{"id":35549,"date":"2023-02-06T09:42:55","date_gmt":"2023-02-06T15:42:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/?p=35549"},"modified":"2023-02-06T09:42:55","modified_gmt":"2023-02-06T15:42:55","slug":"weve-got-to-do-something-university-of-oklahoma-researchers-aim-to-get-more-counselors-behavior-analysts-social-workers-in-rural-schools","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2023\/02\/06\/weve-got-to-do-something-university-of-oklahoma-researchers-aim-to-get-more-counselors-behavior-analysts-social-workers-in-rural-schools\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018We\u2019ve got to do something\u2019: University of Oklahoma researchers aim to get more counselors, behavior analysts, social workers in rural schools"},"content":{"rendered":"

Researchers at the University of Oklahoma are using a $5.6 million federal grant to implement the \u201cProject Rural Innovation for Mental health Enhancement<\/a>\u201d or PRIME program.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

The program intends to fill the gaps in high-need, rural school districts by recruiting and training 64 future counselors, social workers and behavior analysts from rural communities and paying for their graduate tuition, fees and costs while in the program.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

In exchange, graduates agree to serve two years in a rural, high-need school for every year they received program funding.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

School districts in the program must have at least 20% poverty rates and meet the federal criteria for being a rural school.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

PRIME\u2019s lead researcher, Brittany Hott, said rural communities have been clamoring to be part of the program. Hott is an associate professor of special education and associate director of OU\u2019s Institute for Society and Community Transformation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s so much need that this is just the start, and we\u2019re hoping to create a ripple effect once we have this set of scholars trained,\u201d Hott said. \u201cHopefully, we\u2019re able to collectively make a difference in the shortage.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

In Oklahoma, the\u00a0school counselor-to-student ratio is 398:1<\/a>. According to the\u00a0American School Counselor Association<\/a>, the ideal ratio would be no more than 250:1. However, only two states \u2014 New Hampshire and Vermont \u2014 meet those criteria.<\/b><\/p>\n

Studies have shown<\/a>\u00a0students who have access to school counselors have better academic outcomes and behavior outcomes, and have better college and career readiness. And the stakes in Oklahoma are high \u2014 a\u00a0report from the Rural School and Community Trust<\/a>\u00a0places the state 4th in the nation for educational needs in rural districts.<\/b><\/p>\n

Hott said by paying for participants\u2019 tuition, fees and expenses, and linking them with professional organizations, the program is trying to make earning the degree more accessible.<\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cFor example, students who are becoming behavior analysts need 2,000 hours of supervised field work. That\u2019s a lot of hours,\u201d Hott said. \u201cAnd the quality of that supervision is directly linked with outcomes for children and with their ability to be successful. And so, we feel very committed to that quality of supervision, quality of coursework, quality of support. (…) We\u2019re hoping with this mentorship model in this community of practice, that we eliminate the exiting that happens in their field.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

The researchers are developing a \u201cNetworked Community of Practice,\u201d in partnership with rural school districts and dozens of education-focused organizations and nonprofits, such as the Oklahoma Association for Behavior Analysts, the American Council on Rural Special Education and the Oklahoma Parent Resource Center.<\/b><\/p>\n

The grant will last for five years, at which point Hott said the team plans to reapply to the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education for another grant. The first cohort of social workers began this semester, and the first cohort of behavior analysts and counselors will start in the fall.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

It\u2019s one thing to read about schools\u2019 needs, but Hott said working with school districts hands-on reinforces the urgency of those needs.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re learning about, \u2018Yes, this is the need on paper, and this is the need when you look at this from a purely numbers standpoint,\u201d Hott said. \u201cBut now we\u2019re seeing the need of, \u2018Hey, I really need a counselor. I\u2019ve got kids in crisis. I not only have kids in crisis, my teachers aren\u2019t doing well.\u2019 We need to be part of this. There\u2019s that human piece of, \u2018We\u2019ve got to do something.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Researchers at the University of Oklahoma are using a $5.6 million federal grant to implement the \u201cProject Rural Innovation for Mental health Enhancement\u201d or PRIME program.\u00a0 The program intends to fill the gaps in high-need, rural school districts by recruiting and training 64 future counselors, social workers and behavior analysts from rural communities and paying […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":216,"featured_media":35550,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[17],"tags":[1515,1514,1513,1370,1517,746,1516,200],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35549"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/216"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35549"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35549\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35556,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35549\/revisions\/35556"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35549"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}