TASP 2019 Executive Board Nominations

The TASP Nominations Committee is currently accepting nominations for our 2018 elections cycle. Details for the TASP Executive Board positions can be found here. Please consider developing your applications/nominations as soon as possible as the deadline to submit nominations and complete materials is Sunday, September 9, 2018. You may nominate yourself or anyone you think is qualified. If you are interested in any position, please contact Brook Roberts, Past President and chair of the Nominations Committee at [email protected] If you have any questions about the responsibilities of any of the positions you may also contact any of the current TASP Board members for further information.

School Psychology Ratios in Texas Survey

The purpose of this brief survey is to collect data on current ratios of school psychologists to enrolled students in the state of Texas.  We are collecting this data in effort to help change policy and increase the availability of LSSPs in schools across the state.  We ask for a contact name and email address for the sole purpose of contacting you if we have further questions about the information you have provided. Your personal information is confidential and will not be shared by the Texas Association of School Psychologists.  We appreciate your time in completing this survey as it will help us in collecting information to advocate for more school psychologists/LSSPs in our state.  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at [email protected]

Summer Institute 2018

We are pleased to announce our Summer Institute for 2018 is quickly approaching and registration is now available.  This year, TASP is partnering with the Arkansas School Psychology Association (ASPA) to offer a joint professional development opportunity. Summer Institute 2018 aims to attract school psychologists in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana in effort to strengthen connections and camaraderie as a professional body with neighboring associations. The Summer Institute will be held June 21-22^nd at the Arkansas Convention Center in Texarkana, AR.

This year, we are excited to offer speakers to provide information on practical applications of school psychology.  Dr. John Murphy from the University of Central Arkansas will present two sessions on Thursday, June 21^st.  His morning session will focus on strategies for building change-focused relationships in counseling and consultation and his afternoon session will target solution-focused strategies for working with parents in schools.  Dr. Andrea Ogonosky is a renowned behavior consultant and will also present two sessions on Thursday.  Her morning presentation will explore how to collect, analyze, and interpret RtI behavioral data in order to problem solve and develop effective and efficient interventions.  Dr. Ogonosky’s afternoon session will take a different approach and further dive into behavior interventions and common challenges in implementing strategies.

On Friday, June 21^st, Ms. Jaime Goldstein from the North Texas Center for Mindfulness will present a morning session providing an overview of mindfulness as well as ethical considerations and implications of mindful practices in school and counseling settings.  Concurrently, Ms. Amy Patenaude from Multi-Health Systems will be presenting how to integrate technology into practice when evaluating executive function using the Comprehensive Executive Function Inventory (CEFI). Attendees will have the opportunity to practice skills using CEFI data and case studies.

Ms. Jaime Goldstein will return for a second session Friday afternoon and review evidenced-based interventions in mindfulness for attendees to utilize in practice.  Attendees will have the opportunity to practice simple techniques during the session as well.  Dr. Julia Strait from the University of Houston-Clear Lake will also present Friday afternoon.  Dr. Strait is an expert in trauma-informed assessment and intervention and will educate her audience on how traumatic stress impacts children’s cognitive, academic, social, emotional, and behavioral functioning; review evidence-based interventions; and use a research-based framework to understand and recommend appropriate interventions for children affected by complex trauma. To read more about our speakers and sessions, forward this handout to your colleagues.

Registration for Summer Institute is now open.  Take advantage of the early registration pricing through April 16^th! Registration will continue after April 16^th through June 21^st.  Students are encouraged and invited to attend at a discounted rate.  We hope you will join us for this exciting event as it will be a new endeavor for us all.  As always, TASP appreciates our members and their continued support in helping us advocate for the profession. More information can be found here.

Mental Health Matters

Join TASP in advocating for mental health services not only in our schools, but access to necessary services and resources across the state! To raise additional funds, we are selling our Mental Health Matters T-Shirt for $20 (shipping included in price). T-shirts are Gildan Soft Style and 100% cotton.  Proceeds from the fundraiser will contribute to our Government and Professional Relations and Public Information and Relations funds to continue our advocating efforts. To order, please click on the shirt on the right and complete the order form.    

LSSP Evaluation Tools

TASP has come to recognize that school leaders often desire to have a single evaluation tool for all school professionals that require student outcome data to be linked to the evaluation and personnel decisions. This model presents unique challenges when evaluating LSSPs in the school setting. Evaluation tools are often designed around a narrowly defined role, thereby discouraging LSSPs from providing more comprehensive services to positively help students and families. Using the NASP Practice Model as a guideline, TASP has developed a model evaluation tool to use when evaluating LSSPs in the school setting.

TASP is promoting this tool as it establishes the full range of services that can be reasonably expected of LSSPs. It also promotes consistency of practice and clarity of expectations. It allows for the practical role of the LSSP to be gradually aligned with the NASP Practice Model. TASP is mindful that critical to this is the workload and capacity (e.g., time, resources, and ratios) for an individual to provide those services. On the program level, districts should commit to making available a range of services that can meet student needs. Districts need to consider how these standards are reflected in the professional expectations of LSSPs, including how job descriptions and personnel evaluation articulate these standards.

TASP hopes this model evaluation tool will provide the school administrators who are responsible for evaluating LSSPs a mechanism for determining the true value of LSSPs in the public school setting.

LSSP Evaluation Tool          Sample LSSP Job Description

Learn more about TASP!

Would you like to know TASP's stance on an issue related to school psychology in Texas?
The Executive Board of TASP adopted the following position statements in August 2014. Position statements and resolutions represent the official policy of TASP and are approved by the elected members of the TASP Executive Board.
Click here to read the statements