President's Letter: At Halftime, Prep Students for Success

Our school year is halfway complete. Just as a coach uses halftime of a game to help motivate and build up the team with plans and strategies to reach the goal of winning the game, we as counselors must help provide strategies and support planning to make sure our students are reaching their goals for the school year and beyond. Lou Holtz said, “How you respond to the challenge in the second half will determine what you become after the game, whether you are a winner or a loser.” As we work with our students, we need to keep our thoughts on the final goal of the game. We are the coaches helping to prepare our students for their future careers.

Career readiness begins at elementary levels and continues throughout our students’ time in school. Coaches work with team members to build skills and we as counselors also need to work to build our skills and take time for new learning. Paul “Bear” Bryant said, “It’s not the will to win that matters—everyone has that. It’s the will to prepare to win that matters.” ArSCA’s upcoming conference is a wonderful opportunity to network with peers, acquire new knowledge, and sharpen the skills we use each day with our students. This year’s conference will be in Hot Springs, Ark., July 9-11, 2018, with the theme “Team ArSCA.” I encourage all to make plans now to attend.

Conference provides a great opportunity for the counselors of our state to share ideas and learn from each other. Keynote speakers and presenters will provide in-service opportunities in areas of interest for elementary, middle and high school levels. I also encourage all counselors to volunteer to help make this year’s conference a success. Share your favorite lesson or idea in your level’s share session, send in a presentation proposal and share your area of expertise with our participants, and sign up to volunteer to help in various capacities of the conference. If you are interested in getting involved with leadership in ArSCA, conference is a great place to begin. The conference committee will be sending out emails and messages on the list serve sharing various ways that you can become involved.

As we move toward the end of the school year, remember that we counselors may be the only adult who provides a positive influence that builds our students’ confidence to reach their goals of success after leaving the school setting. Tom Landry said, “I didn’t believe in team motivation. I believe in getting a team prepared so it knows it will have the necessary confidence when it steps on the field and be prepared to play a good game.” Let’s work to give our students the tools needed to be prepared to succeed in the game of life.

Contact Terri Callaway, ArSCA president, at terri.callaway@warrensd.org