November 14-15, 2024
Indianapolis Marriott East
Indianapolis, IN

November 14-15, 2024
Indianapolis Marriott East
Indianapolis, IN

Indiana School Counselor Association 2024 Conference logo
Indiana School Counselor Association 2024 Conference logo
Indiana School Counselor Association 2024 Conference logo

Breakout Sessions

We look forward to having you join us at the Indiana School Counselor Association Conference!

Thursday, November 14, 2024

8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. Session 1

Counseling the Diverse Learner

Lead Presenter: Crystal Bratton

Often times, school counselors do not know how to appropriately support the school’s population of diverse learners. For students identified with a disability and receiving special education services, or those enrolled in English Language Learner (ELL) supports, teachers often rely on the Teacher of Record (TOR) or ELL teacher. However, counselors can and should be a part of the student’s team of supports.

Guiding Young Hearts Through Loss: Strategies for Children and Caregivers

Lead Presenter: Amanda Davis

Grief in childhood necessitates specialized support strategies that acknowledge the unique ways children process loss. Effective grief support not only aids in the child’s emotional and psychological adjustment, but also empowers families and support systems to navigate the complexities of bereavement together.

Harnessing the Power of AI for School Counselors

Lead Presenter: Kelly Dunn

Using online AI tools to help complete many of a school counselor’s daily tasks can drastically reduce the time they typically take. Everything from writing college recommendation letters to drafting email responses to parents to generating lesson plans with learning objectives and assessments can be done using these tools once you know the basics of AI. See how you can make online AI tools your counseling program’s virtual “assistant.”

Maximizing Student Success: The Power of Check-In/Check-Out Procedures

Lead Presenter: Candace Gadomski

Unlock student success with our workshop on check-in/check-out procedures. Learn to implement effective practices, build positive relationships, and create a supportive school culture. Join us to maximize student achievement, behavior, and well-being.

Parent Resilience and Raising Healthy Children

Lead Presenter: Ashley Wright

As parents, we all want to raise healthy and resilient children who can navigate life’s challenges with confidence. What happens when we, as parents, face our own struggles and challenges? How can we maintain a positive relationship with our children while also taking care of ourselves? Resilience plays a vital role in helping build stronger family systems and relationships. It directly impacts our children’s well-being. In this session, you’ll learn to view the world through the eyes of your child, and connect with them on a deeper level, even in the face of challenging circumstances. Discover the power of resilience, and how you can cultivate it within yourself and your family for raising healthy, resilient children.

Pupils in Peril: How School Leaders Can Combat Teen Mental Health Decline

Lead Presenter: Becca Finnegan

As our nation’s youth mental health crisis continues, psychologists have deemed schools as a prime environment for intervention. However, many U.S. school counselors, especially those in rural and low-income areas, are struggling to meet the increased need for student mental health support due to lack of funding and/or staff. Our panel of experts will provide insights on the prevalence of mental health issues among our youth and strategies schools can take to help.

Surviving the FAFSA

Lead Presenter: William Wozniak

This past FAFSA season presented challenges for counselors, students, and families like no other year. With the 2025-2026 FAFSA season underway, your friends at INvestEd are still here to help. Join us for our session where we’ll share updates from FSA (Federal Student Aid), what we’ve been seeing in the field, best practices to assist students in the process, and how we can help with the FAFSA as a graduation requirement.

10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Session 2

Data Superpowers: Unleash SCUTA for Dynamic School Counseling and Advocacy

Lead Presenter: Sarah Horn

Discover the power of leveraging data with the SCUTA (School Counselor Use of Time Analysis) tool to build your counseling program and drive data-informed decisions. Learn to collect, analyze and interpret data using SCUTA to identify areas of strength and opportunities for growth. Through real-world examples, explore how this data enables you to align your counseling activities with state standards and educational goals.

Elementary School Counseling Groups

Lead Presenter: Jessica Johnson

Learn and explore ways to run small groups in the Elementary setting. We will discuss ways to make the most out of your Tier 2 interventions, different models that can be used in small groups, choosing your participants, choosing topics, and more.

Empowering Multilingual Students: ML Ambassador Program

Lead Presenter: Sylvania Hernandez

Are you struggling to support your multilingual, newcomer students?  Do you need a practical solution that you can implement? This session will provide a strengths-based approach to overcoming barriers for your multilingual students. You will learn how to create a sustainable program that will enhance the counseling and educational process as well as empower students to take ownership over their learning and accelerate their success.

Ethics Update

Lead Presenter: Julie Hill

We will provide an ethics update on Indiana legislation, federal updates, and review case studies of current events and topics that are on every school counselor’s mind. Our session will provide background first, then review the Ethical Decision-Making Model, then jump into interactive groups or partners to review case studies together. Resources will be shared.

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: Intervention Strategies for Both

Lead Presenter: Judy Justice

As the number of children living with their grandparents has been increasing over the past few decades, the demand for behavioral management, social support, and academic guidance increases as well. This meta-analysis informs this research presentation and provides examples of interventions. Handouts will be provided to include evidence-based research, practice, and interventions.

Is College the ONLY Ticket to a STEM Career?

Lead Presenter: Ashley Gastel

We have been telling students that they need a college degree to be successful. While we push students into college at a 70% clip, the economy tells us that 70% of careers in demand today do not require a college degree. The skills gap in this country is real and you need to understand the Rule of 1-2-7. Skilled trades are in demand and provide students with a great career that pays well. Come join Ashley Gastel to learn what those careers are and how you can reach more of your students. Learn what Gen Z students are looking for in a career. Discover ways to get more parent involvement. Learn how you can get industry more involved in your school. See what UTI is doing to get girls involved in STEM Careers. Finally, learn how students can make school more affordable to avoid debt after graduation.

Resource Roundup: Counselor Connections and Tool Box Expansion

Lead Presenter: Amanda Culhan

Seasoned school counselors might remember the level sharing sessions from past ISCA conferences. This popular connection time is back, but this time you can leave your photocopies at home!  K-12 school counselors are invited to actively engage in grade-level and topic-specific conversations and resource sharing! Counselors will leave feeling reenergized, connected, and walk away with an online folder of resources!  Plan to share a few of your own favorite resources with the group.

Tier 1 Instruction: Equitable Curriculum & Classroom Management Strategies

Lead Presenter: Aaron Munson

Having a Comprehensive School Counseling Program requires Tier 1 instruction, which makes sense, because Tier 1 instruction is the (least used but) most effective way to work with students for school counselors. School counselors are supposed to write and deliver lesson plans, but those are not courses you take to earn your master’s degree in school counseling! Come learn how to write AND deliver classroom lessons that fit your student population!

1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Session 3

Addressing Equity in Career Development: Ensuring Access for All Students

Lead Presenter: Samantha Franklin

This session will help school counselors to understand equity in career development, to identify challenges in equity in career development, to develop strategies to promote equity, to build collaborative partnerships for equity, and to provide accessible career resources and support. The presentation will detail how to monitor and evaluate equity initiatives and how to empower student voices as they pertain to career development.

Building Strong Relationships with Kids and Parents in Poverty

Lead Presenter: Michael Crabtree

Across the nation, schools struggle with closing the achievement gaps with kids in poverty. This presentation will address the unique issues of working with kids and families in poverty, as well as provide ideas and solutions to bridge these gaps.

Equitable Learning: Building Academic Success for All

Lead Presenter: Jessica Chow

Unlock every student’s potential with equity-focused strategies that inspire academic excellence and belonging. Learn how MSD of Wayne Township promotes college and career readiness, empowering ALL students—not just the traditionally engaged—to succeed. This session explores how equitable access to social development, career exploration, and post-secondary planning creates purpose for students at all grade levels. If you’re passionate about breaking barriers, join us to transform your approach!

Fun With Tier 1: Engagement Strategies for Whole Group Instruction

Lead Presenter: Kim Biskner

Looking for fresh activity ideas to incorporate into your Tier 1 lessons? New to whole-group instruction? Join us as we discuss and model a variety of ways to make your Tier 1 content engaging and memorable for elementary students. This session will be interactive and full of movement, music, and fun. You will leave with ideas and resources to take back to your school and use immediately!

Guiding Student Futures: Aligning Career Pathways & Exploration

Lead Presenter: Shaban Varajab

Selecting a college and career readiness platform is a critical decision for any district, impacting how counselors and staff guide students. Join GEAR UP! South Bend to explore key factors of an effective platform, including tools for aligning student data, supporting career exploration, and ensuring seamless transitions from middle to high school. Learn how to evaluate and implement a platform that meets your district’s needs. A brief overview of SchooLinks will also be provided.

Indiana Legislative Updates and Comprehensive School Counseling

Lead Presenter: Rebekah Frazer

This presentation will highlight legislative updates from the 2024 session.  We will highlight initiatives from the Department of Education relevant to or that affect counselors’ work in the field. We will provide an update and outcomes from the Carrying the Torch to Student Success Comprehensive School Counseling program.  We will also share relevant state and federal grant opportunities.

Putting the “Fun” Back in the Fundamentals of School Counseling

Lead Presenter: Sarah Altman

Are you feeling burned out? Are you feeling pressed for time and trying to get through the day? If so, this presentation is for you! Come experience ways to put the “fun” back in the fundamentals of school counseling. Collaborate with others on creative counseling strategies that can be used for quick and effective check-ins with students, groups, and classes to enhance and build strong student relationships.

Supporting Immigrant Students 101

Lead Presenter: Julie Hill

There is much to know about issues facing our immigrant students and families. As this demographic is growing in our schools, it is imperative that as school counselors, we are advocating for their unique needs. After spending a year working with immigration attorneys, I learned how much I did not know. This introductory level session will help school counselors address this growing population.

3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Session 4

A Counselor’s Guide to Helping Families Pay for College!

Lead Presenter: Matthew Milburn

Skyrocketing college costs and competing financial priorities have left families stressed, leading to confusion and resulting in missed opportunities for numerous students. Boost your know-how with insights from our founder. Planning for college expenses is now a must for families, but figuring out the savings and payment route has never been more complex. By attending our The College Funding Coach® session, you will walk away with comprehensive tools, easily accessible information.

Indiana Annual School Counselor Survey: Results and Advocacy

Lead Presenter: Aimee Portteus

Join us for a revealing session on the latest findings from the Indiana Annual School Counselor Survey. Explore key insights into student well-being, academic performance, and counseling services. Learn how these results can inform advocacy efforts to enhance support systems for students statewide.

Leading the Way: Q&A on Comprehensive School Counseling

Lead Presenter: Heidi Schellinger

This presentation invites attendees to hear about the core challenges and opportunities facing school counselors. The panel will share their expertise, strategies, and best practices, offering insights for enhancing counseling programs. Engage in a dynamic dialogue, gain practical solutions, and explore innovative approaches to empower students and foster academic, social, and emotional growth.

Rethinking High School: The Future of the Indiana Diploma

Lead Presenter: Michelle Clarke

School leaders in Indiana are looking to rethink high school for Indiana students and provide an incredible opportunity to help every student find their purpose, know their value, and understand the possibilities for their life’s path. In this session, learn about the new proposed Indiana high school graduation requirements, how this will provide more flexibility for students, and how as a school counselor you can support this future-focused initiative.

Supporting College Readiness and Career Exploration with Pathways PLUS

Lead Presenter: Cheryl Schlemmer

Explore Indiana University’s Pathways PLUS model, developed collaboratively with K-12 schools to provide enhanced support to students pursuing NLPS pathways to four-year degrees. Based on the IU Kokomo program, Tomorrow’s Teachers: Growing Our Own, the model provides wrap-around advising, career exploration, and college readiness support to students. Learn about the model from the student, administrator, and IU staff/faculty perspectives.

The Girls Are Not Alright: What 17,502 Girls Say About Stress, Pressure, and School Connection

Lead Presenter: Lauren Morosky

This session will highlight the latest findings of the largest-of-its-kind national survey, The Girls’ IndexTM, which delves into the thoughts, behaviors, and perceptions of 17,000+ 5th-12th grade girls. This research sheds light on the unprecedented social, emotional, and personal challenges faced by today’s adolescent girls, including the impact of social media, stress culture and confidence issues on various aspects of their lives. This session will provide actionable insights.

Virtual Vibes: Digital Support for Teens in Your School Community

Lead Presenter: Mike Oliver

Student mental health is a hot topic, but many schools don’t have the resources to keep up. In this session, we’ll explore how virtual tools can help schools provide fast support to students from all backgrounds. We’ll uncover strategies for building student resilience, offering support during crises, and promoting self-care for school counselors. With real-world examples and research, you’ll be inspired and equipped with practical tools to create a healthier, more supportive school environment!

Ways to Leverage ASVAB as a Graduation Pathway

Lead Presenter: David Resler

The easiest way to leverage ASVAB as a Graduation Pathway! Join us for an informative presentation on the ASVAB-CEP and its post-test interpretation. Learn some of the current legislative pushes associated with the ASVAB to make it more available to students as a pathway. Discover how this powerful tool assists students in exploring various career options based on their aptitudes and interests. Also, gain insights into interpreting the test results.

CONTACT INFORMATION

866.318.6294

Fax 423.899.4547

registrations@ncyi.org

National Center for Youth Issues
ATTN: IN-SCA
P.O. Box 22185
Chattanooga, TN 37422-2185

All intellectual property rights in and to the ISCA Annual Conference (“the Event”), the content and all materials distributed at or in connection with the Event are owned by the Indiana School Counselor Association and/or the Event sponsors or speakers presenting at the Event. You may not use or reproduce or allow anyone to use or reproduce any trademarks or other trade names appearing at the Event, in any Event content and/or in any materials distributed at or in connection with the Event for any reason without the prior written permission of Indiana School Counselor Association or the presenting speaker.