Chapman is honored to have been involved with the annual California Association of School Psychologists (CASP) conference. Attallah College of Educational Studies was represented in 13 total activities.

Dr. Brianna Meshke McLay, an Attallah College Ed.S. and Ph.D. alum, was presented the Michael Goodman award at the CASP convention for research associated with her dissertation, “Resilience and Mental Health of Students Attending California’s Continuation High Schools.”

Current Attallah College Ph.D. student, Brittany Contreras received the Outstanding School Psychologist award at CASP. The organization presents one award per CASP region.

CASP Conference – Day One:

Attallah College School Counseling and School Psychology Director and Associate Professor, Dr. Kelly Kennedy gave a presentation titled “Actually, Please Do Say Gay: Impact of LGBTQ+ Inclusive Curricula on School Climate Safety”. Data from over 45,000 California students (2018-2019) were analyzed for relationships between LGBTQ-inclusive curricula and student perceptions of school safety, school connectedness, and school climate.

Attallah College Assistant Director of LPCC Program and Assistant Professor, Dr. Amy-Jane Griffiths, Assistant Professor Dr. Zachary Maupin, and Ph.D. student Rachel Wiegand presented “Getting Kids to School: Understanding the Mental Health of Students with School Refusal Behavior.” Their study reviewed over 100,000 secondary student responses to the California Healthy Kids Survey, and on the subjective psychological well-being of children who have the tendency to skip or miss school.

Dr. Alison Garner, a school psychologist with Chapman’s Dr. Amy-Jane Griffiths, Dr. Kelly Kennedy, and Dr. Brianna Meshke McLay (Attallah College Ph.D. and Ed.S. alum), gave a presentation titled, “Examining the Relationships Between Resilience Assets and Mental Health Outcomes Among Students Attending Continuation High Schools”. 

Ph.D. student Brittany Contreras and School Psychology graduate student Emily Drinkwine presented “Evidence-Based Interventions and Strategies for Students with Significant Behaviors Associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Anxiety Disorders.” The session examined a single case study with an elementary-aged student with the identified criteria. 

Dr. Michael Hass ran a three-hour workshop titled, “Essential Counseling Skills for School Psychologists”. The workshop focused on how school-based professionals can provide positive and collaborative counseling.

CASP Conference – Day Two:

Attallah College School Psychology alum Courtney Matz, Jessica Gonzalez, and Tali Sherman gave a talk titled, “Creating and Sustaining a Trauma Informed Campus.” In the workshop, they discussed best practices in Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) strategies to use in the classroom. 

CASP Conference – Poster Presentations:

School Psychology graduate student Jessica Wright presented two posters, “Resiliency in a Child of Parental Mental Illness: A Case Study” and “Test Critique: Behavioral and Emotional Rating Scale”. 

School Psychology graduate students Donald Sherwood and Vivian Leduc presented a poster on “A Critique of the BRIEF-2 Rating Scale: Executive Functioning in Students.” 

Quennie Don and PhD student Rachel Wiegand presented a poster on “Fostering Healthy Relationships Among Adolescents Using a Multi-Tiered System of Supports.” 

Assistant Professor Dr. Annmary Abdou, PhD student Rachel Wiegand and Tamara Nabulsi (School Counseling alum) presented a poster on “Fostering Social Justice and Equity in Higher Education: A Program Evaluation of a University Collective.”

Chapman at CASP