SCHOOL COUNSELING DEPARTMENT

Students are expected to complete their designated Christian Service hours within the class year they are assigned. If this requirement is not fulfilled by the deadline date, an F will be entered for their grade until said hours are complete. In addition, ten hours will be assigned to be completed the following year.

SCHOOL COUNSELING DEPARTMENT

The goal of the School Counseling Department is to assist each student to realize his full potential as a spiritual, intellectual and social human being. We endeavor to deliver a systematic and comprehensive school counseling program to the entire student body. Academic, personal/social and college/career counseling services are provided to all students in both group and individual school settings.

The staff consists of four full-time counselors, two full-time college counselors and a part-time social worker. Students are assigned to a school counselor in their freshman year and remain with the same counselor throughout the four years. In junior and senior years, the college counselors assist the student and his parents in making his college selections.

Students will meet individually with their school counselors at least once per semester and partake in over four guidance classes per academic quarter, giving students an unprecedented amount of time receiving school counseling services. Students with academic difficulties or other issues that impact their lives are seen more frequently as determined by need. Parents and students are encouraged to set up appointments with the school counselor to discuss concerns or to obtain information. Counselors are available for conferences normally between 8:00 AM and 3:00 PM provided an appointment has been scheduled. Other times for conferences can be arranged by mutual agreement.

COLLEGE COUNSELING

The College Counseling Office provides a wide range of services for all Iona Prep parents and students, not just juniors and seniors. A college readiness workshop is offered to all parents in the fall. Juniors experience a college fair on campus; parents meet individually with their college counselor throughout the spring of junior year and into the fall of senior year. The College Counselors, along with several college admissions representatives and teachers from our English Department, offer Essay Boot Camp sessions during the summer before students’ senior years.

GROUP GUIDANCE

Iona’s Group Guidance Program centers on developmental stages of adolescence and college preparation. Students meet in a classroom-type setting, led by a school counselor, once per cycle

Consequently, the ninth and tenth year programs deal with issues of self-awareness, relationships with peers and adults, issues of alcohol and drug use, and sexuality. The focus of the eleventh and twelfth year programs is directly related to college selection and application.

Students with Disabilities

Upper School Policy

General Information

• Iona Preparatory School supports students who need limited accommodations to be successful in a college preparatory high school. • Students and parents must realize that accommodations supported in the middle school do not automatically carry over to Iona Prep. • Iona Prep does not create IEPs or 504s. However, the school may use information from previous documents (IEPs, 504s, medical documentation, etc.) to inform the creation of an Iona Prep Accommodation Plan. • Documented curriculum modifications are not honored by Iona Prep. • A documented language exemption modification may be honored at the discretion of the

Iona Prep Administration.

Documented Classroom Accommodations Honored at Iona Prep

• Preferential seating • Copy of class notes • Use of laptops/tablets for note taking purposes • Repeating of directions • Increased wait time for verbal responses • Refocusing/redirection • Bathroom breaks as needed • Access to school nurse • Audio amplification devices • Use of calculator

Documented Testing Accommodations Honored at Iona Prep

• Extended time 1.5 and 2.0 for mid-term and final exams • Alternate exam location for mid-term and final exams • Use of a laptop for midterm and final exams • Large print for mid-term and final exams

• Bubble Sheet Exempt - record answers on classroom test, mid-term and finals • Bathroom breaks as needed • Access to school nurse

Special Education Services Available at Iona Prep

Resource room services are available after meeting the criteria set by the New Rochelle Committee on Special Education. Contact must be made by June 1st for these potential services to be implemented by September. Iona Prep does not make a determination regarding resource room placement.

Process for Requesting Accommodations

• Requests for accommodations will be considered after Iona Prep has received an evaluation (IEP, 504 or private evaluation) which is supported by norm-based educational and psychological testing. Evaluations should be current (completed within the past 2 years) and Iona Prep should have access to the evaluator if requested. • Incoming freshmen requesting accommodations should submit documentation by April 1st to the Director of School Counseling for review. • Current Iona Prep students who are requesting accommodations should submit documentation to their school counselor for review. • Parents will be contacted for a meeting to discuss accommodations.

Timeline for Applicants Seeking Accommodations

• Oct 6th - TACHS Eligibility Form due to TACHS exam office (if requesting additional time on TACHS exam). • Dec 1st - Iona Prep Application deadline due. Be sure to indicate the type of evaluation the student had on file in middle/grammar school under "Special Considerations" area of application. • April 1st - Outreach to families. Email sent to parents that indicated the existence of previous IEP, 504 or private evaluation on application. The email will direct families to fill out a form so school counselors may set up an interview with parents in

April/May. This meeting can potentially create an Iona Prep Accommodation Plan for

September. • June 1st - Deadline for seeking services from New Rochelle. Resource room services are available after meeting the criteria set by the New Rochelle Committee on Special

Education. Contact must be made by this deadline for these potential services to be implemented by September. Iona Prep does not make a determination regarding resource room placement.