First Lady Releases Rap "Go to College" with SNL Star Jay Pharoah  

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/watch-michelle-obama-snl-star-jay-pharoah-go-to-college-20151210

  

Bustle: Michelle Obama Raps About Education in a New College Humor Video: 

http://www.bustle.com/#/articles/129012-michelle-obama-raps-about-education-in-a-new-college-humor-video-its-pretty-much-the

Please read!!

I contacted Amy Vybrial at the DE for more clarity in the guidance around the 8th grade plan/IHAPI and her response is listed below. I know you are all experiencing pressure from vendors (as am I) and I am holding them off for now. Here is Amy's response:

The best guidance I can give at this time is to wait. 

·         District administrators and counselors should resist the urge to feel pressured by vendors.  If and when there are changes to Iowa Code Chapter 279.61 administrators, principals, AEAs, professional school counselors, and CTE teachers will be informed (via the superintendent’s letter, School Leader Update, letters from Director Wise, etc).

o   Department approved career information software systems/tool information will be forthcoming in 2016.

·         IHAPI/Xap will be not be funded in 2017, however the product is available for the 2017 academic year. 

o   Districts may choose to stay with the current vendor while researching other vendor options.  See the IHAPI home page for contact information.

The Department is assembling a career standards team to review and approve standards for career information systems/tools.  Vendor products, that meet the standards and technical specifications decided by the career standards team, will be added to a Department approved list of vendors from which districts may choose, beginning in academic year 2016-2017. 

When this work is completed it will be posted on the Department web site and forwarded to AEA contacts and counselor contacts.

Please call me with any questions.

Kind regards,

Amy Vybiral

Education Program Consultant

Iowa Department of Education

Division of Community Colleges

515-281-3169-Office Phone

515-242-5988 - Fax

Amy.vybiral@iowa.gov

Guidance regarding IHAPI for 2016-17

Beginning July 1, 2016, IHAPI^® will be available, but will no longer be free to Iowa school districts.  The Iowa Department of Education is exploring standards for determining career information systems that are appropriate for Iowa students.  Though changes will not be implemented until fall of 2016, school counselors need time to review career software packages, meet with vendors and determine local needs.   High quality career information systems will provide Iowa students with a high quality career planning experience while maintaining compliance with Iowa Code Chapter 279.61.

Unfortunately, that guidance from the Dept of Ed will not be completed until spring. In the interim, many schools have started exploring their options. Some of these are:

• XAP - (current vendor for IHAPI)
• Career Cruising
• Naviance
• Kuder

At this time, Heartland is not hosting sessions on these platforms, but suggesting that schools research the options available. I will continue to send updates on the state guidance as it becomes available.

Visit the Hill!!!

Visit the Hill Registration is now open!

www.iowaacac.org/visit-the-hill

February 3, 2016

Embassy Suites, Des Moines

From budget cuts to issues of preparation, access, and degree completion, the students we work with face difficult decisions as they consider, and enroll in college. Meeting with elected officials is an important way to make your opinions heard on these and other issues.

During Visit the Hill, participants will receive the necessary training and information to help lobby for issues critical to the interests of students transitioning from high school to college. The group will then go to the state capitol to meet with individual representatives and senators.

Session topics include:

·         Costs/benefits of dual-credit enrollment

·         Implication of prior-prior year change to the FAFSA

·         College funding

·         How to effectively engage with elected officials

·         College readiness and preparation

There is no cost to participate in the Visit the Hill program. Travel scholarships are available. To register, visit www.iowaacac.org/visit-the-hill.

If you are interested in staying in Des Moines, please contact the Embassy Suites or other area hotels soon. Space is limited due to the Iowa Caucuses on February 1. If you are staying at the Embassy Suites, please reference “Iowa ACAC,” when reserving a room, to receive the special $165 rate.   

Please contact Iowa ACAC Government Relations Chairman Josh D’Amico, at jdamico@mtmercy.edu, with any questions.

We look forward to seeing you in Des Moines!

Gail McMahon

Iowa ACAC Executive Assistant

www.iowaacac.org

Find us on Facebook!

Join us on Twitter!

New Equity Guidance

Youth Survey Reports

Great video for teens

I think this is a great way to teach an important concept to teenagers. When no means no!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pZwvrxVavnQ

Scholarship Opportunity

The 2015-2016 Abdelkader Global Leadership Prize essay contests offer opportunities for high school and college students in separate competitions. Follow http://www.abdelkaderproject.org/essay-contest/ and Facebook for updates and additions

School Health Assessment and Performance Evaluation System

Be Counted! Shape the Future of School Mental Health

The Center for School Mental Health is pleased to launch the National School Mental Health Census and Performance Measures via the online platform the School Health Assessment and Performance Evaluation System (the SHAPE system). The SHAPE System is a free, interactive system designed to improve school mental health accountability, excellence, and sustainability. The SHAPE System is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau effort to expand and improve the quality of comprehensive school mental health systems in the United States. The SHAPE system allows users to:

Be Counted

Registering to create an account with the SHAPE system allows your school or district to be counted in the National Quality Initiative Census of School Mental Health Systems

Rate Your Performance

Self-assess your school mental health system’s quality and sustainability based on national standardized performance measures just for school mental health

Track Student Progress

Track the progress and outcomes of your school interventions for individual students, groups, classrooms, or whole school activities.

View and Print Customized Reports

Obtain printable reports on your system’s performance in quality and sustainability areas that you can bring back to your school teams with recommendations and resources for improvement.

Get Free Resources

Browse a comprehensive resource library of PDFs, videos, guides, and weblinks on all aspects of school mental health programming.

Register your school or district today at the link below and be counted in this important initiative!

 http://theshapesystem.com/

Helping Students Find a Good College Match--Free Webinar

Helping Students Find a Good College Match

Finding a college that's a good fit is challenging for any student, but especially for those who are the first in their families to attend college. In this webinar, we'll hear how one high school counselor helps her first-generation students navigate the college-planning maze. And we'll review national research that can offer guidance about the best ways to help first-generation and low-income students avoid key stumbling blocks on the road to college.
Underwriting for this webinar has been provided by the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation

Guests:

Jessica Howell, executive director of research, College Board
Lauren Quigley, director of college counseling, Young Women's Leadership School of Astoria (New York)
This webinar will be moderated by Catherine Gewertz, associate editor, Education Week
Register now for this free live webinar.

Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2015, 2 to 3 p.m. ET

Can't attend? All Education Week webinars are archived and accessible "on demand" for up to four months after the original live-streaming date.

Step by Step:College Awareness and Planning

Here are some FANTASTIC resources provided from NACAC (National Association for College Admissions Counseling) regarding College Awareness and Planning for Families, Counselors and Communities. This resource also has powerpoint presentations available for usage in the classroom and with parents.  

  http://www.nacacnet.org/research/PublicationsResources/Marketplace/student/Pages/GuidingEducation.aspx.  

Counselor Connection Agenda--December 2

Some updates to the schedule for December 2 -- please see the link. If you want to register, please click here.

Grieving

Do you know a student grieving the loss of a loved one? Today an exciting new resource is being launched with the goal of letting grieving children know that they are not alone: www.sharedgrief.org. The Shared Grief Project showcases the stories of celebrities and high-profile athletes who experienced loss growing up.
As a founding member of the Coalition to Support Grieving Students, ASCA continues to work hard to deliver increased support to grieving children at school (www.grievingstudents.org).

Engaging and RE-engaging Students and Families

FROM CENTER AT UCLA ‑ 2015 Initiative*

Engaging and Re-engaging Students and Families

Enhancing motivation is a central concern in all efforts to improve schools. That is why engagement and re-engagement are foundational considerations in unifying and developing a comprehensive and equitable system of learning supports.

So, as part of the 2015 National Initiative for Transforming Student and Learning Supports,* we are widely providing free and easy access to the Center’s continuing education modules on Engaging and Re-engaging Students and Families. See

>Module I: Motivation: Time to Move Beyond Behavior Modification-- http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/engagei.pdf

>Module II: Strategic Approaches to Enhancing Student Engagement and Re‑engagement -- http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/engageii.pdf  

>Module III: Enhancing Family Engagement and Re‑engagement --http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/engageiii.pdf  

>Module IV: Embedding Engagement and Re‑engagement into a Unified and Comprehensive System of Student and Learning Supports –

http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/engageiv.pdf  

Feel free to adapt these resources. Consider ways they can be offered for continuing education credit.

The set of four modules provides a perspective on motivation that goes beyond mainly reinforcing and enforcing behavior. The emphasis is on:

•        expanding understanding of engagement, re‑engagement, and intrinsic motivation in the context of school improvement and school climate

•        highlighting strategic approaches to engaging and re‑engaging students, with special attention to avoiding over‑reliance on extrinsic reinforcers and minimizing practices that can produce reactance

•        engaging and re‑engaging families by attending to differences among families and other primary caretakers with respect to resources, motivation and needs, and barriers to involvement with the school

•        stressing that teachers can't and should not be expected to do it all alone. Rather their work needs to be embedded into a unified and comprehensive system of learning supports and that system should be built with a view to engaging and re‑engaging students, families, and all the professionals who have a stake in improving schools.

*For more on the 2015 National Initiative for Transforming Student and Learning Supports, go to http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/newinitiative.html .

 The initiative stresses that: Equity of opportunity is fundamental to enabling civil rights; transforming student and learning supports is fundamental to enabling equity of opportunity and promoting whole child development.

If you have questions or want some assistance, contact Ltaylor@ucla.edu  or adelman@psych.ucla.edu

Mindsets and Behaviors Resources

During our last Counselor Connection, I shared information on Mindsets and Behaviors. Some of you had asked that I video that session and I did. Here is a link to that presentation. There are some resources available as you do your work in this area -- here is a link to some other resources. Be advised----this is a google folder, so download what you want to your computer. If you update or change it at all, it changes it for the 200 people who have access to that folder

Join ASCA

Have you been putting off joining ASCA? Here's your incentive:
Show the world you're a SCHOOL counselor, not a "guidance" counselor.Join or renew by Jan 31, 2016, using the promo code ASPC and get this shirt for as our thank you. (Offer for professional members renewing annually only.) Not up for renew? No problem. Simply renew now, and we'll add a full year onto your expiration date. Just want a t-shirt without renewing? Click hereto order.

Counselor PD - December 2

For those of you who have signed up for or are thinking about Counselor Connection on December 2, our agenda has changed a bit -- here is the plan:

8:00–8:30 am - Networking

8:30-11:30 am - Issues and Updates in School Counseling

·      High School Feedback Reports – not just for high schools

·      Update on CCR Definition

·      CCR Supports K-12

·      Networking Opportunity – break

11:30-12:30 – Lunch on your own

12:30-3:30

·      Amy Steenhoek – DMACC Regional Intermediary contact – what supports can you expect from her group

·      Marcela Hermosillo – Supporting underrepresented populations post-high

While the morning is designed for K-12; the afternoon focus will be on HS counselors. Feel free to come to whatever works for you!

Bullying Resources-Survey

 As districts work to address bullying and harassment, one of the most effective ways to address bullying and harassment is to survey students. Attached here is a page of 13 questions from the Iowa Youth Survey (IYS) that may be used on an annual basis to gauge the climate and culture in a building. The IYS is free for noncommercial use. Your district may administer the IYS or a variation of the IYS, as long as the following guidelines are met: 

1. Please reference the IYS, along with the copyright (©The University of Iowa) in order to help guarantee that the IYS remains free. 

2. Do not reference the Iowa Department of Education (IDOE), the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), or the Iowa Attorney General’s Office. Do not state or infer that use of the survey is endorsed by IDOE, IDPH, or the Iowa Attorney General’s Office. 

3. Know that the person or organization administering the IYS or IYS variation is legally responsible for the administration and should consult with legal counsel to ensure that survey administration complies with federal and state laws, including issues of consent. 

In addition to the survey, a toolkit is available to guide the discussion when reviewing results.

Interesting study--Social Skills Matter

Soft Skills Over Strictly Academics

Study Examines Kindergarteners -- Twenty Years Later

Every teacher has wondered how the students in front of them will turn out. Who will be the doctors? Who will be the teachers? A new study dug up test scores and social surveys about 800 kindergartners in 1991 and found out what predicts future success. See what the study found here. Hint: social skills matter (Porter,Upworthy.com).