President's Letter: Communities and Collaboration

I hope your school year has kicked off to a great start and that you are well into the swing of things! This issue of the MASCA News will focus on collaborating with the community. The recent impact that hurricanes have had on the Southeast has served as an important reminder of the need for school–community partnerships and collaboration. Do you have a unique partnership with the community? Let us know; we’d love to feature you in an upcoming issue of the Counselor’s Notebook.

While many of you are aware already, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the recent changes to the Massachusetts licensure. In June, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education approved the changes to the Regulations for Educator Licensure and Preparation Program Approval (603 CMR 7.00), which included amending the licensure title from “School Guidance Counselor” to “School Counselor.” This change to the regulations, among others, has been approved by the Secretary of State and posted online. Updating the licensure title sends an important message of recognition that the role of a school counselor has evolved. School counselors are key stakeholders in the academic achievement, social/emotional wellbeing and college and career readiness of all students. I encourage advocacy at the district and building levels to uphold the use of the school counselor title!

The MASCA team has been working hard to bring you excellent professional development opportunities. As a reminder, the MASCA 2018 conference will be in Cape Cod April 30-May 1 at the Resort and Conference Center at Hyannis. Registration, hotel rooms and the call for proposals are up and running, so make your plans today. The graduate student poster proposals and scholarship applications are also live now! We hope to have another record-setting year of participation! View more information about our conference online.

Please don’t forget that MASCA is here to support you. Feel free to reach out to me at president@masca.org with any comments, questions or concerns.
 
Contact Megan Krell, Ph.D., MASCA president, at president@masca.org.