Spring Branch ISDProfessional School Counselor
Jul. 2018 - Sep. 2020I provided individual counseling, in English and Spanish, with an emphasis on solution-focused interventions and trauma-informed care. I also ran 4-6 bilingual psychoeducational groups each semester, with topics including resilience, coping skills, self-management, and identity development. Each month, I presented guidance lessons to 500+ students, covering social-emotional skills like setting boundaries and practicing consent, healthy communication, and resisting peer pressure. I also created and presented targeted professional development for 50+ teachers on building trauma-informed classrooms, and participated in the district's Counselor Advisory Council. My team spearheaded the development of the Center for Student Support, a central location for wraparound mental/behavioral health services and social supports available to all students. Our efforts to implement this programming and align our department to the Texas Model School Counseling Program, led to a decreased incidence in our students' suicidal ideation and self-harm by nearly 50%. In 2020, our counseling team won the Texas School Counselor Association CREST award, the highest recognition for school counseling programs in the state of Texas.