NPHS earns Gold Star from DOE

BAINBRIDGE -- The Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) has named North Putnam High School as a recipient of the Indiana Gold Star School Counseling Award in 2017.

Gold Star schools undergo a rigorous process to raise student achievement by creating local community advisory groups that review student data, set specific student goals and commit to maximizing the time and skills of the school counselor.

The official award presentation will be at the Indiana School Counselor Association (ISCA) fall conference in Indianapolis in November.

“Indiana’s Gold Star schools collaborate with community partners to assist the school counselor(s) in making data-based decisions to ensure that all students are successful,” IDOE School Counselor Consultant Amanda Calhun said. “We recognize North Putnam High School for understanding the tremendous impact that school counselors can have in helping students succeed in school and also to plan for post-secondary success.”

NPHS joins more than 200 Indiana elementary, middle and high schools that have received the Gold Star Award since its inception in 2004.

Six years later, IDOE, in collaboration with the Indiana Student Achievement Institute, began offering professional development opportunities for schools interested in aligning their counseling programs with the Gold Star model. Schools participate in a one-day workshop followed by a series of monthly webcasts to help them make the transformation to the Indiana Gold Star school counseling model.

All Indiana schools are eligible to receive the nation’s highest recognition -- the American School Counselor Association’s Recognized ASCA Model Program (or RAMP) Award. This award demonstrates that a school is “committed to delivering a comprehensive, data-driven school counseling program.”

Indiana is the state with the highest number of RAMP Award recipients in the country.

To qualify for both awards, NPHS submitted an online portfolio with documentation that it meets the nine program standards found in Indiana’s Program Standards for School Counseling.

Additionally, NPHS counselors Lauren Alspaugh and Jesse Winger participated in training sessions during the school year and learned how to implement the Gold Star school counseling model. Students, teachers, parents and community members who serve on the local School Counseling Advisory Council also took part in the initiative. This group provided valuable input and feedback as the Gold Star School Counseling initative was being developed.

Members of the Advisory Council include: Alspaugh, Winger, Jason Chew, Alison Dobbs, Sharon Bone, Linda Merkel, Karen Nelson Heavin, Paula Fry, Dean Gambill, Lynn Scott and Molly King.

“The school counselors and others at NPHS have worked hard to ensure students have an accountable school counseling program that meets their academic, career and social/emotional development needs,” President of the American Student Achievement Institute Sue Reynolds said. “These educators and community members are truly dedicated to the community’s young people and are going the extra mile to help students succeed.”

For more information about the local initiative, persons may contact Alspaugh at 522-6282.