“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,” says IDOE School Counselor Consultant Amanda Culhan. “We recognize Caston Schools for understanding the tremendous impact that school counselors can have in helping students succeed in school and also to plan for postsecondary success.”
Caston Elementary and Caston JR SR High School join just over 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 program 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 Gold Star schools are eligible to receive the nation’s highest recognition - the American School Counselor Association’s Recognized ASCA Model Program or RAMP Award. The 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, Caston Elementary and Caston JR SR High School submitted online portfolios with documentation that it meets the nine program standards found in Indiana’s Program Standards for School Counseling.
Additionally, administrators, counselors and teachers 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 initiative was being developed. Grant funding from the Lily Endowment Counseling Planning Grant was used to fund the research and meeting time that was required to complete award requirements.
“The school counselors and others at Caston Schools have worked hard to ensure that students have an accountable school counseling program that meets their academic, career, and social/emotional development needs,” Sue Reynolds, President of the American Student Achievement Institute 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.”
Press Release, Caston School Corporation
