YSU to have info session on psych program

Staff report

Youngstown

Individuals interested in learning more about the graduate-level program in school psychology at Youngstown State University are invited to an information session at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the Gallery in Kilcawley Center.

A second information session is set for 11 a.m. Jan. 23, also in Kilcawley’s Gallery.

To attend one of the sessions, RSVP to Richard W. VanVoorhis at 330-941-3266 or rwvanvoorhis@ysu.edu.

Applications for the summer 2013 class are now being accepted. Anyone interested in the program can contact Audrey Ellenwood at 330-941-3168, or email aeellenwood@ysu.edu. Application materials and other information are available on YSU’s School Psychology page.

Admission interviews will begin in February 2013.

YSU started the program in school psychology this past summer to address the critical shortage of school psychologists locally and across the nation.

It is the first such program in Ohio in more than 40 years. Following completion of the program, graduates are eligible for licensure in Ohio as school psychologists after they successfully pass the Praxis Exam in School Psychology.

Graduates of the program earn two degrees: a Master’s of Education in Intervention Services and an Ed.S. in School Psychology. It is the first Ed.S. degree at YSU. The three-year program includes a one-year paid internship in a public school district.

The YSU program is one of a small number nationally that focuses on low-incidence disabilities, which can include blindness, deafness and autism, along with the more typical training in high-incidence disabilities, such as speech and language impairments and learning disabilities.

The first group of students in the program began in July 2012. Since then, international instructor Rick Snyders from South Africa came to YSU to teach a course on cultural sensitivity.

Students also visited Camp Sunshine in Aurora, Ohio, where they engaged in activities with students with autism and varying disabilities.

Students also visited the Down Syndrome Association of the Valley in Boardman, where they participated in discussions with parents.

Most recently, the students organized a gift basket for the Ohio School Psychologist Association, which was raffled at the OSPA Fall Conference in Columbus.

On Nov. 30, students will attend a full-day workshop titled “Shake-Up: Enhancing the therapist’s role, flexibility, and maneuverability in therapeutic sessions” at YSU.