Counseling

Preparing Our Students for Smooth Transitions

The ultimate goal of the DeKalb County School District counseling program is to promote a comprehensive program for student success. The program’s design, delivery, and content are dedicated to enhancing the ability of all students to fully utilize the educational opportunities available to them. The PreK-12 program is delivered through direct and indirect services designed to address three domains of student development: academic, personal/social, and career.

Comprehensive school counseling programs are integral to the school’s educational environment and partner with other academic and behavioral initiatives to effect positive changes in student achievement and behavior. Professional school counselors plan the comprehensive school counseling program and facilitate its delivery in collaboration with school administrators, other professional educators, and community members to produce measurable results. In a comprehensive program, the school counselor serves as a leader, advocate, and collaborator working to recognize and remove systemic barriers to student success. Resulting positive changes include increased student achievement, an improved graduation rate, better attendance, reduced disciplinary referrals, completed individual learning plans, and increased student participation in the community.

Thirteen of our school counseling programs have received recognized American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Model Program distinction from the American School Counselors Association. We are extremely proud of the following schools for receiving this national recognition:
  • Browns Mill Elementary School
  • Cedar Grove Middle School
  • The Champion School
  • Chapel Hill Middle School
  • Chesnut Elementary Charter School
  • DeKalb Alternative School
  • Lithonia Middle School
  • M.L. King, Jr. High School
  • Miller Grove High School
  • Snapfinger Elementary School
  • Towers High School

Ms. Alethia Love
Coordinator II, Counseling		 678.525.3086
Ms. Dena McTyre
Coordinator II, Counseling		 678.361.4606
Dr. Natasha Moon
Coordinator II, Counseling		 678.525.1603
Janisa Middlebrooks
Administrative Assistant		 678.676.1981
Ms. Andrea Natal
Counseling Data Clerk		 678.676.1891
Ms. Demetric Crittle
Mentoring Liasion		 470.926.3269

Student Advisement & Diploma Types

DeKalb County School District School Counselors provide annual individual graduation plan and course advisement to all students grades 8th-12th.

Graduates of DeKalb County School District have the option to order replacement diplomas through the current vendor (Jostens) by following the procedures below:

Call Jostens at 1-706-226-4446 and Select Option 1

**All orders must be placed Monday-Friday, during normal business hours (9:00-4:30 PM EST). Orders will only be accepted via telephone.

Make sure you have the following information available when you place your call:

  • Your name at time of graduation
  • The name of the high school you graduated from
  • The type of diploma/document you earned (High School Diploma, Certificate of Performance, Transition Diploma)
  • Your date of your graduation
  • Your Shipping address

**The signatures of the current Principal, Board Chair and Superintendent will be used on replacement diplomas.

Please be prepared to pay for your order when you call Jostens. The cost of the replacement diploma is $45.00. Production time is 3-4 weeks. Diplomas will be sent directly to the requesting person at the shipping address upon completion.

Note: DeKalb County School District is not responsible for the placement or orders, payment of invoices or tracking of replacement diplomas. Any questions should be directed to Jostens.

**In many instances, an official high school transcript will serve as proof of graduation. If you are in need of a transcript to verify graduation, please contact your graduating high school or send an email to studenttranscripts@dekalbschoolsga.org or fill out a Transcript Request Form.

School Counseling Practicum/Internship Field Experiences

Thank you so much for your interest in completing your school counseling field placement with DCSD. DCSD recognizes the importance of providing support and relevant experiences to candidates seeking a master’s or specialist’s degree in School Counseling. We understand the critical role site supervisors play in developing future counselors who will carry out the implementation of a school counseling program for ALL students.

DCSD only accepts candidates that are enrolled in a CACREP School Counseling Program and currently has a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Georgia State University, Clark Atlanta University, University of Georgia, University of West Georgia, and Mercer University.

There are two levels of supervision for school counselor candidates in training (practicum and internship).

  • Practicum– Practicums require 100 hours of supervised practice of appropriate experiences required by the candidate’s school counseling program.
  • Internship- Internships require 600 hours divided between two semesters where candidates model and perform various roles of a school counselor under the supervision of the site school counselor.

DeKalb County Schools is a “No Contact” District. The district is unable to communicate with potential practicum or internship candidates prior to receiving an official request from the University and prior to the official request being approved by the school district. Once approved, your university will be notified and next steps to contact the district will be provided.

General inquiries can be emailed to schoolcounselingfp@dekalbschoolsga.org.

Thank you for your interest in DeKalb County Schools!

Dual Enrollment

Georgia has created a singular program known as Dual Enrollment for students who qualify to participate. Students are enrolled to take approved college-level coursework for credit towards both high school and college graduation requirements.

The student must meet all admission requirements of the Postsecondary Institution (Assessments, GPA, Freshman Index, recommendations and immunization) and apply for admission to the Postsecondary institution by the School District deadlines (Summer/Fall – March 15th and Spring – October 15th)

The student must complete the Dual Enrollment Parent Participation Agreement (must be signed by the parent/guardian and School Counselor)

Students must complete the Dual Enrollment Funding Application through their GAfutures account.

Promotion & Retention

Students who enter the ninth grade in 2005–2006 and beyond are required to complete 360 hours (24 units) in order to meet the requirements for graduation. The requirements for promotion are as follows:

  • To the tenth grade: 90 hours (6 units), three (3) of which must be core courses† and three (3) elective courses
  • To the eleventh grade: 180 hours (12 units), six (6) of which must be core courses† and six (6) elective courses
  • To the twelfth grade: 270 hours (18 units), nine (9) core courses† and nine (9) elective courses

           † core courses include English, mathematics, science, social studies, and world language

Students who enter ninth grade prior to the 2004–2005 school year must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 330 hours (22 units) in order to meet the requirements for graduation. Students who enter ninth grade in the 2004–2005 school year and beyond are required to complete 360 hours (24 units) in order to meet the requirements for graduation. The requirements for promotion are as follows:
  • To the tenth grade: 75 hours (5 units)
  • To the eleventh grade: 150 hours (10 units)
  • To the twelfth grade: 240 hours (16 units)

Students who enter ninth grade prior to the 2004–2005 school year must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 330 hours (22 units) in order to meet the requirements for graduation. Students who enter ninth grade in the 2004–2005 school year are required to complete 360 hours (24 units) in order to meet the requirements for graduation. The requirements for promotion are as follows:
  • To the tenth grade: 75 hours (5 units)
  • To the eleventh grade: 150 hours (10 units)
  • To the twelfth grade: 240 hours (16 units)
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