WELCOME BACK!

Welcome back, everyone!

Where did the summer go? I know some students took summer classes this year, but I'll have to get back into the swing of understanding article vernacular, taking notes, and of course...writing papers! I am so thankful that NLU's campus has wifi because I am permanently glued to my laptop from September until June. The free printing is a great bonus, too!

Over the summer, I was also a NASP article reviewer which was a really interesting experience! It was fun to partake in the convention planning process, and to get a sneak peak of possible presentations for convention in March. It sounds like there will be a huge range of presentations for students, faculty, and practicing school psychologists at convention 2010; I think I'm going to have a difficult time choosing which to attend! I'm particularly excited about any topics related to the Early Childhood population, so I'm hoping that I'll get the chance to attend those seminars.

I'm also really excited to resume my practicum work this week, as well! I was lucky enough to stay in the same district for practica I and II, so I'm eager to catch up with my supervisor. Echoing Diane, I'm looking forward to spending a day or two per week in my elementary/preschool building and expanding my role in the field. It will be interesting to see some of the topics (RTI, PBS, etc.) come to life, with a large population of students with a huge range of strengths and needs. Similarly, it will be so rewarding to begin new relationships with the faculty at my practicum site and strengthen those from last year.

Last, I finally got my M.Ed diploma in the mail a few weeks ago! I got a cool frame for it and it looks shiny and spectacular in my office at home. I hung it above my desk, and I think it will be a good reminder of all of my hard work from last year. I bet it'll also be a good motivator at the end of the quarter when I feel I cannot spend one more minute in Microsoft Word :)

Looking forward to meeting and greeting our first years, and catching up with my fellow SECOND years (that sounds weird, doesn't it?)! We miss our interns already, but I've heard nothing but positive feedback from their first month on the job. Here's to the beginning of a great year, folks!

-Kate