Given heavy testing caseloads and the prevalent underutilization of school psychologists in a leadership capacity, a school psychologist’s reality is often a very limited scope of practice. Furthermore, those who wish to take on systems work are often met by the resistance of status quo gatekeepers, such as school and district administrators. The purpose of this session is thus two-fold: both making the case for school psychologists to leverage their expertise into leadership roles, and providing manageable, proactive steps for school psychologists to engage in this work from the school to systems level.
Learner Objectives This session will help participants:
- Leverage preexisting areas of expertise to fill proficiency gaps among administrative staff.
- Recognize and capitalize on opportunities to add their complementary skill set to district-level leadership teams.
- Navigate issues of buy-in and other potential barriers to transitioning from the traditional school psychology role.