OUSD School Counseling Mission:
The mission of the OUSD School Counseling Program is to provide a district-wide comprehensive, equitable, and accessible system of support to all students. Our students will acquire the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed to achieve academic success, college and career readiness, and healthy social/emotional development.

OUSD School Counseling Vision:
Our OUSD School Counseling Program fosters student success in a diverse and changing world by graduating students who are prepared to make a positive impact on humanity and meet the demands of their college, career, and life goals.

Hello secondary school counselors,

For this newsletter, we will be providing you with school counseling updates for April. Please check out each button for important resources to share with our students and to explore various opportunities for professional development. Also, this is just a reminder that May is Mental Health Awareness Month! For your planning purposes, here are some resources from Nami: https://www.nami.org/Get-Involved/Awareness-Events/Mental-Health-Awareness-Month.

High school counselors:

During April and May, we are looking forward to meeting with each individual school counseling team. Here is our agenda for the April and May High School Counseling Meetings.

Statements of Intent to Register (SIRs) are due May 1st for Seniors:

CSU: https://www.calstate.edu/attend/student-services/casper/Pages/statement-of-intent-to-register.aspx

UC: https://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/how-to-apply/applying-as-a-freshman/after-you-apply/admissions-decisions.html

As you are planning your Senior Signing Days, please invite us! We would love to cheer the students on as they are recognized for their accomplishments! Here are some resources from Better Make Room:

https://collegesigningday.bettermakeroom.org/

Better Make Room Toolkit

Middle school counselors:

Here is our agenda for the April and May Middle School Counseling Meetings. Please let Katie know if you did not receive the link for the SOS curriculum that was purchased for your middle school sites for the 2022-23 school year. Our main discussion for the April meeting will be about the next steps in continuing or implementing the SOS curriculum in the fall.

We are here to support all of you through these busy times!

Warm Regards,

Lisa Green, Executive Director, Curriculum, Instruction, and School Support

Kristine Nelson, Coordinator, Student & Community Services

Lupe Perales, Coordinator, Special Education

Katie Treat, Coordinator, Career Counseling

Flyer for districtwide counseling meetings: OUSD District Wide Counseling Meeting Schedule

Professional Development Opportunities from OCDE:

April 26, 2022

Designing Nurturing Learning Spaces Part 1

3:00 - 4:00 PM

Virtual

https://ocde.k12oms.org/1249-215156

April 27, 2022

How School Counselors Can Support Students Experiencing Anxiety

3:00 - 4:00 PM

Virtual

https://ocde.k12oms.org/1249-215159

Our District Counseling meeting will be on Tuesday, 4/26 from 12-3pm. Please see your calendar invitations for meeting links and information on the topics being presented.

* please see your administration for the dates of your Orenda Guidance alignment sessions

• Study Tools
• Who has access: all students/teachers at
• Canyon High School
• El Modena High School
• Orange High School
• Villa Park High School
• EDGE Virtual Academy

Log in to Shmoop:

• Students and teachers will log in through their ClassLink Launchpad
• Please see THIS Shmoop Resource folder with Video Tutorials

Now that we are getting closer to graduation, here are some reminders regarding the AB104 Diploma Track:

Reminders to school counselors:

• AB104 is to only be used as a safety net for students in the classes of 2021 and 2022 who have experienced challenges in reaching their graduation requirements due to hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Please make sure to have a conference with your student(s) and a parent/guardian (for students who are under 18) if your senior is not on track to meet our OUSD graduation requirements, and thus, graduation under AB104 is an option.
• Please make sure that the AB104 Form is completed and signed once this conference has taken place.
• Please provide a copy of this form to your school’s registrar and AP of Curriculum.

Reminders to school registrars:

• Students who are graduating under AB104 will need to be hand-graduated in Aeries.
• Once the AB104 Form has been completed, please scan a copy per student to Michele Stuetzel and she will complete the steps necessary in Aeries
• Please file the original, completed AB104 Form in the student’s cumulative file AND collaborate with the counselors to ensure that a copy has been given to your Assistant Principal of Curriculum.

We are so excited to be strengthening our EMT and EMR courses. Our plan is to offer EMR for next school year as an in-the-bell class for our El Modena High students and as an after-the-bell class for students throughout the district.

The course will be a full year-long course and the goal for the pathway sequence is as follows:

02 Med Core (pre-requisite for EMR)

03 EMR (available 2022-23 school year)

03 EMT (we are hoping to open this up for the 2023-24 school year with a preference given to seniors)

Please click on the buttons below for articles related to undergraduate admissions and opportunities.

UC CAMPUS VIRTUAL TOURS (universityofcalifornia.edu)

https://xello.world/en/blog/college-tours/

When exploring summer opportunities with students, look up Pre-College Programs such as:

CSSSA (ca.gov)

https://sites.uci.edu/youthcouncil/summer-youth-programs/

COSMOS Home | Jacobs School of Engineering (ucsd.edu)

COSMOS UC Irvine – California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science

Future Ready College Application Campaign- Implementation Workshops are available on Wednesday, April 6 and Tuesday, April 26.

Here is the registration information for this free training:

Wednesday, April 6, 2022
9:00 -11:00 am or 1:00-3:00 pm
Registration

Tuesday, April 26, 2022
9:00 -11:00 am or 1:00-3:00 pm
Registration

SCC 2021-2022 catalog: https://sccollege.elumenapp.com/catalog/2021-2022Catalog/home#mainContent

SCC Dual Enrollment website (www.sccollege.edu/dualenrollment)

o Under the MORE INFO For HS Counselors & Administrators, SCC posted a new booklet created by OC Pathways – A Guide to UC Requirements and High School Dual Enrollment.

o Under the BENEFITS – Student Success Stories, SCC is featuring an OUSD student who participated in the SCC Dual Enrollment Program and is transferring to UCLA.

Here are reminders regarding opportunities for dual enrollment and college courses accessible to our high school students: OUSD Dual Enrollment Opportunities Memo.

Here are a few articles related to the many student-led conversations that school counselors have about post-secondary planning and future readiness. These labor market trends also help guide discussions and decisions regarding CTE course offerings in OUSD:

Here is the OUSD Xello Counseling Curriculum Scope & Sequence that we created together.

Xello lessons will be facilitated twice per school year (once in the fall and once in the spring) for ALL OUSD high school and middle school students.

Xello Course Planner will be used to create, revise and enhance four-year plans for all high school students so that our students are making very informed decisions about their course selections and career exploration opportunities. We are NOT integrating the course request function in the Course Planner with Aeries this school year.

The California Association of School Counselors (CASC) is proud to announce the launching of a new certificate training program — School Counseling Supervision Certificate (SCSC) to meet the new requirements of the CTC for training of intern supervisors to include a stronger emphasis on mental health. Beginning in 2022-23, school counseling intern supervisors will be required to demonstrate that they have advanced training in clinical supervision techniques. If you plan on having a school counseling intern in the 2022-23 school year, please look into this opportunity.

To help local students and families buffer the effects of the pandemic, the nonprofit Western Youth Services has partnered with Orange County Department of Education and CHOC to develop the RESET Toolbox.

The free, online mental health toolbox is packed with self-paced trainings, apps and resources designed to build resilience and minimize anxiety in children and teens.

Please see the links below for counseling-related communications and procedural forms and best practices

Here is our updated OUSD School Counselors' Handbook for you to reference: OUSD School Counselors' Handbook

Kristine Nelson

Coordinator, Student & Community Services

Elementary School Counseling Program

Homeless, Foster & At-Risk Youth, 504s, SSTs, Crisis Intervention & Mental Health Support

(714) 628-5424

krnelson@orangeusd.org

Lupe Perales, Psy.D.

Coordinator, Special Education

(714) 628-4080

gperales@orangeusd.org

Katie Treat

Coordinator, Career Counseling

Secondary School Counseling Program

College and Career Readiness

Career Technical Education (CTE)

(714) 628-5463

ktreat@orangeusd.org