Counselor's Notebook, April 2014

MASCA

MASSACHUSETTS SCHOOL COUNSELORS ASSOCIATION

Finding Value in Retirement

By Joe FitzGerald, Ed.D. MASCA VP Retirees

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s usual, I was struggling to come up with an idea for this column and ruing the fact that February does not have thirty-one days. (The last day of the month is the deadline for the Counselor’s Notebook.) To write this article, I went to the Internet for some ideas.

On the American Association of Individual Investors website, I found an article by Michael E. Leonetti on planning for retirement. He points out misconceptions about life in retirement, and he began his article with the following, anonymous quote: “Some people spend more time planning a two-week vacation than they do their retirement.” I certainly fit into that category.

Although Leonetti is a financial planner, his ideas are pertinent to what I wanted to write about: • Keeping busy after retirement is a great idea, providing you are doing what you want to do and what you like.

• Most retirees grossly underestimate the amount of time they will have on their hands following retirement.

• One of the key challenges of retirement is knowing what to do with your time.

• Putting a plan together to do what makes you happy and gives meaning to your time.

The idea in the article that impressed me most was the idea of looking at retirement as moving from one lifestyle that had value to a second lifestyle that should also have value for you.

I think back to what retirement meant to people back in my father’s day. (continued on page 4)

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MASCA and DESE plan last RTTT Summit

By KATIE GRAY, MASCA/DESE Liaison

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t’s hard to believe that four years have passed since we all celebrated the fact that Massachusetts was the only state to include school counseling in their Race To The Top [RTTT] application.

High hopes and expectations were placed on the thirty-seven districts that signed up to participate in Project 4C: Implementing the MA Model. The eyes of Massachusetts and the nation were fixed on whether these districts could demonstrate that implementing the MA Model could have an impact on important student outcomes. Could school counselors make a difference?

MASCA and DESE embarked on a

partnership where they have jointly planned and delivered over ten days of professional development to these districts over four years. National experts from College Board’s National Office for School Counseling Advocacy (NOSCA) were brought in to help teach these counselors how to use data, plan strategically, and develop the leadership skills to drive systemic change. They were taught about EDWIN and the Early Warning Indicator System developed by DESE. They were charged with creating new programs and interventions and developing results reports. (continued on page 7)

MASCA Spring Conference 2014 DoubleTree by Hilton Leominster Tuesday, April 8, 2014 Registration / Breakfast / Exhibit Hall President’s Welcome Graduate Student Poster Presentation Session & Exhibit Hall Morning Learning Sessions Keynoter Kevin Jennings: “Education for All: Addressing LGBT Issues in Schools”

Exhibit Hall & Luncheon Afternoon Learning Sessions MASCA General Session --------------------------------President’s Reception, Monday, April 7, 5:00-7:00 p.m.

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COUNSELOR’S NOTEBOOK

Service Opportunities in MASCA

By THERESA A. COOGAN, Ph.D. MASCA President

2013– 2014 OFFICERS PRESIDENT THERESA A. COOGAN, Ph.D. Bridgewater State University Bridgewater, MA 02325 Tel. 508-531-2640 E-mail: theresa.coogan@bridgew.edu PAST PRESIDENT JENNIFER LISK Medway High School, Medway, MA 02053 Tel. 508-533-3228 x 5107 • Fax 508-533-3246 E-mail: jlisk@medway.k12.ma.us PRESIDENT-ELECT TINA KARIDOYANES Mansfield High School 250 East Street, Mansfield, MA 02048 Tel. 508-261-7540 x3122 • Fax 508-339-0259 E-mail: presidentelect@masca.org VICE PRESIDENT ELEMENTARY VERONICA KNIGHT Lowell Elementary School 175 Orchard Street, Watertown, MA 02472 Tel. 617-926-2666 E-mail: veronica.knight@watertown.k12.ma.us VICE PRESIDENT MIDDLE / JUNIOR HIGH MARISA CASTELLO E-mail: castelloma@sps.springfield.ma.us KATHLEEN SCOTT E-mail: scottk@amesburyma.gov VICE PRESIDENT SECONDARY JOHN S. STEERE Wellesley High School 50 Rice Street, Wellesley, MA 02481 Tel. 781-446-6290 x4653 • Fax 781-446-6308 E-mail: john_steere@wellesley.k12.ma.us

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alling all School Counselors, Counselor Educators, Graduate Students, and Retirees! As we begin to prepare for the 2014-2015 academic year, consider assuming an active role in your state organization. Several exciting opportunities are now available. Consider joining a MASCA committee or taking on a leadership role.

For all positions, active MASCA membership in good standing is required throughout the term. The positions vary in term length (either one year or two

years), and some are appointed by either the President or President-Elect.

Open positions include President-Elect, VP Counselor Educators, VP Guidance Administrators, VP Middle/Jr. High, VP Retirees, Membership Coordinator, Webmaster, Advocacy/Government Relations Chair, Human Rights Chair, Strategic Planning Chair, MA Model Chair, Professional Development Chair, Research and Evaluation Chair, Registrar for Events, Technology Committee Chair, and Professional Development Coordinator.

Descriptions and additional information about the positions can be found in the MASCA Bylaws as well as the General Policies and Procedures Manual, both of which are available on MASCA’s website, www.masca.org.

If you want to be involved, but not in a leadership role, opportunities to serve on committees are also available. Please send any inquiries to the MASCA leadership. Thank you! ■

VICE PRESIDENT ADMINISTRATORS TBA VICE PRESIDENT POSTSECONDARY JOHN MARCUS Dean College 99 Main Street, Franklin, MA 02038 Tel. 508-541-1509 • Fax 508-541-8726 E-mail: jmarcus@dean.edu VICE PRESIDENT COUNSELOR EDUCATORS MEGAN KRELL, Ph.D. E-mail: mkrell@fitchburgstate.edu VICE PRESIDENT RETIREES Joseph D. FitzGerald, Ed.D. 5 Progress Street, Weymouth, MA 02188 Tel. 781-264-3426 E-mail: jdfitz1831@gmail.com EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DONNA M. BROWN Adjunct Professor, UMass Boston P.O. Box 366, 779 Center Street Bryantville, MA 02327 Tel. 781-293-2835 E-mail: executivedirector@masca.org TREASURER ASHLEY CARON 25 Belmont Ave., Stoughton, MA 02072 Tel. 508-212-0676 E-mail: ashcicero@hotmail.com SECRETARY ASHLEY J. GUBA 30 Brezner Lane, Centerville, MA 02632 Tel. 508-367-7774 E-mail: secretary@masca.org MEMBERSHIP COORDINATOR TBA COUNSELOR’S NOTEBOOK EDITOR SALLY ANN CONNOLLY 19 Bayberry Road, Danvers, MA 01923 Tel. 978-774-8158 • Fax 978-750-8154 E-mail: sallyconnolly@att.net

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President’s Reception MASCA Spring Conference DoubleTree Hilton Leominster Monday, April 7, 2014 5:00-7:00 p.m.

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FITZGERALD (continued from page 1) It meant that you stopped working and had a period of time where you could rest and not deal with the hustle-bustle of a job and the daily grind. Oh, how things have changed!

Somewhere along the line emerged a concern about starting a second meaningful life, one that could take many forms. Leonetti points out, however, that “despite the fact that they have planned other phases of their lives, they seem to feel retirement will take care of itself.

The opposite is often true.”

I have been retired for a good number of years, and this new phase has turned into a very fruitful time for me. Initially, I did not plan ahead for retirement, and the time I had on my hands was a real surprise. But I came to a point where I stopped to consider what I needed to do that was of value to me. Now, I have a plan. I have learned how to keep constructively busy and keep my mind sharp.

I have also ended up doing something that I love to do, that is, putting together and teaching a technology program.

Even before I retired, I had an interest in technology (computers, software applications, etc.,) and I audited community college courses in this area. After retirement, I continued to do so. In the process, I stumbled upon a technology program run by volunteers. Its purpose was to teach 50+ adults how to use and be more comfortable with computers and software programs. I began to volunteer teaching (and learning) in the program, and now I am responsible for a similar program that we run at a local Council on Aging.

In addition to this program, I have added other activities to my new lifestyle. Surprisingly, I have gone from not knowing what to do with my time to practically filling my waking hours with what I enjoy doing.

I have found more time for family and renewed old friendships. I get to exercise more frequently at the gym. And my interest in technology has expanded to include Apple and Microsoft products.

As a result, I regularly attend training sessions at the local Apple store. Professionally, I have stayed involved with MASCA, and I have joined an informal discussion group that meets monthly.

I have also gotten involved in attending musicals in New York, seeing good films, and watching quality television. With the great programs offered by our expanding wireless networks, this has been a challenge — one that I thoroughly enjoy.

If you are thinking about retirement or have already retired, consider putting a plan together to do things are important to you. Do what you want and what you like. You will find that this often involves other people. And you will be bringing greater enjoyment to your new life. ■ COUNSELOR’S NOTEBOOK

The Gift of a Lifetime

By SALLY ANN CONNOLLY MASCA Counselor’s Notebook Editor The following article was originally published in The Danvers Herald (December 31, 2009).

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his year I received the best Christmas gift ever. Loved ones delivered from harm. It doesn’t get any better than that.

At seven o’clock in the evening, the week before Christmas, my daughter Kelly called. In a voice quivering with excitement, she said, “Thank you for the gift you gave us. Our carbon monoxide detector started beeping tonight. I thought the battery was low, so I replaced it. But it continued beeping. We’re all out of the house now, and the firemen are here, looking for the source of the problem.”

What they discovered was a blocked chimney. Carbon monoxide, the byproduct of combustion in their heating system, was unable to escape, and it had continued backing up into the house. Windows that had been sealed shut against the winter wind accelerated the accumulation.

Although I was not standing in subfreezing temperatures as she was at the time, a chill ran through me. What if I hadn’t given them the detector as a housewarming gift? They had moved in before Nicole’s Law went into effect. Although this law requires carbon monoxide detectors in all residences that burn fossil fuels or have an attached garage, my daughter or her husband may not have made the effort to purchase detectors themselves.

What if they hadn’t replaced the battery in the detector? What if they had been asleep on the second floor, far from the detector placed on the first level?

My daughter, her husband, and their four children, ranging in age from one month to nine years, would not have been roused by its insistent alarm.

Carbon monoxide is called “the silent killer.” Although poisonous and deadly, the gas is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, and it is not easily detected. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that “each year, more than 400 Americans die from unintentional CO poisoning, more than 20,000 visit the emergency room and more than 4,000 are hospitalized due to CO poisoning. Fatality is highest among Americans 65 and older.”

Researchers writing in the Journal of

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the American Medical Association say that moderate to severe carbon monoxide poisoning can have lasting, adverse effects on the heart.

This incident has taught my family that compliance with Nicole’s Law saves lives. Detectors must be placed throughout the living quarters, specifically, within ten feet of sleeping areas.

Following recommended safety precautions also makes good sense. The heating system should be cleaned annually, and the chimney and flue checked for flaws. Batteries should be replaced each year. And the detection devices themselves should be replaced according to the manufacturer’s recommendation. Surprisingly, carbon monoxide detectors last only a few years. Testing the operation of the alarm does not indicate that the device itself is still operating properly.

Fact sheets on carbon monoxide and the prevention of carbon monoxide poisoning can be found at www.cpsc.gov/

cpscpub/pubs/466.html and www.cdc. gov/co/faqs.htm. A consumer’s guide to the requirements in Massachusetts can be found by Googling “Massachusetts Department of Public Safety carbon monoxide alarms.”

Now that the holidays are over, I am reconsidering what I will buy for my children next year. Rather than an extra toy for the grandchildren, I will give them the gift of life: a new carbon monoxide detector. And I may throw in a smoke detector as well.

-------------------Author’s note: This year, a close friend of Kelly’s husband succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning. The cause was faulty heating equipment and a non-working detector. Please take heed and keep your carbon monoxide and smoke detectors in working order. The CPSC website can now be found at http://www.cpsc.gov/ en/Safety-Education/ ■

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Graduate students selected for conference awards

RESEARCH NOTES

Brooke Carney Bridgewater State University

Kerry Jannergren Salem State University

Gifted children get lost in the shuffle

William English Salem State University

Christopher Koch Boston College

Jennifer Jameson Bridgewater State University

Katie Kozak Bridgewater State University

JANUARY 6, 2014 — Gifted children are likely to be the next generation’s innovators and leaders — and yet, the exceptionally smart are often invisible in the classroom, lacking the curricula, teacher input and external motivation to reach full potential.

This conclusion comes as the result of the largest scientific study of the profoundly gifted to date, a 30-year study conducted by researchers at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of education and human development.

David Lubinski, professor of psychology and human development at Peabody, led the study, which tracked 300 gifted children from age 13 until age 38, logging their accomplishments in academia, business, culture, health care, science and technology. The results were recently published in a paper titled “Who Rises to the Top? Early Indicators,” in Psychological Science.

Lubinski concludes that those with extraordinary talent in mathematical and verbal reasoning ultimately were motivated to achieve at higher levels if course material was presented at the advanced rates at which they learned. “Ability, motivation and opportunity all play roles in developing exceptional human capacity and providing the support needed to cultivate it throughout life," he said.

Award winners agree to attend the evening reception on April 7, to act as a conference volunteer, and to use the funds ($75) toward conference attendance expenses.

— Science Daily, http://www.sciencedaily.com/ releases/2014/01/140106155946.htm, Accessed January 7, 2014.

College education pays off “On virtually every measure of economic well-being and career attainment—from personal earnings to job satisfaction to the share employed full time—young college graduates are outperforming their peers with less education. And when today’s young adults are compared with previous generations, the disparity in economic outcomes between college graduates and those with a high school diploma or less formal schooling has never been greater in the modern era….Overall, the survey and economic analysis consistently find that college graduates regardless of generation are doing better than those with less education.”

— Pew Research Center, “The Rising Cost of Not Going to College,” Pew Research Social & Demographic Trends, February 11, 2014.

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COUNSELOR’S NOTEBOOK

GRAY (continued from page 1) DESE indicated that graduation rates and MassCore completion were two target areas they wanted these districts to address. The districts embarked on a variety of approaches designed to impact data points related to these two target areas.

Many districts worked on developing and implementing guidance curriculum, others focused on getting more seniors to take a fourth year of math, others on improving the ninth grade promotion rate.

Many of the interventions chosen by

outcomes.

On Monday, April 7, these districts will convene one last time. They will prepare more results reports and have a chance to share with their colleagues. They will dialogue with members of DESE’s Educator Policy, Preparation, and Leadership Unit on the correlation between the work they have been doing and District Determined Measures for school counselors.

The summit is open to anyone who wants to attend and will be an excellent professional development opportunity for

counselors from other districts interested in MA Model implementation. Registration information can be found at www.masca.org.

Stay tuned for additional data reports on the work of these districts, because, as you know, the graduation rates for the Class of 2014 will not be available until the middle of next school year. In the meantime, congratulations and thank you to the thirty-seven RTTT 4C districts for the hard work they have done and promising results we are seeing. â–

In 2011(Baseline) there was a 5.8% gap between RTTT districts and State average. In 2013 there was a 3.2% gap.

districts to implement (using the MA Model as a framework for change) will take several years before a change in graduation rate or MassCore completion will be realized. However, the districts are collecting data and showing an impact on these more proximal outcomes that research says will make a difference long term.

Even so, the aggregate data from the participating districts on four-year graduation rates is very promising. The schools participating in Project 4C show a faster rate of improvement relative to the fouryear graduation rate than the state average as evidenced in the two charts shown below. While we cannot say that Project 4C is solely responsible for these gains, it seems fair to say that counselors working differently contributed to improved APRIL 2014

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FOCUS ON HEALTH AND SAFETY CTE found in soccer player The disease usually associated with the sports of boxing and football has now been implicated in the death of soccer player Patrick Grange, age 29. Researchers at Boston University who studied his brain found evidence of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). Dr. Ann McKee says that the “extensive frontal lobe damage” was most likely the result of years of heading the soccer ball.

“Heading would seem to be innocuous compared with the brutal hits that can be dealt in a football or hockey game, but the damage, according to studies, can add up. Headers in soccer are associated with microstructural damage to brain tissue and memory problems; and an Italian study linked them with ALS.” — Stephanie Smith, CNN, “First soccer, rugby players diagnosed with CTE,” www.cnn.com, February 28, 2014.

Concussion worries affect youth football participation “The nation’s largest youth football program, Pop Warner, saw participation drop 9.5 percent between 2010-12, a sign that the concussion crisis that began in the NFL is having a dramatic impact at the lowest rungs of the sport.

According to data provided to ‘Outside the Lines,’ Pop Warner lost 23,612 players, thought to be the largest twoyear decline since the organization began keeping statistics decades ago. Consistent annual growth led to a record 248,899 players participating in Pop Warner in 2010; that figure fell to 225,287 by the 2012 season.”

— Steve Fainaru and Mark Fainary-Wada, “Youth football participation drops,” ESPN.com, November 14, 2014.

Adolescent pot use leaves lasting mental deficits DURHAM, NC, AUGUST 27, 2012 — The persistent, dependent use of marijuana before age 18 has been shown to cause lasting harm to a person’s intelligence, attention and memory, according to an international research team.

Among a long-range study cohort of more than 1,000 New Zealanders, individuals who started using cannabis in adolescence and used it for years afterward showed an average decline in IQ of 8 points when their age 13 and age 38 IQ tests were compared. Quitting pot did not appear to reverse the loss either, said lead researcher Madeline Meier, a post-doctoral researcher at Duke University. The results appear online August 27 in PNAS. The key variable in this is the age of onset for marijuana use and the brain's development, Meier said. Study subjects who didn’t take up pot until they were adults with fully-formed brains did not show similar mental declines. Before age 18, however, the brain is still being organized and remodeled to become more efficient, she said, and may be more vulnerable to damage from drugs.

— Madeline H. Meier, Avshalom Caspi, et al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, "Persistent Cannabis Users Show Neuropsychological Decline From Childhood to Midlife,” https://today.duke.edu/2012/08/potiq, August 27, 2012. ■

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COUNSELOR’S NOTEBOOK

Gay and Lesbian School Counselors: Making a Difference

By MARY KAY SCHOEN The following is an excerpt from ASCA School Counselor (May 1, 2011)

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ne person. It hardly seems too much to ask.

“The research says that if LGBTQ students know that there is one person in the school who is supportive of them — gay or straight — it can make a difference in their mental health,” says Ken Jackson, head school counselor at Decatur High School near Atlanta, GA. The positive effect extends to grades, attendance and academic aspirations, according to a national survey by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) and increases with more support.

Do school counselors who are gay or lesbian themselves have an inside track— or perhaps a personal mandate—to foster that supportive climate in which lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth can thrive? Yes and no, say four gay/lesbian school counselors from around the country who are out to staff and, in varying degrees, to students.

“As a lesbian counselor I get it. I know how that feels,” says Dawn Ayles, a middle school counselor in California. “But guidance is about empowering students to be who they feel they are. You guide them to a platform that allows them to use their own voice.”

A shared goal of the four is everyday acceptance of diversity in sexual identity—the same acceptance for which civil rights activists have long been working with regard to racial and cultural diversity. They want to see a school climate in which LGBTQ students have not one supportive school counselor but a host of adult and student allies. This means educators who can say, “Suzie, she’s my student, and that’s the most important thing. If she’s gay, so what?” says Bob Bardwell, school counselor at Monson High School in Monson, MA. “But if she’s struggling, that becomes an issue academically.”

What gay and lesbian school counselors can offer their schools is an acute awareness of the situation of LGBTQ students, who share with all adolescents the difficult task of defining who they are and how they will be in the world.

“Adolescence is a tough time,” Bardwell says. “They all need to know that we care about them and want them to be successful in school. That’s the biggest APRIL 2014

message.” But progress on gender-identity issues and acceptance varies widely from school to school and region to region. These school counselors talk about starting where they find themselves — professionally and personally— and moving the ball forward.

Starting places In Bardwell’s small Massachusetts high school there are laws on the books protecting against bullying and discrimination due to sexual orientation. There are currently a few openly gay students, and he has been counseling another student who recently came out to his family members, who’ve been supportive. “But this student is scared right now,” Bardwell says. “He fears he’s going to get teased and harassed, and that’s real.”

Students who feel threatened and unsupported “are the kinds of kids you lose, the ones who drop out, the ones who get into trouble, the ones who run away,” says Patricia Halama, school counselor at

Truman Middle School in Albuquerque, N.M. Halama’s principal recognizes this, she says, and has always supported counseling programs for all their students and Halama’s efforts on behalf of LGBTQ students.

Although her district is certainly not as liberal as Massachusetts—she describes it as “Hispanic, very Catholic, very conservative”— in Halama’s middle school and most of the secondary schools in her district some staff members display a Safe Zone sticker in their rooms, indicating they are allies for LGBTQ students.

Halama and another teacher started a lunch bunch that grew into a gay-straight alliance (GSA) after-school program.

“Kids come, we talk, show movies, play games,” she says. “If they want to talk they can; if not, we just have fun. A lot of straight kids who come have parents or sisters or brothers or cousins who are gay. They want to come and be supportive of the whole group.” ■

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American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Position The Professional School Counselor and LGBTQ Youth (Adopted 1995, Revised 2000, 2005, 2007, 2013) Professional school counselors promote equal opportunity and respect for all individuals regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression. Professional school counselors work to eliminate barriers impeding student development and achievement and are committed to the academic, career and personal / social development of all students.

The Rationale Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth often experience challenges to their academic and personal / social development as a result of being exposed to a negative school climate. Students report feeling unsafe in school due to their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression and report experiencing homophobic remarks, harassment and bullying (GLSEN, 2011).

LGBTQ individuals are at greater risk for suicidal behavior than their heterosexual peers and often face multiple risk factors (SPRC, 2008). Professional school counselors realize these issues affect healthy

student development and psychological well-being.

The Professional School Counselor’s Role The professional school counselor works with all students through the stages of identity development and understands this process may be more difficult for LGBTQ youth. School counselors provide counseling and individual student planning services to LGBTQ students as needed to promote academic achievement and personal/social development. Professional school counselors are committed to the affirmation of all youth regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression and work to create safe and affirming schools.

As a part of a comprehensive school counseling program, professional school counselors: • assist students with feelings about their sexual orientation and gender identity as well as the identity of others in an accepting and nonjudgmental manner • advocate for equitable educational

MASCA Spring Conference 2014 DoubleTree Hilton, Leominster Tuesday, April 8, 2014 Keynoter: Kevin Jennings “Addressing LGBT Issues in Schools” ---------------------“One of the strategies I’ve used is to get established and prove that I’m a good counselor. Then if people find out I’m gay, they’ll be less likely to judge me or question whether I’m competent.”

— Bob Bardwell, Director of School Counseling, Monson Innovation High School

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and extracurricular opportunities for all students regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression • address offensive language, harassment and bullying that lead to a hostile school environment • address absenteeism, lowered educational aspirations and academic achievement and low psychological wellbeing as a result of victimization and feeling unsafe at school (GLSEN, 2012) • provide a safe space for LGBTQ students and allies such as gay-straight alliance clubs • promote sensitivity and acceptance of diversity among all students and staff to include LGBTQ students and diverse family systems • advocate for the rights of families to access and participate in their student’s education and school activities without discrimination (GLSEN, 2001) • support an inclusive curriculum at all grade levels • model language that is inclusive of sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression • advocate for adoption of school policies addressing discrimination and promoting safe and supportive school environments (Robinson & Espelage, 2012) • promote violence prevention programs to create a safe school environment • encourage staff training on inclusive practices, creating an affirming school environment, accurate information and risk factors for LGBTQ students (GLSEN, 2001) • identify LGBTQ community resources for students and families

Summary Professional school counselors promote affirmation, respect and equal opportunity for all individuals regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression. Professional school counselors promote awareness and education of issues related to LGBTQ students as well as allies and encourage a safe and affirming school environment. ■ COUNSELOR’S NOTEBOOK

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Massachusetts School Counselors Association, Inc. COUNSELOR’S NOTEBOOK Sally Ann Connolly, Editor

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID NEWBURYPORT, MA PERMIT NO. 96

IN CASE OF NON-DELIVERY, RETURN TO: Donna M. Brown P.O. Box 366 Bryantville, MA 02327

Your membership renewal date is indicated by year and month on your address label above.

To renew your membership, go to MASCA’s website, www.masca.org.

MASCA Spring Conference 2014 DoubleTree by Hilton Leominster Tuesday, April 8, 2014 Registration / Breakfast / Exhibit Hall 6:45-7:30 a.m.

President’s Reception Monday, April 7 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.

Graduate students, new professionals, Counselor Educators, practitioners, retirees, and supporters of the school counseling field are welcomed to attend the Spring 2014 MASCA Conference’s President’s Reception.

Recognition of the Graduate Student Scholarships and other awards will take place.

President’s Welcome 7:30-7:45 a.m.

Graduate Student Poster Presentation Session & Exhibit Hall 7:45-8:20 a.m.

Morning Learning Sessions 8:30-9:20 a.m.

Keynote Session 9:30 -10:30 a.m.

Kevin Jennings “Education for All: Addressing LGBT Issues in Schools”

Exhibit Hall & Luncheon 10:30 a.m.- 12:00 p.m.

Afternoon Learning Sessions 12:00-3:00 p.m.

MASCA General Session 3:10-4:00 p.m.