By Amy Chew, Ed.S.
School Psychologist for
Missoula Area Education Cooperative

For a school psychologist, one of the primary responsibilities within an educational system is the diagnosis of disabilities that may interfere with learning. The psychologist’s role is multi-faceted to also include such tasks as collaboration, consultation, counseling, crisis intervention…far more jobs than can be listed. In many school districts, the school psychologist plays a crucial role in monitoring the welfare of the special needs population. This could be via diagnosis and/or by being an active member in the programming team determining what the school, staff, student, and family need to accomplish in order for the student to achieve success at school.

Change is often mandated in special education, as in the laws mandating transition services for any child age 14 and above. It seemed apparent that most special education personnel had attended workshops about the legal definition of “transition” and the paperwork associated with it, but there was a lack practical knowledge as to how school personnel were going to actually implement transition planning activities. Where would a person even start?

The WISER (Work Incentives and Alternative Resource Development for Student Employment) grant through the University of Montana Rural Institute gave our special education team guidance on not only how to start transition and what resources to access outside of the school, but also a concrete process to follow. For the first time, our team realized we may have been helping our students with special needs obtain high school diplomas, but we were not assisting them to become successful after graduation. Actually, we may have even gone so far as to enable our students so they felt they could not survive in the workforce without the same level of accommodations we had provided during their school years.

Personally, I have found a new hope for special education. Too often, school psychologists are stuck primarily in the role of diagnosing students. I see that as just the beginning of what we should be doing - I feel I owe the kids I work with more. Diagnosing them with a disability in school may have absolutely no relevance to the outside world if there isn’t any networking between the family, school, community, and outside agencies to determine the student’s support needs and how to ensure those needs are met. A high school diploma isn’t enough for me anymore because I know that each and every student I serve is capable of being a successful member of our society. WISER and the Rural Institute staff helped show our special education team how to identify students’ strengths, contributions, interests, ideal working conditions, and support needs, and then to connect students to jobs at which they could contribute and succeed. For students with more significant impact of disability, we learned how to customize employment and create self-employment opportunities.

My role as a school psychologist is constantly evolving to fit the needs of the students and the school, and to reflect mandated changes in the law. My responsibilities as a consultant and collaborator have been expanded significantly by incorporating transition into my daily activities. I now have contact with more outside agencies, such as Vocational Rehabilitation, the Social Security Administration, college disability services, community employment services, and local community employers. Our Individualized Education Progrm team meetings for students age 14 and up have a new focus – “What are you going to do after school, and how, as a team, are we going to help you accomplish your goals before you graduate?” The special education teachers are shifting their focus outside the school to agencies and employers that can assist with education and training.

It is nearly impossible to express in words the joy and heightened self-worth a student feels and shows when he or she has been successful at a job. Parents breathe a sigh of relief and are ecstatic as the team discusses customized jobs and training. And I, as a school psychologist, feel that I have utilized my training and expertise to the greatest extent when I focus on transition. I can go home at night knowing that one more student has been prepared to be a contributor to our society.