For Counselors Only 2024 Call for Proposals

Join Us in Celebrating 20 Years of Excellence at the 2024 For Counselors Only Conference!

We are thrilled to announce the 20th Annual For Counselors Only Conference, to be held on March 14, 2024, at the Tulsa Technology Center – Owasso Campus. This milestone conference promises to be a remarkable celebration of two decades of excellence in the field of counseling and education. Your invaluable contributions and expertise will undoubtedly enhance the overall experience for attendees and contribute to the success of our 20th-anniversary celebration. We encourage you to submit your session proposals for the conference.

This is an excellent opportunity for you to share your knowledge, insights, and best practices with fellow professionals in the counseling community. Your participation will play a crucial role in making this conference an enriching experience for all attendees. 

The deadline to submit your proposal is January 12, 2024, early submissions are encouraged.

Submit Your Proposal

**You will be notified via email by January 19th if your proposal was accepted.

Coffee with Counselors Please join us for "Coffee with Counselors!" This is an informal time for school counselors from across our great state to come together for celebration, collaboration, and continued growth. We look forward to you joining us! Register for upcoming dates: Each session will be held 9am - 10am January 9th February 6th March 5th April 2nd May 7th

Why Should You Register for TeleEmpower ECHO?

• Enhanced leadership capacities for school counselor and student support staff

• Capacity building of districts as they implement a Multi – Tiered Systems of Support and School Counselor Framework

• Shared understandings of challenges faced by school counselors

• Development of strategies to address those challenges

• Enhanced school counselor efficacy as they grow in their ability to communicate and collaborate with stakeholders

• Enhanced school district understanding of social capital (access to resources, support, etc.) through networks established in TeleEmpower

• Decrease in challenges as school leaders, teachers, and counselors work together

REGISTER HERE  |  DOWNLOAD FLYER

Once registered you will begin receiving meeting details for TeleEmpower from MailChimp - please check junkmail/spam.

School Voice: ICAP Conversations Join your colleagues for a monthly gathering to collaborate on ICAP best practices, challenges, and solutions. This is an informal time to build relationships and share ideas with other professionals building & leading ICAP programs across the state. We look forward to learning from you! Register for upcoming dates: School Voice: ICAP Conversations Among 1A & 2A Schools January 16th from 9 am – 10 am February 20th from 9 am – 10 am April 16th from 9 am – 10 am School Voice: ICAP Conversations Among 3A & 4A Schools January 16th from 10:30 am – 11:30 am February 20th from 10:30 am – 11:30 am April 16th from 10:30 am – 11:30 am School Voice: ICAP Conversations Among 5A & 6A Schools January 16th from 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm February 20th from 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm April 16th from 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm

Schedule a CCR Listening Session Are you interested in discussing College and Career Readiness?  Jennifer Peters, Program Manager of CCR, is keeping aside some time in the day for listening, sharing, and problem-solving with Local Education Agencies. Schedule a meeting or send a message to Jennifer.Peters@sde.ok.gov

Is Work-Based Learning getting you down? Fear not! Our College and Career Readiness Specialist, Meredith Dennis, will be heading efforts to support schools with developing and connecting students to quality Work-Based Learning experiences. Already have questions for Meredith? Connect with her HERE to schedule a meeting or send a message to Meredith.Dennis@sde.ok.gov

Work Based Learning Opportunity Amazon Future Engineer Program Amazon’s Future Engineer Program offers free, interactive virtual field trips that explore Amazon’s technologies. Tour whenever on Kahoot! and download a tour-specific Teacher Toolkit that includes standards alignment, student worksheets, discussion questions, a certificate of completion, and more! Explore the site here: Amazon Career Tours.

Crisis Response Network We are sending out a request for our local school staff/counselors/administrators to begin the conversation of taking the next step in Crisis Management in Oklahoma schools. With many of the grants that funded the SDE training and staff to help develop a network of District Crisis Teams coming to an end, it is time to reach out and bring all of these resources together. The goal is to develop a network of trained individuals who understand the steps and actions required for an effective Crisis Response to assist their own Districts as well as other local District partners.  Please note: this is NOT required. This is simply a coordinated effort by SDE to help connect resources. The letter attached HERE was sent out to District Superintendents to solicit feedback and willingness to partner with SDE to maintain regional response team lists of counselors and other trained school staff to respond regionally to crisis. At this time, we have had a limited response and are asking for some additional voices to help start the conversation. Please feel free to forward the linked document to your superintendent or district counseling coordinators to discuss your level of participation in this project and to use the form to identify your district’s decision in this partnership. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions to: Christi Sturgeon – christi.sturgeon@sde.ok.gov Sheri Fleming – sheri.fleming@sde.ok.gov Rachel Hernandez – rachael.hernandez@sde.ok.gov

OSDE Regional Professional Development Training Offered Below you will find the details on registering for this installation of PD that will satisfy the PD requirements for the following prevention requirements: Bullying, Substance Abuse, Violence and Suicide During this training we will focus on true prevention strategies and information that move beyond awareness campaigns. Participants will gain easy and effective tools to use in the classroom and will learn to how to shift school culture. Space is limited to room capacity, and registration will close by December 31st. In the event that you are unable to secure a spot for in-person training, you can still find on-demand resources to help meet your required PD, by visiting the Prevention & Intervention Connect Canvas platform HERE. An email confirming your attendance at the event will be sent out by January 10th. All sessions/dates/locations are from 1:30-3:30pm.

PREPaRE Crisis Response Training SDE will continue to offer PREPaRE Crisis Response training to Oklahoma School Districts upon request. School districts will need to provide the funding for the curriculum to NASP. $45/person for Workshop 1 and $55/person for Workshop 2. SDE will continue to provide certified PREPaRE trainers to facilitate the curriculum for free. Download Workshop Descriptions   Questions: Jackie Lindley - jackie.lindley@sde.ok.gov

^{**Inclusion of upcoming events in this newsletter does not constitute an endorsement by OSDE. The information provided is for general awareness purposes only. OSDE does not assume any responsibility for the content or outcomes of these events.}

ProtectOK

The State of Oklahoma and Oklahoma School Security Institute has launched their brand-new safety app, ProtectOK! This free app allows you to anonymously report any suspicious activity you see directly to law enforcement.

Learn more about the app here: https://oklahoma.gov/dps/protect-ok-app.html

The US Department of Homeland Security’s Invent2Prevent, Student-Led, Peer-Developed Initiative to Prevent Targeted School Violence

• Oklahoma high schools are invited to participate in a free school safety and prevention program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) starting January 2024.
• Invent2Prevent challenges high school and university students to create and implement peer-developed initiatives, products, and tools to prevent targeted violence and hate in ways they believe will be most effective in their schools and communities.
• The program is free of charge and sponsored by the DHS Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships. Invent2Prevent is managed by EdVenture Partners and McCain Institute, who work with students throughout the entire project period in a guiding, mentoring, and coaching capacity.
• Each school receives a $1,000 budget to implement their Invent2Prevent project. These experiential projects are developed by youth for youth and are extremely creative and effective, as shown in the attached Invent2Prevent Fact Sheet
• Thirty-five spots will be made available to high schools for the spring 2024 academic period on a first come first served basis.
• For more information or if you are interested in participating, please contact Tony Sgro, CEO of EdVenture Partners, at tony@edventurepartners.com and (415) 264-7666.

Free Vaping Education Resources

As you know, amongst the many other challenges that our schools face, student vaping has become a daily battle. While many state agencies, including OSDH, are attempting to fight this at the point of sale, we wanted to provide schools some free resources that can be used immediately. We have provided two resource guides; one for parents and the other for educators.

The Educator’s Guide contains resources for vaping prevention and cessation along with alternative to suspension curriculums that can be used during detention, ISS/ISD, or any other time deemed appropriate. The prevention resources can be used as a part of any health curriculum, leadership class, AVID, or in any other way that the school administration sees that it can fit in their day. Creativity is encouraged.

The Parent’s Guide can be distributed to you parents. Particularly, the ones who have a child that uses tobacco products.

Andrew R. Pearson Sr., M.Ed. | Youth - Tobacco Prevention Coordinator 
Chronic Disease Prevention Services | Oklahoma State Department of Health 
Oklahoma.gov/Health | Oklahoma.gov/COVID19  

School Resource Officer Newsletter

The Oklahoma Office of School Security Institute is interested in developing a quarterly newsletter directed toward School Resource Officers. The newsletter would contain specific training that would be offered to them along with legal updates.

However, there is no comprehensive list of officers. We are asking that if they have no objection you might provide us with their contact information. If possible we would like to have their name, email address, and contact number.

The information can be sent to me at the below email address.

M.E. Fike
Oklahoma Department of Public Safety
Director Office of School Security Institute
580-571-5720
mike.fike@dps.ok.gov

Contact Student Development

Marissa Lightsey, Program Director; Student Development

Dr. Sheri Fleming, Program Manager; Prevention & Intervention Services

Christi Sturgeon, Program Manager; Comprehensive School Counseling

Jennifer Peters, Program Manager; College & Career Readiness

Rachael Hernandez, Program Manager; School Based Mental Health

Emily Hicks, Administrative Assistant; Student Development

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