President’s Letter: DSCA Is Here for You

It is my honor and privilege to be your new president of the Delaware School Counselor Association for the 2020–2021 school year. This association has done so many wonderful things for school counselors in our state including providing resources to our members, offering professional development opportunities in the form of two conferences per year, organizing the Delaware School Counselor of the Year process, providing a School Counselor Appreciation Dinner each year during National School Counseling Week, giving Delaware school counselors opportunities to network within our state, and so much more.

The DSCA Board of Directors and the committee chairs continue to strive to bring all of these resources to you. The directors and committee chairs met this summer at DSCA’s annual Leadership Development Institute, and we have started some great planning for the upcoming school year.

I am pleased to formally introduce our 2020-2021 Board of Directors:

Frank Shockley, President
Krissy Hall, Vice President
Kristin Nye, Treasurer
Catherine Ward, Secretary

Directors:
Jessilene Corbett
Shannan Beck
Maud Forsberg-Davis
Jennifer Davis
Karen Sundquist

I also formally introduce to you our 2020-2021 committee chairs:

Professional Recognition Committee: Tammy Taylor
Professional Development Committee: Rachel Herskowitz
Technology Committee: John Grant
College and Career Committee: Bridget Smith
Membership Committee: Lauren Hindsley and Mindy Adams
Elections Committee: Kendra York
Public Relations Committee: Laura Malmstrom
Advocacy Committee (vacant)

Some recent highlights in our organization include our very own Kirsten Coughlin of Howard High School being recognized as the 2020 Delaware School Counselor of the Year. In addition to providing comprehensive counseling services to her high school students, Kirsten has also been a strong voice and advocate for school counselors across the state of Delaware. Congratulations, Kirsten!

At the ASCA national conference this year, DSCA was recognized as being an official association for 55 years! This is an amazing accomplishment as an association, and we look forward to many more years of providing services and resources to you, our members.

Although so much is going on in 2020 and we cannot predict how long these situations will last, I know from my experience in DSCA that our school counselors are up for the challenge in continuing to deliver the important services they provide in our Delaware schools. We will make it through these challenges together because we are not just school counselors, we are family!

Take care, be safe and have a great start of your school year.

Contact Frank Shockley, DSCA president, at frank.shockley@mydsca.org.