INTRODUCTION
School Profile
At first glance, LPHS stands out within District 299 as a high performing school. With an enrollment of 2,244 in 2013-2014, 65% were ready for college and 81% graduated within 4 years. The school even has a separate building solely dedicated to its Freshman students.
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LPHS prides itself on its racial, ethnic and socioeconomic diversity. Approximately 54% of LPHS students qualify for free or reduced lunch. In 2013-2014, 30.8% students identify as Hispanic, 28% students identify as White, 26.2% identify as Black, 10.7% identify as Asian, 3.8% identify as Multiracial, 0.4% identity as American Indian and 0.1% identify as Pacific Islander. In addition, according to the school counselors, the majority of the students commute from surrounding Chicago neighborhoods. This adds a diverse element to the school culture in that many students use some type of transportation, public or private, to get to and from school. Roughly 40% utilize the train, 30% ride the bus, 20% walk or ride bikes and 10% use a car.
Academically, LPHS reaches for and achieves high standards. Over the past 25 years, LPHS has received honors in city competitions in both vocal and instrumental music. LPHS is ranked #2 in Performance Arts in Illinois and, according to US News and World Report in 2013, it was rated the #11 high school in Illinois. The average ACT composite score was 22.3 in 2011 and increasing. LPHS offers 22 Advanced Placement (AP) courses to its students, as well as an International Baccalaureate (IB) program, which has been among the top 10% worldwide since 1984.
The School Counseling department at LPHS consists of eight total counselors in addition to one College/Career Coach and one Social Worker. The counselors are assigned to a certain grade level and are widely known by students. The LPHS Counseling Department includes a variety of resources on their webpage, such as counselor contact information, bulletins for each grade level and resources to assist in college readiness.
Academically, LPHS reaches for and achieves high standards. Over the past 25 years, LPHS has received honors in city competitions in both vocal and instrumental music. LPHS is ranked #2 in Performance Arts in Illinois and, according to US News and World Report in 2013, it was rated the #11 high school in Illinois. The average ACT composite score was 22.3 in 2011 and increasing. LPHS offers 22 Advanced Placement (AP) courses to its students, as well as an International Baccalaureate (IB) program, which has been among the top 10% worldwide since 1984.
The School Counseling department at LPHS consists of eight total counselors in addition to one College/Career Coach and one Social Worker. The counselors are assigned to a certain grade level and are widely known by students. The LPHS Counseling Department includes a variety of resources on their webpage, such as counselor contact information, bulletins for each grade level and resources to assist in college readiness.
Relevant Data
The three American School Counselors Association (ASCA, 2012) domains - academic, personal/social, college/career - guided the development of our needs assessment. We met with two LPHS school counselors, Mr. Christopher Baker (Freshman) and Ms. Jessica Hubbell (Sophomore) to discuss perceived needs of the student population. We delivered the needs assessment electronically to freshman students at individual counseling meetings with Mr. Christopher Baker. This Qualtrics survey consisted of 11 questions, which included 6 multiple choice and 2 open-ended questions. 376 out of 634 freshman students completed the survey with 66% identifying as female, 33% identifying as male and 1% identifying as other. The most students, 39%, identified as Hispanic with a close 30% identifying as White Caucasian.
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Of the 376 surveyed, students expressed the following academic/career concerns:
- 58% need assistance with improving study skills
- 52% need help improving test taking skills
- 44% agree that they need help maintaining interest in their classes
- 21% feel anxious
- 16% of students feel unmotivated
- 11% have concerns about alcohol/drug use
CLOSING THE GAP RELEVANT DATA
SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLAN
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PURPOSE OF PROGRAM
The purpose of our program is to work in conjunction with Lincoln Park High School's current vision statement of, "striving to develop critical thinking, social development, cultural enrichment, and leadership in our diverse student body." We desire to follow the American School Counseling Association's (ASCA, 2012) standards and centralize our program on the three ASCA domains of academic, career and personal/social development, working to advocate for all students and their unique/ individual needs.
This program specifically targets freshman students, and we have used data from our needs assessment that aligns with LPHS' current vision statement in order to address the perceived needs of the students. With the leadership of our advisory team, lesson plans and small groups aligned with ASCA's (2012) national model, we plan on implementing our program in a step-by-step process with the goal of systemic change.
STRUCTURE OF PROGRAM
We have designed the structure of our program to reflect ASCA’s (2012) national model. While we highlighted our top line structure below, we also kept in mind the themes of the ASCA National Model (2012) of Leadership, Advocacy, Collaboration, Use & Assessment of Data, and Systematic Change when developing our program.
Our program framework consists of four main components: Foundation, Management, Delivery and Accountability, which are outlined below and also led by our introduction.
This program specifically targets freshman students, and we have used data from our needs assessment that aligns with LPHS' current vision statement in order to address the perceived needs of the students. With the leadership of our advisory team, lesson plans and small groups aligned with ASCA's (2012) national model, we plan on implementing our program in a step-by-step process with the goal of systemic change.
STRUCTURE OF PROGRAM
We have designed the structure of our program to reflect ASCA’s (2012) national model. While we highlighted our top line structure below, we also kept in mind the themes of the ASCA National Model (2012) of Leadership, Advocacy, Collaboration, Use & Assessment of Data, and Systematic Change when developing our program.
Our program framework consists of four main components: Foundation, Management, Delivery and Accountability, which are outlined below and also led by our introduction.
1. Introduction
a. School profile b. Relevant data c. Reference to School Improvement Plan d. Purpose of program e. Structure of program 2. Foundation a. Sample Beliefs and Vision Statement b. Mission Statement of the School Counseling Program c. Program Goals d. ASCA Student Competencies and Indicators 3. Management a. Advisory Council b. Annual Agreement c. Sample Yearlong Calendar d. School Data Profile e. Action Plans (Curriculum, Small-Group, Closing-the-Gap) 4. Delivery a. Core Curriculum Lessons (3) b. Core Curriculum and Small Group Responsive Services c. Closing-the Gap Intervention Plan 5. Accountability a. Explanation of process, perception and outcome data b. Sample Curriculum and Small Group outcome reports from the ASCA model c. School Counselor Performance Appraisal d. Closing-the-Gap Results Report |