Robert Quist, MASCA Executive Director

MASCA Executive Director's Message

Dear Massachusetts School Counselors:
As the 2007-2008 school is well underway and our website is undergoing massive revisions, I would like to encourage you to visit and revisit it on a regular basis.  We are quite fortunate to have someone with the caliber of Ron Miller willing to step up and donate his time and energy to make our website the valuable resource that it needs to become. 
There have been many outstanding initiatives going on this year as we move our profession forward to not only respond to directives from the Department of Education and the federal government under “No Child Left Behind” but also to come to the forefront of what it means to be a school counselor in the 21st century.
This year alone we have provided Implementation Institutes on the MA Model both in the summer and the fall. We have already held a very successful Fall conference .
We are looking ahead to our annual spring conference MA School Counselors Charting the Course which will include tentatively 2 outstanding key note speakers Rosalind Wiseman author of “Queen Bees and Wannabees” and Jim Derosier who will focus on Charting the Course: One Life. Endless Possibilities. Getting started. He will focus on creating a culture of success in our schools.

We are at a crossroads in our profession and now more than ever it is important that we show that school counselors are integral and vital to our schools and our students. That our students achieving academic success because of what we do as school counselors. Jan Tkacyzk our former Executive Director stated it so succinctly last year and I feel that it needs repeating this year “We must continue to work toward improving our programs and services to our members; to learn to speak with "One Vision, One Voice"; and to listen to your ideas and suggestions. President Jennifer McGuire, and Past-president Bob Bardwell, along with the rest of the Board, continues to work hard to represent us nationally, around the state, and with leadership groups with whom we need to partner”.

The reality though is that we cannot do it alone like most of you we are full time school counselors and the strength of the organization lies not in the work and willingness of a few but the work and willingness of the many. The simple message is get involved in your affiliates get involved in your state organization, over 65% of our members were not school counselors in the field 12 years ago and we need you to step up and continue to grow the organization that had been built on the shoulders of those who came before us.

In 2011 we will be celebrating our 50th year as an organization. I cannot think of a better way to celebrate than to have our past and present meet together and we show those who devoted so much time to get us to this point that the organization is growing and vital and that the future looks strong for Massachusetts school counselors

Best wishes on a great and productive school year!
Bob Quist
Executive Director
MASCA