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School counselors ask Wood BOE for help

Educators say child trauma is growing community issue

Jefferson Elementary School and Fairplains Elementary School counselor Aaron Ellis, right, talks about his time in Wood County Schools addressing childhood trauma among students. He and Andrea Moore, left, a school counselor for Neale and Waverly elementary schools, presented the Wood County Board of Education with results from a statewide survey of second- through fifth-grade students on how much violence, drug abuse and trauma they witness at home. (Photo by Michael Erb)

PARKERSBURG — Wood County Schools counselors renewed calls for more help in addressing social and emotional trauma among the district’s students during a presentation Tuesday to the Wood County Board of Education.

Aaron Ellis, a counselor at Jefferson Elementary Center and Fairplains Elementary School, and Andrea Moore, a counselor at Neale and Waverly elementary schools, presented results of a county-wide survey on childhood trauma among elementary school students.

Ellis originally administered the survey to students at Jefferson as a way of determining what factors outside of school might be affecting students in the classroom.

“I wanted to ask questions to see where they were coming from, what they were doing,” he said.

What Ellis found was many students experience severe trauma in their homes.

“How can you come to school and learn if you’re thinking of all this violence and corruption in your home?” he said. “We’re having emotionally wounded children come to school and we’re trying to teach them, and we need help.”

Ellis said he was asked to share his survey with other elementary school counselors. The survey was then distributed county wide to all second- through fifth-grade students.

“The results we got were really eye opening and really disturbing,” Moore said.

Nearly half of the county’s second- through fifth-grade students have witnessed a person being arrested or using drugs, and more than three-quarters of the students had witnessed acts of violence, according to the survey results.

More than 60 percent of the students surveyed also reported instances of bullying, either at school or at home.

“This number tells us that bullying is at an all-time high,” Moore said.

All together, she said, the survey shows students and educators are facing an ever-growing problem.

“It shows clearly that our students are in a social and emotional crisis,” Moore said. “Mentally their minds are preoccupied with the trauma they experience.”

Moore said the recommended ratio is one counselor for every 250 students, but Wood County Schools has a ratio of one counselor for every 470 students.

“We need more counselors,” she said.

The counselors expressed concerns over possible cuts to student counseling services, but board members reiterated they have not yet been brought any numbers or proposed cuts by administrators.

Superintendent Will Hosaflook asked for additional data and a breakdown of statistics for additional schools. Hosaflook said the question is, what can be done now?

“We know the problem. We know that mental health is an issue everywhere. What other steps can we take to help these kids?” he said.

But Hosaflook said addressing the needs of children is only one step to addressing the problem.

“I think it’s more than helping kids. I think it’s helping the families,” he said. Hosaflook said while he understands more elementary school counselors would help, he also wants to better understand what services are needed.

“I would rather invest in some sort of mental health program in the elementary schools,” he said. “I just don’t know what it is.”

But Hosaflook said he was willing to work with counselors to find that solution.

“Believe me, I will find the funding,” he said. “If we do not fix this, we will lose public education.”

During public comment, McKinley Elementary School teacher Cheryl Fiedorczyk said it is a struggle she sees every day, and while educators do what they can during the school day, so much is out of their hands.

“I’m in the red zone. I live in the red zone. And the kids in the neighborhood know if they’re in trouble, that’s the house to go to,” she said. “It’s sad, but I think we can make a difference. It’s not going to be an easy fix. It’s not going to be a cheap fix. I think we need to put our heads together and say ‘where are we going to go, what are we going to do?’ “

Fairplains Principal Liz Conrad said on a daily basis she sees the need for more counselors and services.

“This week, the counselors and I have dealt with drugs and alcohol, physical abuse, homelessness, threats or self-injurious behaviors to themselves, parents incarcerated and domestic violence,” Conrad said. “And it’s only Tuesday.”

In other business, one of two employee terminations was struck from Tuesday’s agenda due to a resignation. The employee was listed as a “substitute employee” on the agenda.

The board met in executive session before returning to open session to vote 4-0 on the second item, the termination of custodian Patrick Fought. Board member Debbie Hendershot was unable to attend Tuesday’s meeting due to a family illness.

No further details on the dismissal were publicly available.

The board also held an employee hearing and a student hearing in special session Friday. Hosaflook said the hearings were held behind closed doors, though public votes were taken on both recommendations. Teachers aide Tina Boston retained her job with a vote of 1-4, with Rick Tennant being the only vote in favor of termination. The student was expelled by a unanimous vote for violation of the state Safe Schools Act.

No further details on the hearings were publicly available.

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