President's Letter: Making Community Connections

Hello, fellow Pennsylvania school counselors! I hope you are having a great start back to school. We hope you find this edition of the Pennsylvania Counselor immensely helpful in navigating community connections with your school counseling program. According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, one in five children has or will have a mental illness. School counselors are poised to assist students and families in accessing community services and resources. My first job after graduating with my bachelor's degree was as a resource coordinator for the local base service unit. I helped children and families access community resources throughout the county. I recognized the difficulty some families face obtaining services for their children. It has been about 20 years since that experience, but I still often feel overwhelmed with helping families connect to community resources. Here are some Pennsylvania connections to help your students and families.
 
NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness - Pennsylvania)
NAMI Pennsylvania provides important information on local support groups, advocacy, county mental health resources, local resources and online resources for children and families in your area.
 
PA 2-1-1
Pennsylvania 2-1-1 provides many great resources and connections both locally and countywide for children in families in many areas, including housing, bills, food, health care, clothing, transportation, mental health, substance abuse, legal assistance, crisis services and disaster services.
 
PNSAS (Pennsylvania Network for Student Assistance Services)
PNSAS provides resources and information to help Pennsylvania student remove barriers to student success. The website also offers tips and helpful documents to enhance and promote your current student assistance program.
 
PAYSPI (Pennsylvania Youth Suicide Prevention Initiative)
PAYSPI provides information on connecting to local organizations and agencies to prevent suicide. The focus is on prevention and awareness and on grief and loss resources for children and families affected by suicide.
 
PAPBS (Pennsylvania Positive Behavior Support)
The Pennsylvania Positive Behavior Support Network supports families and schools in providing services and interventions for students. This website gives resources and information on building community connections to increase student success through positive behavior interventions.
 
The school counselor can also make connections with local churches, community groups, and parent organizations. In my building, we have worked with many of these resources to provide a weekend food program, holiday assistance and winter coats for students in need. Postsecondary programs are often interested in working with schools to enhance career exploration and awareness for career days and classroom activities. You can find more resources on the PSCA website www.psca-web.org and also at the PSCA conference November 30-December 1 in Hershey.
 
Contact Lisa A. Maloney, Ph.D., NCC, NCSC, PSCA president, at maloneyl@hasdpa.net.