Findley Earns National Honors for Counseling Program
Dr. Barb Adams, principal, and Jackie Dehner, counselor, of Findley Elementary School.
The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) is pleased to announce Findley Elementary School as a Recognized ASCA Model Program (RAMP) school. The RAMP designation, awarded for aligning with the criteria in the ASCA National Model, recognizes schools that are committed to delivering a comprehensive, data-driven school counseling program and an exemplary educational environment.
Since the program’s inception, over 650 schools have been designated as RAMP recipients. Findley is the fourth school at DMPS, and only the sixth school in all of Iowa, to earn this honor for its counseling program. Brubaker, King and Madison are the other DMPS schools that have earned this recognition for their counseling programs.
Jackie Dehner coordinate improvements to the counseling program at Findley Elementary School that have earned national recognition.
“This year’s RAMP honorees have shown their commitment to students and the school counseling profession,” said Jill Cook, ASCA assistant director. “These schools used data to drive their program development and implementation so all students can achieve success. RAMP designation distinguishes these schools and encourages school counselors nationwide to strive for excellence.”
Findley will be honored at a recognition ceremony at ASCA’s annual conference in Denver, Colo. on Monday, July 10, 2017, for making an exemplary commitment to comprehensive school counseling programs.
“The comprehensive counseling program at Findley benefits not only each individual student, but contributes directly to our climate and culture,” said Dr. Barb Adams, principal at Findley. “When issues such as attendance and emotional health are met, a student is free to engage fully in learning. Jackie is always considering ways to show our students a future of great possibilities.”
Findley Elementary School, located at 3025 Oxford Street, was one of the first six schools in the nation to participate in Turnaround Arts, a program begun by the President’s Committee on Arts and the Humanities to integrate the arts with other subject areas to improve learning. Findley has also partnered with the I Have a Dream Foundation to create a “Dreamer Academy” at the school to help students and families prepare and save for college.
“It is an honor and a privilege to receive RAMP for Findley’s Comprehensive School Counseling Program. As elementary school counselors our jobs can be rather challenging especially when you are the only professional school counselor in the building. I have drawn upon my education and training to develop an exceptional counseling program at Findley ensuring student success in all areas of attendance, achievement, and behavior,” added Jaclyn Dehner, school counselor at Findley and president-elect of the Iowa School Counselor Association.
Noted Dehner: “The alignment of Findley’s Counseling Program with the American School Counselor Association’s standards have allowed for me to develop and run a remarkable data-driven comprehensive program. As urban educators, we have a clear understanding that every buildings needs are different within a district. However, through the disaggregation of data, school counselors can identify trends and discrepancies and implement interventions for positive change. This type of programming leads to student success and adds the climate and culture of the school.”
For more information, visit the ASCA web site.
