Five Central Oregon school counseling teams have earned the Recognized American School Counselor Association Model Program certification from the American School Counselor Association.

Redmond School District’s counseling teams from Sage Elementary School and Obsidian Middle School, Sisters School District’s teams from Sisters Elementary and Middle schools and Bend-La Pine Schools’ team from Caldera High School were all honored with the certification. Only seven other schools in Oregon have this certification, and these five are the only schools east of the Cascades to earn it.

The certification recognizes outstanding school counseling teams aligned with the ASCA national model. Counselors demonstrate excellence through academic development, career readiness and social-emotional learning.

The High Desert Education Service District funded professional development by bringing in an ASCA trainer and provided technical assistance for the past two years of this process for the Redmond and Sisters schools.

The region’s school counselors have continued meeting to share best practices and support one another, according to the High Desert ESD.

Caldera High School pursued this certification independently, starting when the school opened in 2021.

Certification is valid for five years, after which schools must reapply to maintain their status. The newly recognized schools will be honored at the ASCA annual conference.