Inside
UWL Student Wins WSPA Scholarship
From the Director’s Desk
by Rob Dixon
On the one hand it seems like last week when
I sat down and typed out an article for the Newsletter, but I only have to look
at my youngest daughter, who keeps announcing that she is now “thwee,” to know
that time is not standing still. In the School Psychology program we are not
standing still, but we are catching our collective breath from the changes that
were instituted last year.
To
begin with, we are constantly evaluating the scope and sequence of the
curriculum from the major changes of last year and we are still working to make
sure that all of the areas are covered. So far it seems like the flow is much
better for the faculty and the students. Our revamped portfolio continues to
prove to be an efficient way for students to document his/her learning
throughout the different semesters. As faculty, we have also been looking at it
to solidify the program changes. So in essence it serves multiple purposes.
In
the last year, we received notification from NASP that we continue to meet the
training standards of a quality school psychology program. This approval was
granted through December 2008 and essentially allows our graduates a
streamlined process of becoming Nationally Certified. As I review other school
psychology programs for NASP, I would like to tell you that this is a difficult
feat and almost half the programs that are reviewed in a given cycle fail to
meet the standards. Our graduates are also doing extremely well on the
standardized exam that is part of the NCSP process. In the past two years, all
students have passed this exam. This commitment to quality certainly goes
beyond my tenure at the University and extends back to the great faculty that
have led the program or been a part of this commitment to excellence.
One
of the other changes that have been made to the program has been the inclusion
of a thesis as a culmin-ating project to completing the Ed.S. Degree. While
this initially started off slow, we have had a number of students complete the
process this year. We had one alumnus who was grandfathered in to the Ed.S.
process, complete the degree as of this writing (Gina Duetscher). In addition,
two current second year students (Liz Yoder and Caroline Van Zeeland) have
defended their final product before internship! Christina Schiher, Tracy
Hackert and Jamie Symonds are three additional students who have set up dates
for this spring and are now eagerly waiting to defend their thesis. As a
regular part of this newsletter, we will begin posting a short synopsis of the
projects these students were involved in.
Finally,
I would like to thank all of the people that support the UW-L School Psychology
program through fiscal contributions or donating their time and talent. The
fiscal contributions have allowed us to stay current in the field by being
members of the Trainers of School Psychologists and updating our testing
library. I would also like to take the time to give a special thank you to our
area supervisors who provide such a crucial and supportive role to be mentors
to our developing students. It seems like every student that we attract to our
program mentions the “early involvement in the field” as the deciding factor to
come to our program. We could not have done this without your help.
History of Early Round Tables
by Bob Arthur
Just before Roundtable last year I stopped
into the School Psychology office and I saw some playful writing about a
“Square Table.” Where did this “Roundtable” name come from? What were Roundtables like in the early
years? What is history of the
Roundtable, origins, names and activities?
My earliest recollection of the origins of
getting alumni back to talk with students was a discussion with Steve
Lang. Steve had supervised a number of
students and sensed many wondered about the challenges of starting full-time
practice. We also wanted students to
listen to some of our graduates who were making positive changes in their
services and schools. Based on
performances in practica and the results of a follow-up study of graduates, a
handful of grads were selected as a set of proximal models. Invitations were sent to grads. Faculty put together a program of
presentations and an hour of open discussions among students and graduates.
On Friday April 14, 1978, “The School
Psychology Invitational” met in room 8 of Morris Hall. Students and grads sat around a square
table. In the open discussion session
alumni presented what they found demanding and how they handled case loads,
developed better referral procedures and learned 94-142 procedures, which
seemed to be changing regularly. In
the evening people went to Drendel’s 400 Club.
The “Second Annual Alumnae Exchange” met
on Friday April 27, 1979, in the third floor rooms of Main Hall. We sat around the long table in room 303, as
many have done since then for their classes.
Steve Lang facilitated the open discussion among students and grads. The
previous Thursday evening Rick Clark hosted a party that ran into the very
early hours.
The “Third Annual Alumni Exchange” met on
Saturday May 2, 1980 and utilized three rooms in North Hall. The Friday evening gathering was at Rick and
Randie Clark’s home. There was also a
potluck gathering following the Saturday program at Rachel and Cam Gundersen’s
lovely home on Ebner Coulee Drive in La Crosse. The Friday gathering at Gundersen’s continued for many years and
were fun-filled times. The high point
of many of these parties at Gundersen’s was the floorshow provided by Steve
Barone ‘76. He earned his way through
grad school by playing guitar and singing his own songs at the Third Street
bars. He entertained us with school
psych humor and songs he wrote about the field. The program/invitation for this 3rd annual alumni
exchange referred to the Gundersen gathering as a “Night after the Round Table
at Camelot” – this was a play on Cam’s name and home. All gatherings thereafter were called “Roundtables.” Our best understanding of the name denotes
the equalitarian exchange among students, alumni and faculty.
The “Fourth Annual Alumni Roundtable” met
on Friday April 24, 1981 in the Faculty Senate room in Main Hall. This alumni
student gathering set the pattern for many years, thus the “Alumni
Roundtable.” Rick and Barb Albrechtson
hosted the Thursday night gathering in their Caledonia Street home, starting a
long and generous tradition of the Albrechtson hospitality. The Saturday evening gathering was again at
the Rachel & Cam Gundersen home.
This information was collected from old
programs and talks with John Cleveland, Teresa Znidarsich, Mary Jo Snow and
Rick Albrechtson. If you find errors,
please email me at arthur.robe@uwlax.edu.
Fall 2004 WSPA Conference
by Rob Dixon
This past year the members of the Coulee
Region Association of Psychologists in the Schools (CRAPS) hosted the fall WSPA
conference at the Radisson Hotel in La Crosse. Dr. Chris Peterson delivered the
Thursday keynote on Positive Psychology: Interventions for Children and
Adolescents. Dr. Alan Coulter presented the Friday keynote on No School
Psychologist Left Behind: Advocacy Issues in the Era of Reauthorization.
Besides these two awesome speakers, we had 21 local and state speakers present
on timely topics in a number of sectionals. Not lost on anyone was the
hospitality that the CRAPS group put on including a live band for dancing on
Thursday night and a riverboat cruise down the Mississippi. The UW-L Foundation
also sponsored an Alumni night on Wednesday night and it was good to see so
many alumni back again. Start making plans for 2008 because that’s when we will
host WSPA again in La Crosse.
UW-L Student Wins WSPA Scholarship
by Milt Dehn
The Wisconsin School Psychologists
Association recently awarded the annual Bernice Krolasik Memorial Scholarship
to Lisa Rowe, a first year graduate student. The scholarship is intended for a
non-traditional student in a school psychology program. Lisa completed a B.S.
in Elementary Education, with minors in Human Development and Adaptive
Education, at UW-Green Bay before entering the La Crosse program. Because of
her student teaching and other field experiences, Lisa came to La Crosse with
an understanding of educational systems and the challenges facing children. She
also worked as a tutor with post-secondary students and as a line therapist for
children with autism.
Lisa’s commitment to children begins with
her own two children, Miranda and Mason. As a school psychologist, Lisa wants
to help parents provide the best possible home environment and experience for
their children. She also looks forward to applying a mental health model and
implementing prevention efforts when she becomes a school psychologist.
Elizabeth
Yoder and Caroline Van Zeeland, second year students in the UW-L program,
were nominated for another WSPA Scholarship---the Allard Award.
Leadership Roles in WSPA
by Betty DeBoer
The UW-L School Psychology faculty,
students, and alumni have significant leadership roles as WSPA Board
members. Our program is the only one
where 100% of the school psychology faculty are on the WSPA Board.
Dr. Dehn was president of WSPA in the 2001-2002
year and is currently president-elect.
He will be taking over for current president, Ms. Kris Sieckert, in June
2004. Last year, Dr. Dehn was the chair
of the Awards and Scholarship Committee.
He is active in the state leadership sessions at NASP. Dr. Dehn developed the option of Viterbo
graduate credit for WSPA conventions and has served as the instructor for that
credit.
Dr. Dixon chaired the Job Faire in 2003 and the
Fall WSPA 2003 in La Crosse. Now he is
chairing the Summer Institute 2004 (see related ad). Dr. Dixon also recently served as the president of the Coulee
Region Association of Psychologists in the Schools.
Dr. DeBoer is the Trainer’s Representative
for the WSPA Board. She has held this
position since January of 2000. Dr.
DeBoer and the other faculty members have helped recruit student services for
WSPA.
Numerous
current students and alumni are involved with WSPA leadership positions. Some of them include the following: Aimee Ostenso-Paulson (‘05) recently replaced
Jaime Wetenkamp (‘03) as one of the student representatives. Dani Scott (‘96) is current and past
secretary. Heidi Christian (‘01) is
current Public Relations Chair and Sheri Stengel (‘99) is currently a
representative for her region. Kudos to
our program for the leadership we provide to the state of Wisconsin!
An Alum in Hong Kong
by Steve DeKrey
I am currently Associate Dean, Director of
Masters Programs at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
(HKUST). I also hold an adjunct title for teaching. My
focus is on Executive MBA and MBA education both in Hong Kong and
China. I am also responsible for Masters of Science programs in
Finance, Information Systems and Economics.
I came to Hong Kong for this position 8
years ago. However, three of the MBA programs did not exist when I
came here so I have added to my responsibilities over the years. I
am also teaching leadership courses and writing a leadership in Asia book. Time
is limited.
After 5 years as a school psychologist in
Iowa and armed with the La Crosse MSEd and Iowa EdS and PhD, I enrolled as an
MBA student at Northwestern. My plan was to prepare for a career in university
administration. I enjoyed Northwestern so much I accepted a position
in the admissions office at the Kellogg Business School before finishing my
MBA. It was there that my School Psychology training kicked in.
My office was responsible for selecting
among thousands of candidates 350 for the MBA program. I utilized my
knowledge in personality and ability assessment to structure a selection
process to pick the very best. It was our ability to balance
interpersonal skills and ability indicators that made the impact. My biggest
contribution was building a comprehensive assessment process, which, like a gifted
program, brought in the proper talent! A key feature of the process
was an interview requirement. This allowed us to select on key
attributes so essential to management. It also allowed a personal
sell of the school as we were competing against schools like Harvard, Stanford
etc.
Education in Hong Kong is based on the
British system so high school is longer and university is only 3
years. Primary students study very hard and are very test
oriented. Sadly their interpersonal development is often ignored
which is a problem when they come to apply for jobs in business. Local
graduates are also often criticized for not being very creative. We often look
beyond the local schools for our MBA students.
Our admissions process is very selective
at the HKUST business school and we go way beyond
test scores. In fact my biggest challenge is convincing people
in Hong Kong that many high test score people do not belong in
management! I have been giving these arguments for years and my
credibility is greatly enhanced by being a past school psychologist! When the
"Bell Curve" was published I was one of the first
readers! I continue to follow the writings of "emotional
intelligence" authors and I have been conducting some of my own research
in Asia.
Career advice? School
psychology is a terrific background for positions across education and even
industry. As a single career I found it limited and for me five
years was enough. However, making spiral career moves including overseas
assignments is not for everyone. My father was a clinical
psychologist in Bemidji, Minnesota for 40 years and leads a very happy life
there. I am sure some of my classmates from La Crosse, people who
also knew professors Bob Author, John Cleveland and James McLallen, are still
in school psychology. For me, school psychology was a terrific base
for an international career in leadership development. Given the demands for
business leaders in China it is likely I will have gainful employment for some
time to come. However in the words of my wife, Veronica Kwong DeKrey who is
Chinese "Nan Duk Wu to!" (it is best not to worry about everything).
It may soon be time to slow down and smell the pine trees!
Ed.S. Theses Oral Defenses Completed
Gina
Deutscher, February 3, 2004,
“The Effects of the Mystery Motivator Technique on Homework Completion” Chair:
Dr. Betty DeBoer, Committee: Drs. Beth
Seebach and Rob Dixon.
Congratulations
to Ms. Gina Deutscher, class of 1998.
Gina is the first alumnus from UWL to successfully complete an education
specialist thesis in the school psychology program.
The Mystery Motivator is an incentive
system designed to deliver seemingly random rewards for appropriate behavior to
students that Jenson, Rhode, and Reavis (1995) present in The Tough Kid
Toolbox. It
can be easily adapted to use with a single student, a small group, or a whole
class. This technique has been used to increase homework completion rates. When
used individually, the teacher determines what percentage of homework the
student needs to complete in order to be able to play the Mystery Motivator
that day. If the student meets the criteria, they are given their Mystery
Motivator chart where the student colors a square on the chart corresponding to
that day. The chart may reveal a
mystery symbol written with a “changeable” marker when the child colors the
square. If the mystery symbol appears,
the student earns a reward from their individually designed reward menu. The
symbol, however, does not appear each day and therefore there is uncertainty
or “Mystery” about obtaining the reinforcement. In previous research,
improvements were found in most children in both their homework completion and
accuracy.
In her thesis research, Gina targeted
regular education students and students with learning disabilities as this
technique has not specifically been targeted at the LD population in the
past. Gina recruited six fifth-grade
students with homework completion difficulties to participate in the Mystery
Motivator intervention technique, however only three students without learning
disabilities and one student with a learning disability participated in all
phases of the study.
All participants demonstrated increased
rates of homework completion over baseline levels during the
intervention
and follow-up phases. All subjects also showed increased accuracy percentages.
The group’s average increased from a grade of D- to a C-. The learning disabled
participant demonstrated a similar rate of increased homework completion and
accuracy to the participants without learning disabilities.
Reference: Jenson, W.R, Rhode, G., & Reavis, H.K. (1995). The Tough Kid
Toolbox. Longmont, CO: Sopris West.
Gina can be contacted at gina_deutscher@rdale.k12.mn.us.
Liz Yoder, March 9, 2004, “The Relationship Between
Relational Aggression and Self-Esteem of Female Adolescents” Chair: Dr. Milt
Dehn, Committee: Drs. Beth Seebach
& Carmen Wilson.
This study examined how
involvement in relational aggression is related to female adolescents’ level of
self-esteem. Recent research on
aggression has given attention to the identification and study of relationally
aggressive behaviors and their effects on female adolescents, such as
depression, school avoidance, and deterioration of same-gender
friendships. Previous research
indicates that approximately one third of female adolescents participate in
relational aggression and many experience psychological problems directly related
to their involvement. Victims of
relational aggression report the highest rate of participation and lowest level
of self-esteem.
Data were collected from 239 seventh and eighth grade female students in southeastern Minnesota utilizing a self-report survey instrument. Approximately 33% of the participants were involved in relational aggression. Of these 79 participants, 15 (6.3%) were identified as aggressors, and 50 (20.9%) were identified as victims. Fourteen individuals, or 5.9% of the total participant population, were identified as both aggressors and victims. The results indicated that individuals identified as victims of relational aggression reported significantly lower levels of self-esteem than their non-victimized peers. The results of this study indicate the need for anti-aggression intervention programs within the school environment that address various forms of aggression, including relational aggression.
Liz can be contacted at lizbenyoder@hotmail.com.
Caroline Van Zeeland, March 23, 2004, “Parent/ Adolescent Attachment and
Relational Aggression in Adolescent Females” Chair:
Dr. Milt Dehn, Committee: Drs. Beth
Seebach and Carmen Wilson.
Rates and levels of aggression among adolescents
have increased dramatically in the past decade, and little satisfactory
explanation exists for aggressive behavior in its diverse manifestations. Recent research in the past decade has
investigated relational aggression, the behaviors characteristic of relational
aggression, and the effects of relational aggression on children, adolescents,
and adults. However, limited research
has been con-ducted examining the possible predictors of relational aggression,
such as parent/adolescent attachment. The
first purpose of this study was to determine if there was a relationship
between parent/adolescent attachment and level of aggression or victimization
in relational aggression. The second
purpose was to determine if parent/adolescent attachment was predictive of role
in relational aggression (aggressor, victim, aggressor/ victim, or non-involved
individuals). Two hundred thirty-nine female adolescents at a midwestern
middle school participated in this study by self-reporting their relationship
between parent/adolescent attachment and involvement in relational
aggression.
The results revealed a significant
relationship between parent/adolescent attachment and both aggression and
victimization in relational aggression.
Furthermore, the results also revealed that parent/adolescent attachment
was a predictor of a female adolescents’ role in relational aggression. More specifically, adolescents with low
parent/adolescent attachment were nine times more likely to be an aggressor in
relational aggression and five times more likely to be an aggressor/victim in
relational aggression. These findings
open up a new world of discovery about possible causes, risk factors, or
contributors to relational aggression in adolescents. This research should be considered when developing effective
prevention and intervention strategies for children and adolescents.
Caroline
can be contacted at vanzela.caro@students.uwlax.edu.
Christina Schiher, March 25, 2004, “Efficacy of Early Reading
Interven-tion Program Comparing Gender”
Chair: Dr. Betty DeBoer, Committee:
Drs. Carmen Wilson and Carol Angell.
Christina’s
thesis was completed through gather-ing data with a team of graduate students
who compared three early reading intervention programs at the first grade level
in grade schools in La Crosse. The early intervention programs were Reading
Mastery (RM), Reading Intervention Model (RIM), and Reading on First and Home
(ROFAH). The RIM and ROFAH programs were developed locally in the La Crosse
area and the RM program is a nationally known program. The participants were
evaluated in the fall of the year, prior to intervention, and in the spring of
the year, at post intervention. Materials used for evaluation included subtests
from the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills and the Dolche Word
List. The participants were tested on the reading gains made in the areas of
Onset Recognition Fluency, Letter Naming Fluency, Phoneme Segmentation Fluency,
Graded Word Lists, Nonsense Word Fluency, and Passage Comprehension. This
particular thesis looked at comparing gender differences in the acquisition of
reading skills. Analyses were run to determine whether boys or girls made more
gains as a result of early reading intervention services. The results indicated
that neither boys nor girls made greater reading skills gains in any area
assessed. Other results found that all participants made significant gains
across all three programs, and no single program was significantly more
effective than another.
Christina can be contacted at cschiher@antigoschools.k12.wi.us.
Tracy Hackert, April 9, 2004, “The Effects of Martial Arts Training on Children's Self-Esteem and
Self-Concept” – Chair: Dr. Milt Dehn,
Committee: Drs. Tracie Blumentritt and
Dennis Fater.
Children's self-esteem and self-concept in today's society is
significantly affected by the many negative influences occurring in
society now, including high divorce rates, increases in the average weight of
people, and media's representations of the ideal men and
women. As one possible way to help boost self-esteem in the
school setting, a martial arts program was implemented in several Coulee Region
Catholic Schools. The effects of this martial arts training on children's
self-esteem and self-concept were measured through the completion of pre- and
post-test self-report rating scale. Although no significant results were
indicated at the total or sub-scale level, several areas indicated close to significant
results, with many individual test items indicating positive changes towards
increased self-esteem and self-concept. Overall, more research continues
to need to be done in the areas related to increasing self-esteem and
self-concept, however, schools need to continue to strive towards increasing
these positive traits in children to help overcome the negative influences in
society.
Tracy can
be contacted at thackert@kusd.edu.
Jamie Symonds, April 9, 2004, “The Effects of
Martial Arts Training on Children’s Aggression “ – Chair: Dr. Milt Dehn, Committee:
Drs. Tracie Blumentritt and Dennis Fater.
The
effect of martial arts training on children’s aggressive behaviors was explored
for children, kindergarten through third grade. This research was conducted in conjunction with the Coulee Region
Catholic Schools and a local martial arts instructor. Martial arts classes were
incorporated into the regular school day at local parochial schools, and all
students were required to participate in the training. Martial arts training was held twice a week,
45 minutes per session, and training lasted eight weeks. To assess the children’s aggression, parents
of 62 students completed pre- and post-test questionnaires. The questionnaires were developed from a
combination of Aggression scale items from the BASC. Since the questionnaires were developed from a variety of BASC
forms, behaviors were compared based on raw score changes. Results indicated a significant decrease in
aggression for the overall sample of children, individuals without previous
martial arts training, and for females.
A significant decrease in aggression was not noted for males, although
individual items did decrease significantly.
Further investigation is recommended on the long-term effects of martial
arts training as well as to explore the effects of martial arts training in
regard to gender differences.
Jamie can
be contacted at jsymonds@kusd.edu.
UW-L 27th
ANNUAL SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY ROUNDTABLE
UW-La Crosse
Cleary Alumni & Friends Center
615 East Avenue
North, La Crosse, WI
Friday, May 7,
2004
AGENDA
8:00
- 8:30 Registration. Coffee and rolls served (Compliments of UW-L
Foundation)
8:30 – 9:00 Student Thesis Posters
9:00-12:00 Section 504 in the Schools:
Protecting Students with Disabilities
Mr. Stopa and an attorney
from the Office of Civil Rights will present on Section 504 and how it should
be applied in schools. The content will
include information on the identification and interventions available for
students protected under 504 as well as resolving the challenges to
implementing this law.
12:00 - 1:00 Lunch on your own
1:00 - 2:45 IDEA: Discussing the Changes
for School Psychology
Dr. Dixon will present on
the current status of the changes to IDEA and some of the more controversial
practices that may have an impact on children identified with a disability and
Best Practices for the School Psychology profession.
Presenters:
Leo Stopa is a senior investigator with the US
Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (OCR), Chicago Office. He has
been with the agency fifteen years. He is a former elementary school teacher
and has a Master's degree in Elementary Education.
Rob
Dixon is the director of the UW-L
School Psychology Program. He has taught school psychology for the past 5
years. He is a former school psychologist and practiced for 8 years.