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Conference and Professional Development

Ongoing professional development is critical to the success of Iowa school counselors and ISCA is committed to bringing opportunities to its members. From the annual ISCA conference, to webinars, seminars, and topic-specific conferences, check back often to find out about new and exciting opportunities around the state.  

Upcoming Events

ISCA Virtual Meet-Ups

ISCA would like to bring school counselors together and support you.  We will be offering 45-minute virtual level meet-ups over the next week or two to allow counselors to connect and share. These meet-ups will be hosted by our Level VPs be available for all school counselors via Zoom. Meetings will be set up for level-specific counselors, but you are welcome to participate in any meeting that pertains to you in your role as a school counselor, counselor educator, or AEA supporter. Also, please share this information to your Iowa school counseling peers! No pre-registration required, just click on the link at the designated time to join!

Please do not share the meeting information on an unrestricted, publicly available social media post or website. This can lead to outside individuals joining and disrupting the meeting.

ISCA Elementary School Counselor Meet-Up #2
Member Sharing Session: Anxiety Resources 

Tuesday, June 2 @ 11:30am-12:30pm 
Zoom Join Link: https://zoom.us/j/96846624930

There are many things that remain to be determined yet for this Fall, but one thing that we know for sure is that with uncertainty comes anxiety.  This session will be a sharing session for your best techniques, ideas, and resources for assisting students with anxiety, as well as supporting staff in helping students.  We can all learn from each other!  It's helpful if you have links, pdfs, or tangible resources to share so that they can be posted and shared with the group.  We are looking forward to seeing you! 

Elementary School Counselor Hosts: Aimee Hospodarsky, Past-President; Natalie Wilson - President Elect-Elect; Megan Barber - Secretary, ISCA Board Members 

    Previous Virtual Meet-Ups

    • Tuesday, April 7 - 1 PM - High School Counselors: NOTES

    • Tuesday, April 7 - 2 PM - K-12 School Counselors: NOTES
    • Wednesday, April 15 - 10 AM - High School Counselors (Mandatory Learning): NOTES
    • Thursday, April 16 - 2 PM  - High School Counselors (Voluntary Learning): NOTES
    • Monday, April 20 - 11:15 AM - Middle School Counselors: NOTES
    • Friday, April 24 - 9:15 AM - Elementary School Counselors: NOTES
    • Tuesday, April 28 - 11:30 AM - High School Counselors (Virtual Celebrations/Transitions): NOTES
    • Monday, May 11 - 2 pm - College Transition Panel: Video | College Transition FAQs     ISCA and the Iowa Association for College Admission Counseling are teaming up to provide school counselors with up-to-date information about college admissions and the transition process. We know that you and your students have questions about how COVID-19 will impact the college transition process for outgoing seniors from the class of 2020 and your incoming senior class.

    FAFSA Completion Assistance Certification

    June 2020

    FAFSA: A Scenario-Based Training provides participants the opportunity to learn about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and gain understanding of how to assist in the completion of the form. Participants will work with other professionals in the field to understand common issues and misconceptions that arise when assisting students in navigating the financial aid process.

     Training dates include:

    • June 11 - virtual training


    ASCA Annual Conference - June 27-30, 2020
    One Vision, One Voice - Seattle, Washington

    Save the Date! Join approximately 3,600 school counseling professionals for four days of inspirational keynote sessions, informative breakout sessions, in-depth looks at hot topics in the school counseling profession and networking opportunities galore.

    Iowa school counselors gather at ASCA.

    Counselor Academy

    School counselors from across Iowa take part in Counselor Academy at Heartland AEA.


    Save the Date

    ISCA 2020 Conference

    November 1 -3, 2020

    School counselors network and share experiences during the Level Sharing Session at ISCA.

    Counselor Academy

    The content of the Academy is based on the ASCA (American School Counselors Association) National Model and the Iowa Comprehensive Counseling and Guidance Program Model.

    The Academy provides the foundation for counselors to effectively plan, implement, and evaluate comprehensive school counseling services. Counselors develop comprehensive developmental guidance and counseling programs for their schools based on national and state standards and research based best practices.

    2020 Statewide Counselor Academy Dates

        • TBD

    AEA Counselor Academy Dates

        • TBD

    Ongoing Opportunities

     ISCA/ICAN Webinar Series

    The Iowa School Counselor Association (ISCA) and the Iowa College Access Network (ICAN) partner to provide a webinar series on important topics and issues facing school counselors today.

    Check out the current list of scheduled webinars 

    Area Education Agency Professional Development Opportunities

    Contact your AEA for more information about your local options for Counselor Academy and additional professional development opportunities.

     ASCA Professional Development

    ASCA provides a lot of professional development opportunities from the annual conference and webinar series, to ASCA U specialist trainings, coaching, and site- and district trainings. Some opportunities require ASCA membership.

    Visit ASCA to learn more

     ICAN Professional Development Series - Career and College Readiness

    ICAN offers half-day and full day professional development opportunities in areas such as financial aid basics, FAFSA completion, and Career and College Readiness Curriculum. Certifications are available based on training assessments.

    Learn more.

     ISEA Academy

     The ISEA Academy offers courses for Iowa License Renewal and Drake University Graduate credit. Courses are on a monthly cycle. For questions please call or email Rhonda Plimmer or Cindy Swanson at 515-471-8000. Visit https://isea.org/course/ for the current course catalog.

     Courses have included:

      • ACEs: The Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences
      • Making Magic with Motivation
      • A Spoonful of Sugar…Restorative Practices in the Classroom
      • Teaching… What’s culture got to do with it?
      • Brain Magic: Moving, Talking & Thinking Your Students to Their Full Potential
      • Creativity: The Force Within You
      • It Takes a Village: Building School, Family & Community Partnerships
      • Helping Students Overcome Depression and Anxiety
      • Ignite the Brain: Boosting Learning through Exercise & Fitness
      • Poverty in Our Backyard
      • Students in Poverty: Building Genius
      • Through Poverty’s Lens
      • Helping Traumatized Children Learn
      • Teaching with the Brain in Mind
      • Trauma Stewardship: Caring for Self While Caring For Others
      • Screen Addiction: Fighting the War
      • Mindfulness for Teachers
      • Developing School Mental Health Systems
      • School Mental Health Literacy
      • Racial & Cultural Trauma
      • Building Strong Student Relationships
      • Whole Child Wellness, 5-2-1-0 strategies for success
      • Use Design Thinking to Increase Creativity in the Classroom 

     Iowa College & Career Readiness Academy


    A suite of Iowa-specific online courses for college access and success professionals. 

    Iowa Youth Survey Reports for 2014

    The Iowa Youth Survey (IYS) district and non-public school reports are available from the 2014 survey.

    Resource Recommendations from ISCA Level Vice-Presidents

    Each level Vice-President takes the time to review their roles and responsibilities, as well as provide their favorite go-to resources for their programs. Brandon Drew (VP-Elementary), Amber Urbain (VP-Middle School/Junior High), Meri Edel (VP Secondary) and Shelby Bryce (VP K-12).

    Click here

    Join an ISCA Board Committee

    There are many opportunities to get involved, including board committees. Committees such as Advocacy, Newsletter, Awards & Recognition, and many more work toward the overall success of ISCA and all Iowa Professional School Counselors. Find a committee that interests you, contact the chair and join today. You'll learn about the different aspects of committee work, gain leadership experience and help elevate the profession around the state.

    Learn more

    Join the ISCA Board

    Being an ISCA board member is the chance to become a leader in your profession, and you simply have to love your job. The ISCA board is made up of individuals from a vast array of backgrounds with a large range of talents. Together, the board works to raise awareness of school counselor issues, advocate for the profession, seek out professional development opportunities, and plans the annual conference.

    Contact  Us
    Office: (515) 282-8192
    Email info@iaschoolcounselor.org
    Address:
    6919 Vista Drive
    West Des Moines, IA 50266
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