New Guidance Supervisor Pleases Board with Her Presentation, Plan

The ’s new Guidance Supervisor Stephanie McHugh gave an approximately 15-minute presentation to the Baldwin-Whitehall School Board on Wednesday night.

McHugh, who , explained goals that she has for improving Baldwin-Whitehall’s Guidance Department.

McHugh hopes to establish an American School Counselor Association (ASCA) model at B-W, which she said is “shaped, basically, around three domains.”

The first domain is academic concerns and issues, she said.

“Our goal is to engage the ‘head’ of the Fighting Highlander.

“Career is the second domain. We must empower the ‘hands’ of a Fighting Highlander when we think about our students’ futures and what their plans are to do.”

The third, personal and social domain is to “encourage the ‘heart’ of our Fighting Highlanders,” she said.

McHugh hopes to achieve these three engagements in B-W students through a three-year plan, the first year being a “total program audit.”

“It’s everything,” she said. “I’m addressing and assessing everything: data collection, counselor evaluations, counselor time spent … , the curriculum, the publications and what we’re sharing with every student, communications, technology, and obviously, our articulated vision.”

The second year will be needs assessment, McHugh said.

“(This is) administrative agreements, what counselors do, what administrators do and how they work together and team together, advisory council will really get up and running at that point, curricular revision if there are adjustments that need to be made to what’s delivered to every student … and evaluation adjustments.”

The third year will be a foundation assessment, McHugh said.

“Is the vision still making sense? Do we need to adjust that? Do we need to rearticulate our mission statement? Do we need to take a look at the ASCA standards and make sure we’re meeting the ones we say we’re meeting?”

McHugh said that she hopes for her department to become a Recognized ASCA Model Program, or a RAMP.

McHugh said that her counselors will be “respectful, responsive, and relationship-building.”

School board member Kevin J. Fischer was pleased that McHugh is aiming for RAMP status, saying that accolades and certifications in different fields will only improve the school district’s identity.

Fellow board member John B. Schmotzer called McHugh’s presentation “very impressive” before also sharing his desire for the Guidance Department to encourage some students to learn trades instead of always aiming for college.

“Everyone thinks their kids have to go to college today,” Schmotzer said. “I don’t think that’s absolutely necessary or correct.

“I know there’s tradesmen out there who will make more money than doctors … 

“I’m not discouraging anyone from going to college, because I pushed my four kids to go. However, I believe that schools need to find out what society needs in the workplace … 

“I hope that the trades will become an emphasis in your (McHugh’s) department. I think it’s long overdue to push that emphasis, (even) combining it with a higher-education degree (associate’s or bachelor’s).”

Check back with the Baldwin-Whitehall Patch later on Thursday for more odds and ends from Wednesday night’s school board meeting.