Counselor Spotlight: Gayle DuBois; Colcord High School

We are excited to share our February Counselor Spotlight! Gayle has been impacting the lives of Oklahoma students for 23 years. She is currently working with 9th - 12th graders at Colcord High School. Thank you Gayle for all the awesome work that you are doing!

What is your favorite part of being a school counselor or the most rewarding aspect of your position?
There are so many parts of my job I love. My favorite part is helping kids know that college, tech centers, the military or WHATEVER they think they want to do is accessible. Even if they are the first person in their family to consider something as an option for them, they can do it and their dreams are important; no matter how big and outrageous they may seem to the other people in their life.

Why is creating a comprehensive school counseling program important to you?
It is important to me because even though I have been around a long time, there are still so many people who do not fully understand what School Counselors do. I believe part of having a comprehensive program is being able to show all students, parents, teachers and community members that we not only value their children, we want to teach them how to be the best human they can be; not just now, but for the rest of their lives.

What quote inspires you. Please give a brief explanation.
I actually have two favorites:

• Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.~ John Wesley
• Live fully, love wastefully and have the courage to be yourself ~ Bishop John Shelby Spong

These are two of my favorites, because they resonate so much with me and the the life I try to live and the way I try to approach all students.

What do you do when you need inspiration to tackle another day working on behalf of students?
I honestly work in the best place on earth. I have said many times "Colcord is my Disneyland". I love that I get to come to my favorite place and see and visit with my favorite people everyday.

What do you do to decompress and refuel for the next day?
I love to read, or bake, or listen to true crime podcasts.

2024 Oklahoma/Arkansas ACT Summit

Why should you and your team attend the 2024 Oklahoma/Arkansas ACT Summit happening February 22, 2024, in Owasso, Oklahoma? This one-of-a-kind event assembles K-12 and postsecondary education stakeholders and workforce professionals. By engaging with this diverse audience to share views and experiences you will gain practical takeaways and insights that will help your institution thrive. Here are five reasons to attend this year’s conference:

1. Top-notch keynote panel — moderated by Janet Godwin, CEO of ACT.
2. Time to network — Connect with hundreds of peers and get regional perspectives.
3. Top-tier professional development — Engage in sessions on data trends; diversity, equity, and access; marketing; and much more.
4. ACT insights — Learn new trends and strategies from the latest ACT research reports.
5. Professional development — The conference is a low-cost professional development opportunity for your entire team. Lodging and full event details can be found on the registration site. Register now with the discount code StateOrgs and save $10 on the regular registration price.

Register Now

The Oklahoma Department of Career Technology is proud to announce the 20^th Annual For Counselors Only Conference! 

Join them in Celebrating 20 Years of Excellence in School Counseling and prepare for an exhilarating experience at the 2024 For Counselors Only Conference! This years conference will take place at the Tulsa Technology Center – Owasso Campus on Thursday, March 14, 2024 from 8:30am - 3:00pm.

Key Conference Features:

• Energizing Atmosphere: Experience a day filled with positivity and motivation, ensuring you leave recharged and ready to make a difference.
• Leading Experts: Engage with industry-leading experts who will share their knowledge and insights.
• Peer Networking: Connect with counselors and exhibitors from across the state
• Exhibitors: Explore exhibits featuring the latest resources, tools, and services for counseling professionals.
• Empowering Insights: Walk away from the conference with a wealth of new knowledge that can be immediately applied to your work
• Advocacy for the Counseling Profession: Learn new ways to advocate for the counseling profession and contribute to its growth.

Reserve your seat today! Click on the  Registration Link to secure your spot an ensure you don’t miss out on this exceptional opportunity for professional development.

Date Change:

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!

If you signed up below previously - you do not need to sign up again.

Register for the February 7th session

Each session will be held 9am - 10am

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

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

• February 20^th from 9 am – 10 am
• April 16^th from 9 am – 10 am

School Voice: ICAP Conversations Among 3A & 4A Schools

• February 20^th from 10:30 am – 11:30 am
• April 16^th from 10:30 am – 11:30 am

School Voice: ICAP Conversations Among 5A & 6A Schools

• February 20^th from 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm
• April 16^th from 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm

Industry Exploration for Teachers

Educators, are you interested in learning more about the aerospace industry and the opportunities that will impact your students’ futures? Join the Central Oklahoma Manufacturers Association on February 20 at 8:00 AM to learn more about the industry from former Navy pilot, United States Congressman, NASA Administrator and Jenks High School graduate Jim Bridenstine! Mr. Bridenstine will share what opportunities the space economy has for manufacturing in our state.

Please RSVP to BSherman@oklahomamanufacturers.org to receive the Zoom link.

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 

FAFSA Resources

Senate Bill 93 requires students, beginning with the 2024-2025 school year, to complete and submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) in order to graduate from a public high school.  The Bill, as well as FAQs for this legislation and the Opt Out forms, can be found at https://sde.ok.gov/college-career.

Teen dating violence affects nearly 10% of all teenagers throughout the U.S.

One in three teenagers – nearly 1.5 Million – in a romantic relationship admits to being in an unhealthy relationship. According to the Center for Disease Control, teen DV has both serious short-term and long-term consequences.

Download this month's Prevention Playbook for resources addressing Teen Dating Violence.

OLWEUS Bulling Prevention Program

The OLWEUS Bulling Prevention Program is one that has a proven track record with over 40 years of research and has been recognized as the most extensively studied bullying prevention program of its kind.

Findings revealed that the OBPP was successful in reducing all forms of being bullied and bullying others. Read that study published in the International Journal of Bullying Prevention here.

There is a training block that will be offered in March.

We will review and consider the first 8 respondents to this invitation.

This is an intensive ONLINE training that will impact your entire school campus. It is not a quick 2-hour training. BUT, there are many who can be identified as a point of contact to attend: SRO’s, School Counselors, Principals, Coaches, etc. It does not have to be any specific person on your campus – just someone who want to lead the charge for change.

You can find more details on the program here:

• Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, Clemson University
• Olweus Coach Role and Guidelines.pdf (clemson.edu)

Your school/district will be responsible for upfront cost of the training curriculum, But you will be reimbursed by the State Department of Education for the individual(s) that complete the ONLINE training. Information on reimbursement will be provided if you are selected to complete the training.

Please email me your questions and/or interest in attending this training and we will send you the additional paperwork you will need to complete the process. Sheri.fleming@sde.ok.gov

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   

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

School-Based Prevention Services Grant: Multi-Tiered System of Supports

As part of the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS) strategic plan to prevent mental, emotional, and behavioral (MEB) health problems, the ODMHSAS will partner with selected Oklahoma LEAs to plan and implement evidence-based, school-based prevention services. The ODMHSAS seeks application from LEAs interested in developing a Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) and providing direct school-based prevention services. Under this application, school-based prevention services include planning, coordination and delivery of evidence-informed strategies to students, families, staff and educators.

Click to learn more