Kara Hahn Is 2023 Nebraska School Counselor of the Year
Lincoln, NE - Kara Hahn, school counselor at Jefferson Elementary School in North Platte, was named the 2023 Nebraska School Counselor of the Year at the annual school counselor of the year dinner at the Embassy Suites in Lincoln. Ms. Hahn was introduced earlier in the evening by her building principal, Mr. Jeff Ellsworth. Ms. Hahn, like all the finalists and semi-finalists, has done an exemplary job of impementing a comprehensive school counseling program based on the ASCA National Model. Her application stood out for her use of screener data to identify students to participate in a variety of small groups on topics such as: appropriate student behavior, a positive mindset, resiliency, and emotional regulation. Ms. Hahn continually adjusted which students participated in which groups based on the screener data. Two finalists and three semi-finalists were also celebrated and recognized at the dinner. Finalist included Julie Williams (Millard Public Schools) and Julie McNamara (Daniel J Gross Catholic High School in Omaha). Semi-finalists included: Megan West (Holy Name School in Omaha), Stef Lorenzen (Millard Public Schools) and Ashley De Los Santos (Gering Public Schools). Earlier in the day, Kara Hahn and Julie Williams were introduced on the floor of unicameral as the Elementary and Middle School Counselors of the Year and were welcomed congratulated by senators by their applause.
As the 2023 Nebraska School Counselor of the Year, Ms. Hahn will be Nebraska's nominee for the 2024 American School Counselor Association School Counselor of the Year. As Nebraska's nominee she will be invited to attend the ASCA School Counselor of the Year Gala in Washington, DC. This black tie event is held each year at beautiful Union Station during National School Counseling Week. Ms. Hahn will be a guest of ASCA's and as such have her travel expenses paid for.
Pictured from left to right is Doug Hauserman, NSCA Executive Director; Kara Hahn 2023 Nebraska School Counselor of the Year; Bethany Seenhuse, NSCA Board Chair.
Upcoming Events
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14Apr
Elementary School Counselor Conference
8:00 AM to 3:15 PM CDT
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17Jun
NSCA Board Meeting
9:00 AM to 3:00 PM CDT
New NSCA Podcast - "School Counseling in Nebraska"
The Nebraska School Counselor Association is excited to roll out its brand new podcast, "School Counseling in Nebraska." New episodes will be released approximately every 2 weeks during the school year. The podcasts which we hope to keep around 20-30 minutes in length will help Nebraska School Counselors stay current on best practices, key legislative initiatives that could impact school counselors, updates to ASCA position statements/publications/documents, and other top-notch professional development. Episodes so far include: SEL Screeners and CICO, the attacks on SEL in our state, supporting LGBTQ+ students, an interview with Kara Hahn 2023 Nebraska School Counselor of the Year, and critical legislation being proposed in the Nebraska Legislature. The podcast is hosted by Loni Watson and Jake Willems with an occaissional guest host from NSCA. "School Counseling in Nebraska is availabe on Amazon, Anchor, Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Check it out!
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