Trinity Falls - Press Elementary Counseling Program Wins Award

The faculty and staff of Naomi Press Elementary understand that personal and emotional issues can interfere with academic success. That’s why the school operates a strong student counseling program. A program that recently earned the 2018-2019 Texas School Counselor Association’s prestigious CREST Award.

The award was presented Feb. 10 at the annual TSCA Professional

School Counselor Conference in San Antonio.

CREST stands for Counselors Reinforcing Excellence In Texas. The award recognizes schools across Texas that demonstrate a continuous commitment to building a campus counselor team and programs based on the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs, endorsed by the Texas Education Agency (TEA).

Award-winning programs provide students with the classroom guidance, college and career readiness, and social/emotional skills needed to be academically successful and well-prepared for life.

Headed up by another award winner — McKinney ISD’s 2018 Counselor of the Year Susan Washa — the Press Elementary program provides support for the school’s approximately 600 students.

Washa meets individually with each of the students twice a year, checking in with them and helping them to set goals. That’s in addition to the students in crisis who come to talk and the guidance lessons she teaches throughout the year.

While it might seem unusual to have this level of counseling support in an elementary school, more and more studies are demonstrating the effectiveness of it. Programs like those found at Press help students develop interpersonal skills and give them the tools to be persistent problem solvers. Those skills improve academic outcomes as children who feel safe and secure are more open to learning and retain information better.

We are proud that Trinity Falls students attending Press Elementary have access to this amazing program. You can read more about the award-winning program here.

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