- Northwestern is adding a Full-Time Asst. High School Principal for next school year!
We have separated our Asst. High School Principal and Athletic Director responsibilities so that we can have a full-time Asst. High School Principal beginning next school year.
- Northwestern is adding two additional guidance counselor positions for next school year!
We will be increasing our guidance counselors from our current 1 ES/MS and 1 HS to a new structure of 1 ES, 1 MS, 1 HS, and a part-time 5-9 guidance counselor to support students in a variety of ways, with the focus on transition support between buildings, positive relationships, and overseeing an adult-student mentorship program.
Our guidance counselors have numerous roles. Every year the demands from the state have strained our guidance counselors. We currently have a shared guidance counselor between the ES and MS. We have one guidance counselor in the HS. We also have a Pupil Services Support Team and a PBIS Team, among others. We have been discussing for some time the need to increase guidance and other support services. The repercussions of COVID and our changing society has made this a growing need. We feel our revised structures will help tremendously as outlined below.
This past Wed. the Northwestern Board of Education approved the addition of 1 full-time and 1 part-time guidance counselors. We are also looking into the OHuddle adult mentoring program next month and may pursue purchasing services from OHuddle for an individual to oversee this program as well. Our new guidance structure next year will be:
- 1 ES guidance counselor
- 1 MS guidance counselor
- 1 HS guidance counselor
- 1 part-time transitions Gr.5-9 guidance counselor
We also have the absolute best School Psychologist who is full-time as well!
Northwestern also contracts outside agencies who provide individual counseling and small group counseling.
- Training and Professional Development Opportunities.
Northwestern provides several training opportunities for our staff in a variety of areas and aim to expand the training and drive a strong PBIS initiative next school year and further develop our student relationships and conflict resolution, and Bullying Prevention efforts. Our staff have many additional trainings on a plethora of topics annually. We have the best trained administrators and staff anywhere.
- Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a systematic approach of handling behaviors. The system includes 3 tiers- Tier I, Tier II, and Tier III, which begins at the most basic level of implementation (i.e.: all classrooms, busses, etc.) and moves to the highest level of support (i.e.: individual interventions based on specific needs). This takes time to train and implement. We have been working through Tier I and have had some training of Tier II. We have elements for all tiers; however, have not fully implemented the entire system with fidelity. The district has adjusted some of the demands on Curriculum Director Julie McCumber, who will lead this district-wide effort here at Northwestern beginning next school year.
Crisis Prevention Institute Training (CPI). This training is for Nonviolent Crisis Intervention, teaching individuals how to de-escalate a situation and how to appropriately respond. This is open to all staff; however, select individuals are also chosen to have this training who may work closely with students who have increased behavioral incidents (i.e.: Intervention Specialists, In-School Supervision Staff, Paraprofessionals, Administrators, etc.). This training has to be conducted annually.
Student Relationships, Conflict Resolution, and Bullying Prevention. We have offered bullying prevention in-service for staff; however, new Vector training will be able to monitor the frequency of this training for all staff in the future.
There is so much more Vector has to offer. We are planning to implement additional research-based programs for staff and students next year.