Because of a growing need for crisis counseling assistance at each campus, and the ongoing pandemic, Frenship created the position of Crisis Intervention Counselor. This position was filled by Amy Smallwood, who was previously on the Frenship High School Counseling team.
Smallwood said that over the last few years, the District realized that the need for more crisis counseling was on the rise and that they would eventually need someone to assist counselors. Smallwood explained that because of COVID-19 many of the previous resources that students and their families were familiar with changed.
“I am able to go in and provide additional support,” Smallwood said. “We are just making sure we have good, updated resources to assist students and counselors.”
Smallwood said because of COVID-19 counselors are having to adapt to new changes and additional assistance with Virtual Learning students. She said that many counselors have created Virtual Guidance Lessons.
“They are going into Virtual Learning classrooms and not only introducing themselves and saying, ‘Hey you can talk to me or request a meeting with me,’ but they are also creating guidance lessons,” Smallwood said. “Whatever a face-to-face student is getting, whether it’s on kindness or whatever they are working on, teachers and counselors are giving it to the Virtual Learning students as well.”
Smallwood said that they have been diligent in contacting Virtual Learning students to ensure that they still feel connected, engaged, and like they are part of the Frenship family, even from distance.
“We’re contacting all of the Virtual Learners,” Smallwood said. “We are making sure they know how to contact a counselor, where it is on the website, making sure they have good phone numbers. We are making sure they know that just because they are Virtual Learners, that they can still be seen and request an appointment like a face-to-face student can.”
Jessica Neitsch is the counselor at Willow Bend Elementary. She said she has been creative to assist with students needs and calm their stressors during this unprecedented time.
“Sometimes the stress of COVID at home is heightened because of finances, because someone they know is sick, sometimes because they are scared that someone they know will get sick, so I think at school it is important to educate and give information without creating fear,” Neitsch said.
Neitsch said her main goal is to lessen that stressor at school for in-person students and for Virtual Learners, so that students can function and learn.
“I reached out to my Virtual Learning teachers and asked if once per week I could get on and for the first five minutes just say ‘Hi’ and see all the faces,” Neitsch said. “I remind them of our character word that we are using for the six-weeks so that they can be thinking about that and talking about it at home. I am just trying to include them. It is really important, especially for those kids that are at home – this is their only link.”
Qualimetra Chapman, Westwind Elementary counselor, is getting teachers involved as well. She has set up enrichment periods where over the course of a week, each student will learn about mindfulness.
“To make this possible, it takes all hands on-deck,” Chapman said. “I get to work with a team of five who work with a different class every week. Together, we reach every student in the building each week. During these 45 minutes of enrichment, students learn about mindfulness and have time to practice, as well as cover a topic for the month.”
Chapman said she heard a Ted Talk that inspired her to implement mindfulness teaching. She said she read and researched as much as she could to be able to confidently help teachers apply these practices in their classrooms.
“It definitely impacts students differently,” Chapman said. “Students have expressed that they feel relaxed and ready to take care of the task at hand. Mindfulness teaches students to pause and think so they can make the best choice. Students who battle anxiety have shared that they are able to ease their worries quicker than normal.”
One of the teachers implementing mindfulness teaching at Westwind is First Grade teacher Amber Kendrick. Every day after lunch and recess, Kendrick’s class listens to calming music, sits in their favorite relaxation spot, and practices mindfulness breathing techniques.
“Taking time to breathe has made a difference in the way students behave,” Kendrick said, “as well as their mental state of mind for learning.”
If you or your student need to connect with a counselor, please visit our counseling page.