The Results of a Federally Funded Long-Term Consultation Training Model

ABSTRACT

For over 10 years, and prior to the release of the 2020 NASP standards, school psychology faculty at California State University, Long Beach have sought to broaden the training and preservice experiences of our students in consultation and systems change. The coauthors sought and obtained federal funding to provide scholarships for our students to engage in extensive readings, discussions, and fieldwork activities that went beyond our core program to increase students’ skill development and confidence in promoting a multitiered system of support (MTSS). Simultaneously, we sought to recruit, retain, and graduate more diverse school psychology students. Our nontraditional training and recruitment activities as well as the short- and long-term outcomes of this project are described. The results of this initiative include a significant increase in diverse school psychologists, curriculum changes to incorporate training grant opportunities for all program students, and alumni who report competence in engaging in consultation at the systems-level.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The training described in this article was supported by the US Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs grants [H325K080305, H325K120329, & H325K150303].

Notes on contributors

Kristin Powers

Kristin Powers is a professor of school psychology and director of the Community Clinic for Counseling and Educational Services at California State University, Long Beach. She is co-author of the text book Collaborative Consultation in the Schools 5th Edition and has published on transition planning for students with disabilities, multi-tiered systems of support, and preparing school psychology candidates for the field.

Kristi S. Hagans

Kristi S. Hagans is a professor in the school psychology program at California State University, Long Beach. Her teaching and research interests include academic assessment for intervention, evidence-based tiered instruction, data-based decision-making, and disproportionality and equity in education.

Katherine Lacy

Katherine Lacy graduated from the California State University, Long Beach, School Psychology program in 2021. While in graduate school, she researched disproportionality in suspension for her thesis study titled, “Student- and School-Level Factors Associated with School Suspension: A Multi-Level Analysis.” She is currently working as a school psychologist in the Los Angeles Unified School District.