Eufaula Elementary Counseling and Guidance Program

Our school counselor is a vital member of our education team.  Mrs. Wade’s role assists students with learning the skills and attitudes necessary to be successful in school. She emphasizes to students that the classroom is their workplace and that communication, decision-making, interpersonal and career awareness skills are important to their success.  She encourages students to become responsible, contributing members of society by facilitating them to develop self-knowledge, appreciate diversity, make effective decisions, develop relationship skills, learn to make healthy choices, accept responsibility and resolve conflicts. She is also accountable for assisting and advocating for students, parents, faculty, and community members.

Mrs. Wade is responsible for managing and implementing a data-driven comprehensive counseling and guidance program by providing a needs assessment for students, faculty, staff, and parents.   She will provide a systematic delivery and evaluation of structured developmental counseling and guidance services to all students based on the results of the assessment.

The school guidance core curriculum exists to meet the needs of the students, parents, and faculty.  The curriculum is based on the American School Counselor Association’s national standards in the three domains:

Academic Domain:

A: Students will acquire the attitudes, knowledge and skills that contribute to effective learning in school and across the life span.

B: Students will complete school with academic prep. essential to choose from a wide range of substantial post-secondary options, including college.

C: Students will understand the relationship of academics to the world of work and to life at home and in the community.

Career Domain:

A: Students will acquire the skills to investigate the world of work in relation to knowledge of self and to make informed career decisions.

B: Students will employ strategies to achieve future career goals with success and satisfaction.

C: Students will understand the relationship between personal qualities, education, training and the world of work.

Personal/Social Domain:   

A: Students will acquire knowledge, attitudes and interpersonal skills to help them understand and respect themselves and others.

B: Students will make decisions, set goals and take the necessary action to achieve their goals.

C: Students will understand safety and survival skills.

These domains are aimed to assist all students in achieving a positive, healthy outlook towards themselves and others. The program is infused throughout the entire school curriculum and is comprehensive in scope, preventative in design, and developmental in nature. Ultimately, students will acquire the attitudes, knowledge and interpersonal skills that contribute to effective learning in school and across their lifespan.  

Group Activities: our school counselor will conduct small-group counseling sessions outside the classroom to respond to student-identified interests or needs. Small-group counseling may be either immediate-response or extended counseling.

Instruction: our school counselor will facilitate, co-lead, or assist in the delivery of guidance curriculum activities. These activities may be conducted in the classroom, guidance center, or other school facilities.  She will assist teachers in the delivery of classroom units that lead to the acquisition of competencies in the areas of affective, social, academic, and employability skills for each student in developmentally appropriate ways.

Character Education: each month our school implements a core value. The result: improved academic achievement and fewer behavior problems and a culture of values that coincides with our mission statement.

Workshops:  our school counselor will conduct workshops and information sessions for parents/guardians to address the needs of the school community and to reflect the school counseling and guidance curriculum. Topics for school counseling and guidance curriculum activities within this component may include but are not limited to, career awareness and exploration, career development skills, communication skills, decision-making skills, goal-setting/planning, peer relationships, personal safety, personal/social development skills, preventive programs, self-concept, and study skills.

Confidential individual and group counseling is available for all students.  Individual counseling is ongoing and is provided as a result of referrals from parents, teachers, or administrators, and by students’ self-referral.  

“Confidentiality” is a term used in school counseling to describe the student’s right to privacy.  A student has the right to expect that what he/she discusses with the counselor (or any faculty or staff member) will remain confidential.  Please be aware that the counselor reserves the right to consult with other professionals when necessary but will maintain confidentiality unless the student authorizes the disclosure. If the counselor judges that a situation involves “clear and present danger” to the student or other students, confidentiality may be broken.  Students at EES should always be treated with the utmost respect and caring by the counselor, faculty, and staff members.

Responsive services: counseling or referral activities that meet the immediate needs and concerns of students. Responsive services include personal counseling, crisis counseling, problem-solving, agency referral, and consultation.

System support: includes indirect guidance management activities that maintain and enhance the total counseling and guidance program. Responsibilities in this area include staff relations, positive behavior supports, community relations, task forces, professional development, support teams, state-sponsored testing, test interpretation, data analysis, and curriculum development. This component provides appropriate support for academic programs