{"id":2458238,"date":"2020-05-09T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-09T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=325505"},"modified":"2020-05-09T16:20:00","modified_gmt":"2020-05-09T22:20:00","slug":"pandemic-underscores-needs-for-more-counseling-at-aspen-elementary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/pandemic-underscores-needs-for-more-counseling-at-aspen-elementary\/","title":{"rendered":"Pandemic underscores needs for more counseling at Aspen Elementary"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image p402_hide\">\n<div class=\"caption-container\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/10\/boe-atd-100416-2.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/10\/boe-atd-100416-2.jpg 620w, https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/10\/boe-atd-100416-2-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\"><\/p><figcaption><strong>Aspen Elementary School.<\/strong><br \/><em>Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText DropCap\">Aspen Elementary School counselor Amy Showers has worked with kindergartners through fourth-graders since March 2018, gradually becoming more acquainted with them and building their trust.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cI still don\u2019t know all of the students,\u201d she said Friday, \u201cbut what I do know is one of our biggest challenges at Aspen Elementary School is mental health.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">As school counselor, Showers\u2019 role is to support students by giving them academic, social, emotional and even career advice for the future. She hears firsthand from children what they are experiencing, and the coronavirus pandemic, which has shut down schools since mid-March, has exacerbated the problem, Showers said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Theses days, Showers regularly meets \u2014 virtually or by phone \u2014 with six to eight students a day for 30-minute sessions.<\/p>\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"col\" readability=\"6\">\n<div class=\"row at-donation at-donation-mobile p-0\" readability=\"7\">\n<div class=\"col-xl-4 p-2\">\n<div data-bg=\"url(https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/AT-logo-white.png)\" class=\"p-0 mt-2 mb-2 h-75 text-center rocket-lazyload\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/03\/AT-logo-white.png\" class=\"logo m-0 p-0 invisible\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"d-inline mr-3\">Support Local Journalism<\/h3>\n<p><button class=\"btn d-inline\" type=\"button\" onclick=\"handleDonationButtonClickMidArticle()\">Donate<\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cOne of the biggest things that I miss now is the personal connection, when you are able to assess someone\u2019s body language and laugh with somebody in person and work with somebody by doing an activity together,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s really hard to create that online.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Parents, some of whom are struggling to help their kids learn remotely from home, also can be included in the conversations.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cA lot of kids are very worried about their grandparents and parents, and family members who aren\u2019t in Aspen,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re even worried about their pets.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Showers said she emphasizes to the students, who range from kindergartners to fourth-graders, to focus on what they can control.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWhen you think you can have control over something,\u201d she said, \u201cit can ease your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">One thing Showers has lacked control over is her workload. As the school\u2019s only counselor, that means Showers has nearly 500 students in her purview. It is not sustainable, she said, especially in this climate of remote learning and uncertainty.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe are not meeting the needs of all of our kids,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m one person and we have 472 kids.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Showers\u2019 concerns come when the Aspen Education Foundation, a fundraising arm for Aspen public schools, is embarking on a campaign to raise $75,000 to pay for a second school counselor at Aspen Elementary, which would put it on par with the middle and high schools.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The middle school was able to hire a second counselor this year because of AEF fundraising, and the nonprofit\u2019s executive director, Cynthia Chase, said the organization is now focused on getting another one at AES.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe\u2019re going to do the fundraising through social media,\u201d Chase said, noting they are unable to have an in-person fundraiser this month because of public health orders.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">The AEF got a kickstart to its campaign with a $30,000 donation from a family foundation associated with Aspen resident and parent Diana Duffey Chase.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Details about the foundation can be found at aspenaef.org.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Meanwhile, Aspen City Council on Tuesday will look at adding one more year to the city\u2019s intergovernmental agreement with Pitkin County, Aspen Valley Hospital, Aspen School District and city of Aspen regarding mental health and substance-abuse services by Mind Springs Health in collaboration with Mountain Family Health Centers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">That includes an additional $33,420 in funds, which the city has collected through its tobacco tax, to also increase funding for a school district counselor from a 60% employee to a full-time employee.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Showers said time is of the essence to bring another counselor to the elementary school, which also has a school psychologist.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cMy concern is when this is all said and done, my case load isn\u2019t going to get smaller,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to get bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Tagline\"><a href=\"mailto:rcarroll@aspentimes.com\">rcarroll@aspentimes.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/local\/pandemic-underscores-needs-for-more-counseling-at-aspen-elementary\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Aspen Elementary School.Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times Aspen Elementary School counselor Amy Showers has worked with kindergartners through fourth-graders since March 2018, gradually becoming more acquainted with them and building their trust. \u201cI still don\u2019t know all of the students,\u201d she said Friday, \u201cbut what I do know is one of our biggest challenges at Aspen [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2458238","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-17 18:08:05","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley&#039;s Quality 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