Transcript Document

Communication Matters
SS23—Promoting and Preserving Your Role in a
Tough Professional Climate
March 5, 2010, 11:00am-12:50pm
2010 NASP Convention, Chicago, IL
PRESENTERS
Andrea Cohn, Kathy Cowan, and
Stacy Skalski
Goals for Today
• Assess the landscape and extent of
risks/potential opportunities related to role.
• Communicate research-tested messages to
use when speaking with decision makers.
• Identify issues related to communicating with
administrators and other decision makers.
• Explore message development.
• Be better able to facilitate communications
planning with colleagues/staff.
• Learn about NASP communications resources.
2
Good communication increases your
effectiveness and perceived value.
This is critical as school budgets shrink,
pressures increase, and priorities shift.
Three benefits to preparing your
communication strategy and
messages in advance:
1. Helps you target right audience
with right strategies
2. Helps to organize your thoughts,
maintain consistent messages
3. Easier for listeners to understand
and remember
4
Who Recognizes Your Role
in Student Success?
• Are you engaged at the student,
classroom, building, and district levels?
• Who within your school community can
identify you or your contributions?
• Are you acknowledged as essential to
student success – not just the success of
special needs students but of ALL
students?
• Are decision makers on your list?
5
Why does it matter?
Decision makers, like
administrators, help or hinder
your role, resources,
effectiveness, job satisfaction
and job security--particularly
within the context of change.
Current Context of Change
• Tough economic climate affects both:
» school (administrators’) budgets/priorities, and
» stress levels for students, educators and families.
• Uncertainty where school psychological services
fit in ESEA reauthorization efforts.
• Persistent confusion about or lack of awareness
of our role among many stakeholders and the
media.
• Growing emphasis on communities-in-schools
(school-based health centers versus schoolemployed providers).
• RTI (most significant school reform movement).
• Challenges to Title and Practice
8
Gary Olsen, http://www.dubuque.k12.ia.us/cartoons/
9
This is a critical time to promote
the value of your expertise
• How can you meet the needs of
students suffering from the economic
crisis, military deployments?
• How can you support teachers
dealing with larger classes, fewer
resources, and students exhibiting
stress?
• How can you help realign services to
continue to support academic
progress even with budget cuts?
10
Gary Olsen, http://www.dubuque.k12.ia.us/cartoons/
11
“So you’re a school counselor,
right?”
13
Facebook Wisdom
Them: "Hi, nice to meet you."
Me: "Nice to meet you, too"
Them: “So what do you do for a living?"
Me: "I'm a school psychologist."
Them: “Oh so what grade do you teach?"
Me: "Oh no, I'm not a teacher."
Them: "Oh, so you're a school counselor?"
Me: "No, I work with special ed kids and do
IEPs, do counseling, manage crisis, consult
with parents. Basically I do a little bit of
everything.
Them: “Oh……. (confused..?)”
—Julie A.
14
Risks to a “Stealth” Profession
• Reduced or stagnant level of SP
positions/funding.
• Lack of understanding of “unique and essential
skill set” among decision makers.
• Narrow use of SP skills and training (e.g.
return to assessment role only).
• Missed linkages between behavior, mental
health and learning.
• Increased job frustration/stress.
• Negative effect on students.
• Unrecognized collaborations between SPs and
the school team and community resources.
15
Input From Stakeholders
Immediate value is a priority
NASP Key Stakeholder Outreach
• Original goal to raise awareness of
children’s mental health related to learning
and of school psychologists and NASP as
resources.
• Focus group research and identification of
target audiences
• Focus on the importance of SP’s in relation
to economic and academic pressures
• Developed key messages & materials
targeting administrators
17
NASP Key Stakeholder Outreach
• Develop visible collaborative relationships with
administrators at the national, state and local level
• Develop collaborative training and resources for
school psychologists and principals, with NASSP &
NAESP.
• 5 topical briefs, convention training materials, online
webinars, podcasts
• Topics: Data-based decision making; school climate
& safety; student achievement; family engagement;
drop out prevention & college readiness
18
Stakeholder Feedback
• Administrators and school boards are our
most important target audience. They set
priorities in the district and hold the purse
strings.
• Budget problems dominate the concerns of
administrators. This will continue to be true
as ARRA funds are scheduled to dry up this
year.
• They are directing resources to those
programs and services that have
immediate benefit to the most students.
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Stakeholder Feedback
• Respondents intuitively understand the link
between mental health and learning.
• This general understanding alone is
not enough to make it a priority for
resource allocation in crunch times.
• Essentially, all professional groups are
making the argument that their services
and expertise relate to achievement.
• This key talking point does not, and will
not, necessarily differentiate us from any
other educational professional group.
20
Stakeholder Feedback
• Many stakeholders still see us as working with the
most intensive and severe individual students
(special education), but do not see us as relevant
to larger school issues (i.e., school climate) or
groups of students.
• Administrators need to get the “biggest bang for
their buck” so our value is increased when we are
involved in school-wide efforts.
• Respondents who had worked closely with school
psychologists in a positive problem-solving mode
saw real value; those who hadn’t were less clear.
• In some cases, special education is viewed as a
“special interest” within the system.
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What are barriers to communicating
with administrators or other
decision makers?
(Take 2 minutes to write down your
frustrations/barriers.)
More Facebook Wisdom
“Can I vent!?!? How's this for someone
who doesn't understand what we do? I told
the principal at one of my schools I would
be attending a Response to Intervention
seminar. Her response was, "Why would
you go? You all don't do interventions."
—Andie H.
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We need to make the case for
our services.
No one else will do it for us.
Effective Communication:
Fostering relationships and
promoting your role.
Three Types of Strategic
Communications to Discuss Today
• Proactive Outreach
• Action Requests
• Crisis Communication
26
Or, In Audience-Friendly Terms
Crisis
Management
Intensive
Action Request
Targeted
Proactive
Outreach
Universal
27
Effective Communications
• Starts with proactive outreach.
• Proactive outreach promotes
“Action Requests”.
• Anticipates and facilitates crisis
communications needs.
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Proactive Outreach Goals
(You offer something. No strings.)
• Increase your visibility (with staff, parents,
and administrators).
• Raise awareness and comfort level on an
issue.
• Get more involved/be accessible.
• Improve collaboration.
• Disseminate useful information, especially in
times of crisis.
• Create environment for decision-maker “buyin.”
• Become a change agent in the school/district.
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Proactive Outreach Tactics
• School newsletter articles.
• Morning coffee with school administrators.
(Tip: Ask how you can help. Be flexible.)
• Parent handouts.
• Info for website. (Tip: Use the Create Your
Own Website resources from NASP.)
• Brown-bag discussions with staff.
• “Good to know” information for district level
administrators and school boards. (Tip: Double
up and send a copy of your newsletter article
FYI to district and/or state decision makers.)
30
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Action Request Goals
(You need and offer something.)
• Need
» Protect role/positions.
» Program support or implementation.
» Reallocation of funding for new or expanded
programs.
» Increased staffing.
• Offer (advocacy through action)
» Improved collaboration/realignment of support
services.
» Crisis support for students and teachers.
» Participate in planning/program design.
» Conduct needs assessment/data collection and
evaluation.
» Conduct in-service training.
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Action Request Tactics
• Meetings with decision makers (offer to help).
• Conducting surveys or needs assessments for
principals.
• Provide data, linked to actions/solutions.
• School board/administrative team
presentations. (Present data, needs, solutions.)
• Collaborating with allied colleagues on current
and future job roles and functions.
• Coalition/relationship building with allied
professionals.
• In-service training.
(Tip: Always have a 1-2 page written summary
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of your information to leave with people.)
Crisis Management Goals
• Legislative crisis (the state is about to cut
SP positions by 50%).
• Public relations crisis (bad press coverage,
editorial).
• Crisis involving school or district (school
shooting, suicide, etc.).
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Crisis Management Tactics
• Coordinated/integrated part of response
effort.
• Rapid (but thoughtful) response.
• Direct regular communications with “home
base.”
• Designated spokesperson (appropriate
level).
• Media (proactive, provide experts, materials,
op-eds).
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Communications Planning
Process: Protecting and
Promoting Your Role
There are two general ways to
advocate for your role at the
local level:
• Direct advocacy
• Demonstrating value through
action.
Good communication is
essential to both.
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Planning Process
Assess Situation
Identify Target
Audiences
Craft Messages
Effective
Communications
Planning
Stakeholder
Buy-In
Desired
Improved
Outcomes
Select Strategies/
Implementation
Evaluation/Follow-up
38
Planning Process
• Assess situation.
• Identify target audiences (NASP has
done this for you).
• Craft messages (NASP has started
this for you).
» Develop relevant supporting points.
• Select strategies/Implementation.
• Evaluation/Follow-up.
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Assess Situation
• Where is your district currently with regard to
________?
• What is your objective? (Is this aligned with
district priorities?)
• What are potential opportunities? (New
policies/programs, student need, administrator’s
agenda.)
• What are obstacles? (Time, misperceptions,
competing agendas, complex issue.)
• What is your timeframe?
• What are your available resources?
(Tip: Identify and collect data that will help make
your case.)
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APA MLA Example:
Assess/Identify the Problem
•
The proposed APA MLA changed the longstanding “school psychologist” exemption in
terms that would seriously constrain the title of
the majority of school psychologists and put at
risk the provision of necessary services to
children, families, and schools.
•
APA Taskforce (and other leadership) strongly
committed to this change
•
Issue is complicated to explain stakeholders;
easy to sound like “guild” issue
•
Support from the broader ed and mental
communities was critical
41
APA MLA Example:
Planning Steps in Responding to MLA
• Identified external stakeholder groups (national
organizations, SEAs, LEAs, APA affiliates, parents)
• Developed key messages
• Developed supporting materials linked to messages
(ie. Advocacy Roadmap, line by line analysis, etc.)
• Engaged Grassroots Advocacy Network (SPAN, state
leaders, interested NASP members)
• Identified Key Leaders to lead the Response
» NASP Executive Leaders, GPR & Credentialing
Committee, MLA Task Force, NASP Staff
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APA MLA Example:
Strategies in Responding to MLA
• Educated Grassroots Network on Key Messages
and Recommended Actions
» CQ, NASP Announce, Advocacy Alerts, website
postings, PPI, GPR state trainings, convention
sessions, state association meetings
• Reached out and educated External Stakeholder
Groups
» Letters, emails, phone calls, personal meetings
• Communicated and Collaborated with Division 16
43
APA MLA Example: Strategies in
Responding to MLA, continued
• Requested Specific Actions
» Letter Writing to APA MLA Task Force
» Outreach to APA staff and leaders
» Outreach to Division 16
» Outreach to external stakeholder groups
• Communicated results and identified continuing
advocacy needs
• Recognition & Appreciation for Efforts
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Identify Your Target Audience
(Whom do you need to convince?)
• Stakeholder interviews suggest the answer is
principals/administrators and district-wide
decision makers.
» District administrators (pupil services supervisors,
sped directors, curriculum directors).
» Building administrators (principals, asst.
administrators).
• Grade level or content area leaders.
• School board members.
• Who are your allies?
• Who are your opponents?
(Tip: Consider how parent or staff perspectives
might help or hinder your communications.)
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Know Your Audiences’
Level of knowledge/awareness.
Primary concerns/expectations.
Covert or overt agendas.
Competing priorities (administrators are
swamped).
• Perspective.
• Possible barriers to understanding.
• Competing considerations.
• Ability/likelihood to take action.
(Tip: Identify and collect data that will help
make your case.)
•
•
•
•
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Gary Olsen, http://www.dubuque.k12.ia.us/cartoons/
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Message Development:
3 Core Messages
With 3 Supporting Points Each
(Often called the Rule of 3: It’s hard
for people to remember more than 3
things at a time.)
Effective Message Structure
• Problem statement
• Action/solution
• Benefits
50
Define Problem
• Students (academic scores, behavior data,
attendance, referrals).
• Staff (morale, skills, collaboration, classroom
climate, development).
• Parents (involvement, collaboration,
communication).
• Administration (AYP, school climate, resource
allocation, legal requirements, district agendas,
academic priorities).
• Community (access to services, collaboration,
involvement, safety).
(Tip: Ground problem in assessment/data.)
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APA MLA Example:
Define the Problem
• Access to the specialized services provided by highly
qualified and credentialed school psychologists is
critical to schools’ ability to support students’ diverse
educational, psychological, and developmental needs.
There is already a shortage of school psychologists
and restricting the exemption threatens to further
impede service delivery.
• This conflict may distract public officials and
educators from more important issues such as
providing needed school psychological services.
• Our colleagues and the people we service are quite
clear that use of the title “school psychologist” by
school psychologists is in the best interest of
children, families, and schools.
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Suggest Actions/Solution
• What needs to be done?
• What does research indicate?
• What existing resources/processes can be
tapped to help?
• What staff will be impacted?
• How will you monitor outcomes and report
results?
• What staff training might help?
• How can you help educate and engage parents.
• How can you help?
(Tip: Be part of the solution to every extent
possible.)
53
Suggestions From the Field
• Be visible: Participate in school-based initiatives.
Learn about them by attending staff meetings,
professional development for
teachers/administrators, or by talking with staff.
• Location, location, location: Try to have an
office or work space near the principal’s office.
Help with behavioral referrals, crises, etc.
whenever possible. Be a sounding board and
support system. Most importantly, do whatever
you can to help. The added bonus is that the
principal will then be more likely to help you in the
future.
54
Suggestions From the Field
• Show me the data! Help teachers collect and
analyze data. They will eventually prefer you to
assist with graphing rather than test the children.
• Be a Personal Trainer: Help others look good
and also help them feel good about what they do
for students.
• Take off your stealth psychologist mask:
Demonstrate your expertise whenever possible.
People don’t know what we can do unless we tell
them and offer to help them.
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Define Benefits
• Improved student outcomes (academic,
behavior, mental health).
• Data collection/evidence of effectiveness.
• Improved staff effectiveness and collaboration.
• Improved school climate/outcomes.
• Use of evidence-based strategies and
progress/outcomes monitoring.
• Increased parent or community involvement.
• Better use of resources.
(Tip: Frame benefits from the decision makers’
point of view.)
56
APA MLA Key Messages
• There is no evidence that limiting the school
psychologist exemption to only those holding the
doctoral degree and restricting it for those at the
specialist level will serve the public good. In fact it is
likely to cause harm.
• The title “school psychologist” is a truthful
representation of the training and qualifications of
doctoral- and specialist-level school psychologists.
• School psychological practice and use of the title by
both specialist- and doctoral-level school
psychologists is well-established in law and
regulation.
57
APA MLA Key Messages, continued
• Changing school psychologists’ title infringes on the
authority of state education agencies to credential
and provide oversight for professionals who provide
services in schools.
• In itself, the MLA has no legal force; however, it
can cause serious problems at the state level.
• The education community and school psychology
community do not support APA’s position.
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Time is short
So are people’s attention spans.
Hone in on the point, back it up,
and stick to it. Stay positive.
What do Gumby and you have in
common?
s
60
Gumby’s Qualities
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Flexible
Helpful
Optimistic—all is possible
Honest and pure
Adventurous
Fearless
Loving
Everybody’s friend
Gumby represents the good in all of us.
—Art Clokey, Gumby’s creator, back of the
Gumby package
61
School Psychologists’ Qualities
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Flexible
Helpful
Optimistic—all is possible
Honest and ethical
Resourceful
Highly skilled
Dedicated
Caring
Every child’s advocate
School psychologists see
the good in all of us.
Hi, what can I do to help?
Mr. Gumby,EdS, NCSP, School Psychologist
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Overarching Message
• What you want decision makers to
understand:
» We can be part of the solution, no
matter the problem.
• What you want decision makers to do:
» Tap your school psychologist as a
resource to help all students learn.
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Core Messages
1. School psychologists are a unique,
essential, and valuable part of the
school team.
2. In today’s tough budget climate, your
school psychologist may be an
untapped resource.
3. Support the well-being of your
school/district by supporting school
psychologists’ role and funding.
64
Be Relevant
(i.e., Know Your Audience.)
• Why do administrators care?
• What is in it for them?
• What role do they play?
• How does the solution meet their needs?
• This may vary between audiences.
(Tip: Relate your services to priority
issues/challenges within the school/ district.)
65
Be Concise/Clear
• Use audience appropriate language.
• Avoid acronyms/technical language.
• Use active tense.
• Use bullets to the extent possible.
• Ask colleague(s) to review.
• Proofread your work (or ask someone
else to)!
66
Resonate
• Appeal to emotion as well as intellect.
• Use “social math,” not just statistics.
• Put a “face” on the issue. Tell stories,
not just facts.
• Be a good listener.
• Need a clear “call to action”
» Don’t allow your target audience to guess
what you need
67
Statistics Versus ...
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance
Percentage of students responding regarding behavior during 12
months preceding survey:
YRBSS
Middle School
2003*
Survey 2003**
1. Seriously considered
attempting suicide
16.9
20.6
2. Made a specific plan
16.5
13.4
3. Made an attempt
8.5
9.7
4. Made an attempt requiring
medical attention
2.9
Lieberman, Poland & Cassel, 2006
—
68
… “Social Math”
• For every 100-200 youth that
attempt suicide, one child
succeeds.
• For every three youths who
attempt suicide, one goes to the
hospital and two go to school.
Lieberman, Poland & Cassel, 2006
69
Facts Versus ...
Children who are bullied or
ostracized can suffer serious
emotional and academic difficulties.
70
… Personal Stories
“A student who had been bullied once asked me, “Do
you know what it is like to feel that you are hated by
everyone the first day you enter kindergarten?” This
young man had composed a journal filled with his dark
and sad reflections on life. The last page was filled with
one phrase repeated again and again: “I decide who
lives and who dies.” Luckily, there is good news with
this young man. Through significant emotional support
and alternative strategies for education, he graduated
last year. He hugged me on graduation day, thanking
me for believing in him. He told me that his greatest joy
was not in graduating, but in the fact that his mother
hugged him, telling him how proud she felt.”
• --John Kelly, U.S. Senate Briefing Testimony, 2006
71
Consistent Points to Make—Review
1. Unique and essential part of the
school team.
2. Potentially untapped resource.
3. Request: Support school
psychologists’ role and funding.
Reiterate how you can help!
72
Getting out of the storage
room and onto the agenda
is not self-interested
self-promotion.
It is essential to being an
active and accessible
member of the school team.
You Have Valuable Knowledge
• Your contributions are on behalf of
children and families, not yourself.
• See yourself (and promote yourself) as
an asset to administrators and other
decision makers.
» Talk about yourself as an “untapped
resource.”
• You share the common goal of helping
ALL students and schools succeed.
74
Coordinate Your Efforts
• Combine efforts with other SPs.
• Team up with other personnel (counselor,
social worker, reading specialist).
» Stakeholder interviews suggest that it is
increasingly important that SPs promote
themselves as part of the “school team”
versus isolated help for certain students.
• Ask to be listed as a resource in materials
sent home or posted on the web.
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When they get, they really get it.
“I am extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to work
with a true child advocate in our school psychologist, Dr.
Terry Molony. Dr. T., as I call her, is an integral part of our
school leadership team.… Terry interacts with our student
population on a regular basis to provide the academic,
behavioral, and emotional support that our students need.
She is quick to offer guidance and support to our faculty
as well. She is the guiding force behind our school wide
PBIS program, our school’s pilot of the RTI process, and
the newly formed positive psychology club.”
—Kwame Morton, MSEd, Principal, Cherry Hill Public
Schools, NJ, Congressional briefing on school
climate, November 10, 2009
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More who get it…..
Listen to what one superintendent of a school district has
to say….
John Carruth, Asst. Superintendent
Vail Unified School District
Tucson, AZ
Permission to use the video clip provided by the RTI Action
Network, http://www.rtinetwork.org/
To view the entire WETA-RTI Action Network Forum go to:
http://www.rtinetwork.org/forums/data-based-decisionmaking/
77
Avoid creating or appearing to
create “turf battles” that
others need to mediate.
Communications Message
Development Discussion
Interactive Discussion
• Issues to address:
» Protecting SP positions.
» Communicating your role.
• Assess situation:
» School budget season is coming. You know the
budget will be cut. Rumor is that the school board
is looking at cutting non-teaching positions.
» District is: large suburban, growing diversity,
relatively new superintendent, school
psychologists role has recently expanded, district
is considering RTI implementation
80
Interactive Discussion, continued
• Define target audience:
» Who are key decision makers?
» Who are your potential allies?
• Identify 3 core messages.
» Identify supporting points (3 is optimal).
» How could data help?
• Identify strategies
» How to reach audiences.
» Timing.
» Who else should be involved.
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Interactive Activity (continued)
• When developing supporting points, keep
in mind that strong support points use a
mix of content:
» Anecdotes/storytelling
» Quotes/endorsements from a 3rd party
that adds credibility
» Directions to learn more/find more
information
» Statistics or facts
82
Do Not Reinvent the Wheel
Materials Online
• Advocacy Roadmap: Preserving and
Promoting School Psychological Services at the
Local and State Levels (includes talking points
and key messages).
• School Support Resources to help schools
support students and academic progress in
today’s economic climate.
• Adaptable materials in packet.
• Adaptable materials/presentations on specific
topics (e.g., resilience, mental health).
• Guidelines/tips on communications and
advocacy strategies.
• Create Your Own Website resources.
84
School Psychology Awareness
• Theme: See the
possibilities in you.
We do!
• Gratitude Works
Program
• Possibilities in
Action Partner
Program
• Student POWER
Award
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Materials Online
• Communications Resources
http://www.nasponline.org/communications/index.aspx
• Session Handouts (SS23)
http://www.nasponline.org/conventions/2010convention
handouts.aspx
• Economic Crisis Resources
http://www.nasponline.org/educators/economic.aspx
• Advocacy Resources (Roadmaps)
http://www.nasponline.org/advocacy/researchmain.aspx
86
Share your materials and ideas
with us.
• Andrea Cohn:
[email protected]
• Kathy Cowan:
[email protected]
• Stacy Skalski:
[email protected]
87
See the Gumby in you! We do!
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This slide presentation may be adapted by the
user to reflect specifics in your district/schools.
Content or “best practice” information may not
be changed without approval from NASP. The
NASP logo and any specific author credits must
remain. State and local school psychology
associations may add their logo and contact
information to the presentation. This slide may
be removed before giving a presentation.
©2010, National Association of School Psychologists, 4340 East
West Highway, Suite 402, Bethesda, MD, 20814, (301) 657-0270
www.nasponline.org
NASP represents school psychology
and supports school psychologists
to enhance the learning and mental
health of all children and youth.