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UAB seeks to train school psychologists who can work in-district; program pitched as response to rising behavior needs
Summary
University of Alabama at Birmingham presented a proposed school psychology program designed for working educators, aiming to increase the number of school psychologists in Alabama and reduce the current gap from the NASP-recommended ratio.
University of Alabama at Birmingham representatives presented a proposed school psychology program Thursday that would allow working educators and related staff to earn a school psychology credential while remaining employed in their districts.
The presenters said the program is intended to expand district capacity to assess and address student behavior, support teachers, and provide consultative services. The program would be standards-based and designed to operate with part-time students and district partnerships, the UAB presenter said.
“...we are starting a program to help teachers and school psychometrists who want to respecial to be school psychologists and this is a program that they can use while they are still working in their school districts,” a UAB presenter said.
The presentation cited rising behavior issues in classrooms and increased reports of suicidality and serious incidents that teachers said they felt unprepared to address. The proposed program would train school psychologists to work both directly with students and consultatively with teachers, parents and multidisciplinary teams.
Dr. Lathea Hampton, identified in the meeting as a department attendee, summarized staffing goals for the state and standards for program size and faculty ratios. She cited National Association of School Psychologists guidance on recommended staffing ratios: “The National Association of School Psychologists recommends 1 school psychologist for every 500 students. Mhmm. We are nowhere near that. We're about 1 in 10,000 here in Alabama,” Hampton said, and added that the program’s initial cohort capacity would likely be 12 graduate students with the aim to recruit and add faculty as the program expands.
Board members asked about the program’s capacity, accreditation standards, and the timeline. Presenters said they hoped to begin as soon as possible and run an initial cohort of 12 students to meet national accreditation standards for faculty-to-student ratios.
No formal vote was recorded during the work session; presenters said they hoped the board would consider the proposal in forthcoming business items.
