Professional Disclosure Statement

Meredith C. McDonald
Professional School Counselor
Office: (740) 344-3594 ext. 222
Fax: (740) 344-0421
mmcdonald@newarkcatholic.org
The intention of this statement is to inform Miss McDonalds
purpose as a school counselor to the students and their families. This
document will provide Miss McDonalds educational background,
counseling experience, confidentiality agreement, and description to
counseling services she will offer while being a school counselor. If
after reading this disclosure, you still have questions, please use the
contact information above or stop by the school counselors office
(located directly across from the principals office) at any time.
Qualifications/Education:
Miss McDonald obtained a Masters degree in School Counseling from
the University of Dayton in May of 2017. The University of Dayton is
accredited by CACREP, the American
Counseling Associations Council for the Accreditation of Counseling
and Related Educational Programs. Before receiving a Masters in
school counseling, Miss McDonald attended Ohio University where she
acquired a bachelor of science in Hearing, Speech and Language
Science Disorders. Miss McDonald substitute taught in the Newark city
area at the elementary, middle, and high school levels between her
Bachelors and Masters degree programs. To preserve a license in
school counseling, as required, Miss McDonald will be attending
continuing education courses.
Counseling Background:
Miss McDonald was afforded the opportunity to obtain a position
similar to a school counselor at the same time she started her Masters
program at the University of Dayton. Under close supervision at
Newark Catholic High School in Newark, Ohio, Miss McDonald was able
to shadow a school counselor before even starting her internship. She
traveled to Columbus, Licking Heights, Licking Valley, Granville, and
other elementary, middle, and high schools in Licking County during
her practicum and internship to gain as much experience and
knowledge possible, at every level, and in as many districts as
permissible.
Role as a School Counselor:

Miss McDonald is a student advocate who promotes students

successes in academic, social and emotional aspects. As a school
counselor she will assure a students well-being is her primary concern.

Description of Services/Programs provided:

Miss McDonald allows students to come in at any time that they have a
question or concern. If possible, students should try to visit Miss
McDonalds office for individual sessions during lunch or study hall
periods. Students are not limited to a certain amount of time but
should be considerate of other students needs. It is asked that a
student keep individual sessions to one period (50 minutes) or less. If
individual sessions become recurrent and dependent upon the
counselor, Miss McDonald will make a referral (see Code of Ethics and
Referrals).
Group sessions will also be available based on needs of the studentbody. For instance, after assessing and gathering data, Miss McDonald
will conclude what type of after school support group is needed. For
example, single-parent families, coping with change, school
violence/bullying, etc. The group will meet one day a week, after
school for one hour, for the duration of ten weeks. The group will
assemble in Miss McDonalds office.
Code of Ethics:
As a school counselor, Miss McDonald adheres to all of the codes of the
American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Code of Ethics. In
particular, Miss McDonald identifies her practice as a counselor most
with Section A.1. Responsibilities to Students. Miss McDonald will
respect each student and his or her individuality. Miss McDonald will
put forth every effort to ensure a students success academically,
personally, socially, and emotionally.
In regard to section E.1. Professional Competence, Miss McDonald will
follow the code, E.1.b., to accept when physical or mental health
referrals would be beneficial to a student. Miss McDonald will refer a
student to a mental or physical health professional when a students
issues are outside her scope of practice. Copies of the ASCA code of
ethics are available upon request.
Confidentiality:
Miss McDonald will keep anything said between the student and herself
private. Miss McDonald will keep all matters disclosed EXCEPT in the
following cases:
a student is planning on harming his/her self
a student is going to harm another student

a student or someone he or she knows has been harmed in the

past several years
Miss McDonald is mandated by law to disclose information

Professional Memberships:
American Counseling Association (ACA)
American School Counselor Association (ASCA)
Ohio School Counselor Association (OSCA)
Theoretical Orientation:
Miss McDonald practices the theories of solution-focused brief therapy,
person-centered therapy, and reality therapy to counseling. She
believes each student is his or her own advocate and promotes
students to make choices independently and without influence. Miss
McDonald strives to keep students in the present and helps them
realize what it is they can and cannot control and within that, how to
problem solve. Sometimes the solution-focused brief therapy is
necessary to help the student move along through a decision-making
process or to help them to draw a conclusion from his or her problem.
Solution-focused brief therapy helps a student to focus on the solution
rather than focusing on the problem. In essence, Miss McDonald keeps
the focus on the student, helping them work through his or her own
issue. Miss McDonald will remind the student to focus on solutions,
what is happening in present-day, and how to make decisions on what
is in his or her control.
Referrals:
As stated in the Description of Services and Code of Ethics section
above, if Miss McDonald discovers a situation is beyond her scope of
practice or a student becomes dependent upon routine individual
sessions, she will refer to a professional counselor or agency who is
able to provide recurring counseling sessions and are able to formally
diagnose mental health issues, if the case require such.
Effects of Counseling:
In regards to the effect of school counseling services, Miss McDonald
expects students to gain independent decision making skills, selfsufficiency, and respect for themselves. Miss McDonald looks forward
to each student finding his or her own voice and that he or she is able
to express exactly how he or she feels, without judgment. Occasionally,
counseling sessions can be uncomfortable, especially in the group
setting. Miss McDonald will guide the student(s) through their thought
process and aide them to work through any frustrations. Miss
McDonald will use every endeavor to aid students to focus on the
importance of working through the counseling to benefit them,
whether it be academic, social, emotional, or career oriented.

Supervision:
Miss McDonald was under direct supervision of six different licensed
school counselors of Ohio during her practicum and internship. She
spent a majority of her time under Deb Welch, MED, License
#21019893.