What do LSSPs do? Consult with teachers, parents, administrators, and community mental health providers about learning, social, and behavior problems; Teach parenting skills, problem-solving strategies, and other topics pertinent to healthy schools; Intervene directly with students and families through individual counseling, support groups, and skills training; Serve as a member of interdisciplinary teams to address needs of at-risk students and to serve the needs of students with disabilities through the special education assessment, eligibility, and placement process; Communicate results of psychological evaluations to parents, teachers, and others so that they can understand the nature of the student’s difficulties and how to better serve the student’s needs; Engage in intervention services; Work with a wide range of student emotional and academic issues; May serve one or multiple schools in a school district or work for a community mental health center and/or in a university setting. | What is the difference between a LSSP and School Counselor? LSSP training brings together the knowledge base of several disciplines, including child psychology and development and education with an emphasis on special education. In the school setting, school counselors typically work with the total school population regarding a variety of issues – family and academic problems, social skills, and career planning. LSSPs are typically funded through special education monies and often their first responsibility is to the population of students at risk for failure and who have identified disabilities. With these populations, their roles include assessment (comprehensive evaluations of disability and risk), consultation regarding instructional and behavioral interventions, and direct interventions including, individual and group counseling and skill training. In this latter role, LSSPs may overlap the duties of counselors and social workers, and often will work jointly with these other professionals. Relative to counselors, LSSPs are more likely to have training in behavioral analysis, psychological evaluation and diagnosis, and specific disability areas. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have further questions! Valerie Segura, M.A., LSSP Licensed Specialist in School Psychology Rm. 173 Phone: 210-444-8400, Ext. 4262 | |
