Special
Program Highlights
Special
Program Highlights
Dr. Jean Phillips was the Supervisor of Psychological Services in the 1970's and 1980's. The award is meant to honor school based personnel who assist us in helping children through their expertise, cooperative leadership in the multi-disciplinary process, and commitment to children. Each spring, school psychologists choose outstanding team members, usually counselors, regional special education specialists, administrators, secretaries, or teachers who have shown exemplary leadership and advocacy for children.
The Mentor Program Committee originated at the beginning of the 1997-98 school year in an effort to provide a venue for sharing professionally relevant information between staff members. It was determined that many of the prince George's county staff psychologists possessed unique technical and clinical skills and were willing to share these skills with other staff members. A needs assessment was conducted with all new staff members providing invaluable information. Based upon this feedback, the committee felt the need to provide psychologists new to the county with the guidance necessary for a smooth transition into the department. It was determined that each psychologist new to Prince George's County would be assigned two veteran psychologists. This provided the new psychologist with ready access to information and increased likelihood that someone would be available to assist in the transition process at all times. Currently, the mentor committee is providing 11 new psychologists with the technical support and professional advice of the veteran staff.
The Mentor Program Committee is also in the process of creating a list of psychologists with expertise in various areas to be used a a resource by all staff members. This will allow other staff members to more readily tap this wealth of knowledge. Over the past three years, the mentor committee has helped facilitate several trainings conducted for our staff members, by their colleagues. This will continue to broaden the knowledge base of all staff members as new staff members present the most recent academic information and developments, while veteran staff members present time tested approaches and techniques. It is evident that you need look no further than our own department to find some of the most effective and knowledgeable school psychologists in the field.
Child
Abuse Prevention Committee
Through monies provided by a grant from the Safe and Drug Free Schools Office, the Department of Psychological Services is implementing The Good Knight Program, a nationally recognized educational program that focuses on child safety. The committee members have invited assigned schools to participate in the one and a half hour presentation. The presenters, dressed as medieval knights, use a fairytale format and video to teach the 10 most common tricks used by potential abductors to lure children into danger. Following both the presentation and the video, students participate in a discussion that reviews the information learned.
PGCPS offers an appealing opportunity for interns in school psychology. Currently, the program provides a $15,000 stipend for a ten-month contract for 1200 or more hours. Typically, the intern works for two supervisors in a wide variety of tasks. Upon the completion of the program, the intern will have a wide range of experiences and greater job opportunity in the county.
An internship in school psychology provides an opportunity for broad exposure to the roles and functions of the school psychologist. Candidates for internship should have completed the bulk of formal course work required for certification as a MSDE certified School Psychologist. Applied aspects of school psychology will already have been provided through appropriate field and practicum experiences.
Components of the Internship:
It is necessary that students be provided with a well-rounded and diversified supervised experience. To this end, the internship shall cover:
(1) psychoeducational assessment, including teacher conferences and child interviews; selection, administration, scoring, and interpretation of appropriate assessment instruments; preparation of psychological reports and presentations of the findings to the appropriate person(s);
(2) experience in consultation, including the development of appropriate intervention strategies with teachers, parents, and school administrators;
(3) work with a variety of programs involving children of different ages who exhibit a wide range of problems. Regular education pupils, as well as special education pupils in both regular and special school settings, should be a part of the intern's experience.
4) direct intervention (e.g., counseling, modification of behavior) where compatible with the school system and the intern's training; and
(5) support of the school system through conducting inservice sessions or research where compatible with the school system.
The purpose of the multicultural committee is to promote the knowledge and understanding of multicultural issues and the effects of diversity on our profession.
The committee has targeted the following areas and implemented the following projects:
Visitations to colleges and universities to inform undergraduate psychology majors about the field of school psychology. Information discussed pertains to training, certification requirements, and the role of a school psychologist in a culturally diverse community.
A resource file established for relevant multicultural issues, related to the field of education and psychology.
Recruitment of minority applicants for the field of school psychology.