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A Message From the MA School Counselor Association...

We are in a period of uncharted territory and as a result, school counselors are often left with the feeling of helplessness.  We have put together these resources to help you find the information you need.  Many thanks to our friends in the Connecticut School Counselor Association for helping put these together.

MASCA also is sponsoring a series of Zoom meetings over the next few months to provide MASCA members and school counseling colleagues the chance to participate in several professional development opportunities.  Several will be focused on specific topics (e.g.: ethical and legal implications of online counseling, the basics of online school counseling) as well as networking events.  We have also invited presenters from our cancelled conference to offer some of their sessions via zoom if they are interested. Members will get email notices regarding all of these PD and networking opportunities.

CLICK HERE for Covid 19 Lesson Plans prepared for you by MASCA members


Other Resources

GENERAL

Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center at Bridgewater State University - free research-based resources and programming to schools in the area of social and emotional learning, with a specialization in bullying and fighting and in digital behaviors.

FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES


SCHEDULING TIME/TASKS/MATERIALS

VIDEO CONFERENCING

*According to ASCA's Ethical Webinar - school counselors do not have to worry about HIPPA we only fall under FERPA in you're working in a public school. 

  • Zoom  - Zoom is an online platform that allows you to video conference with students. The FREE version is not FERPA/HIPPA compliant and only allows meetings for a max of 40 minutes. 
  • Google Meet - Google meet is another online video conferencing platform and may be a good option for those of you already using Google Suite. Allows for us to a 150 users at a time. If your school uses Google Suite then they already have a BAA (business associate agreement) and therefore Google Meet/Hangouts should be FERPA compliant because you have that agreement. When in doubt check with your IT department. 
  • Doxy.me - a free, HIPAA, GDPR, PHIPA/PIPEDA, & HITECH compliant video conferencing site used for providers to do telecounseling. 

VIDEO CREATION

  • Screencastify - allows you to create videos to publish. You can talk over a power point or make a video of yourself for students. This is a Chrome extension add-on. The free version allow for up to 5 minute videos. However, they are offering a special to get the extended version for Free until April 30th - use code: CAST_COVID
  • Screencast-o-matic - another resource to produce videos of a powerpoint or yourself. The education pricing is $1.65 a month for deluxe or $4.00 a month for premier.
  • LOOM - another free video recording resource

PHONE CALLING STUDENTS/PARENTS

  • Google Voice - this allows you to create a free phone number that you can use to contact students and families. If you do the personal version (by downloading the app on your phone) there is no charge. To create a number through a business (like your school), there is a charge of $20 a month for unlimited numbers - this might be a wise investment for your school so teachers, counselors, etc. can contact parents/students without giving out their personal numbers or having to create individual accounts on their own. **When given this out it is suggested that you create a "time" window for which you are available for calls - i.e. Monday - Friday 7:30am - 2:30pm (depending on the hours you are expected to be available per your school).

EMERGENCY NUMBERS

  • DCF - The Department of Children and Families are still taking calls and if you suspect abuse or neglect you are still mandated to call the care line at 800-792-5200
  • Emergency Mobile Psychiatric Services (EMPS/211) - EMPS is still available and are still going out to families when needed.
  • Suicide Prevention Crisis Hotline - 1-800-273-8255 or text 741741
  • American Foundation for Suicide Prevention - great resources

MEDITATION APPS/WEBSITES, ETC.

COLLEGE RESOURCES

College Board SAT Updates - SAT School Day and May 2nd SAT Cancelled; They're working on a plan for students to take AP exams at home.
ACT -  the April 4th ACT has been cancelled and students will receive and email to take it on June 13th, which is the next schedule exam. ACT is also offering digital learning, and workforce resources to assist students, teachers, and workers impacted by COVID-19. LETTER FROM ACT.
NACAC - National Association for College Admission Counseling has a lot of Covid-19 resources - updated deposit deadlines for colleges, virtual tours for juniors, etc. 

NCAN - The National College Attainment Network has put together a website of resources for this time



    ASCA RESOURCES

    • ASCA U Specialist Courses DEEP Discounts - You asked, they answered. DEEP discounts on ASCA U Specialist trainings for members, nonmembers, grad students whose internship site closed, SCs required to do PD to fulfill contract hours, etc. $29/members, $49/nonmembers. http://ow.ly/6jxU50yOgvS - GREAT OPPORTUNITY!
    • ASCA's COVID-19 UPDATE - find ASCA's latest update here
    • Planning for Virtual/Distance School Counseling during a Emergency Shutdown - great resource for guidelines on conducting virtual counseling with students. Great to share with your administration.
    • The School Counselor in a Virtual School Setting Webinar (ASCA) 
    • ASCA Position Statement on Virtual School Counseling 
    • ASCA's Virtual Counseling Ethics Fact Sheet (updated 3/24/2020)
    • ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors: Virtual Section (from ASCA)
      A.15. Virtual/Distance School Counseling 
      School counselors: 
      a. Adhere to the same ethical guidelines in a virtual/distance setting as school counselors in face-to-face settings. 
      b. Recognize and acknowledge the challenges and limitations of virtual/distance school counseling. 
      c. Implement procedures for students to follow in both emergen- cy and nonemergency situations when the school counselor is not available. 
      d. Recognize and mitigate the limitation of virtual/distance school counseling confidentiality, which may include unintended viewers or recipients. 
      e. Inform both the student and parent/guardian of the benefits and limitations of virtual/distance counseling.
      f. Educate students on how to participate in the electronic school counseling relationship to minimize and prevent potential mis- understandings that could occur due to lack of verbal cues and inability to read body language or other visual cues that provide contextual meaning to the school counseling process and school counseling relationship. 





    Motivational / Helpful Ideas










    Massachusetts School Counselors Association, Inc.  
    All Right Reserved.

    MASCA deeply values its diverse membership and is fully committed to creating an organization where each individual is welcomed, included, respected and empowered.  No person will be excluded from MASCA on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, political affiliation or military status, or for any other discriminatory reason. These activities include, but are not limited to, appointment of its Governing Board, hiring or firing of staff, selection of volunteers and vendors, and the providing of services.  This policy is fundamental to the effective functioning of MASCA as an organization that supports counselors and promotes equity in our schools, districts and the Commonwealth.

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