Thank you for your interest in nominating someone for School Counselor of the Year, Administrator of the Year, Dr. Vivian Lee School Counselor Advocate of the Year, School Counselor Educator of the Year, School Counseling Graduate of the Year, or Novice School Counselor of the Year. Nominations are normally open through the summer and close in August.

Nomination Guidelines and Information

• Nominators may submit one nomination.
• The nomination deadline is normally at the end of September/Early October of the current school year.
• Nominees for Maryland School Counselor of the Year must complete the application process to be considered.
  • All nominee applications are screened for eligibility prior to review.
  • The Application process is normally due by mid-November of the current school year.
  • Professional recognition at the state level is required for recognition at the national level.

Eligibility for School Counselor of the Year:

• The nominee must be employed as a full-time, Maryland-based, practicing school counselor by October 1st of the current school year, and have completed at least five years as a practicing Maryland School Counselor.
• The nominee must hold a master’s degree in guidance and counseling or equivalent and be certified as a school counselor by the state of Maryland.
• The nominee must be a member of the Maryland School Counselor Association and the American School Counselor Association as of mid-November of the current school year.
• Nominees cannot be a previous Maryland School Counselor of the Year.
• Nominees must complete the application process to be considered.  Applications are normally due mid-November of the current school year.

Criteria for School Counselor of the Year Recognition:

• • • The applicant must demonstrate evidence of implementation of a comprehensive, data-driven school counseling program (such as the ASCA National Model) and have been responsible for school counseling innovations or further development of programs supporting students’ career, personal/social and academic development.
    • The applicant must demonstrate leadership and collaboration in his or her work and promote equity and access to opportunities and rigorous educational experiences for all students to maximize student achievement.  Applicants must also demonstrate collaboration with stakeholders.
    • The applicant must demonstrate continual professional development as well as proof of advocacy for the profession and/or students.
    • The applicant must have the ability and skills necessary to represent school counseling in a professional manner, including but not limited to high-quality written communication and public-speaking skills.

MSCA Administrator of the Year

Eligibility and Criteria: 

• Nominators may submit one nomination.
• The nomination deadline is normally at the end of September of the current school year.
• The purpose of this award is to recognize an Administrator of a Maryland school who has empowered and enriched the school counseling program.
• The nominee has demonstrated support for the implementation of a comprehensive school counseling program.

Dr. Vivian Lee School Counselor Advocate of the Year 

Eligibility and Criteria:

• Nominators may submit one nomination.
• The nomination deadline is normally at the end of September of the current school year.
• The Dr. Vivian Lee Advocate of the Year Award is named in honor of the late Dr. Vivian Lee, the former Post Secondary Vice President of MSCA to celebrate her life, legacy and dedication to the profession.  The purpose of this award is to recognize a person or organization whose advocacy of school counseling services in a school setting has had a positive effect on school counseling on a local, state or national level.
• The nominee may be any person who has made a significant contribution to the improvement of school counseling services in the school setting.
• The nominee has contributed to the implementation of new and/or improvement of existing school counseling programs in Maryland.

School Counselor Educator of the Year

Eligibility and Criteria:

• Nominators may submit one nomination.
• The nomination deadline is normally at the end of September of the current school year.
• The purpose of this award is to recognize a post-baccalaureate instructor in a school counseling preparation program that leads to emerging professionals who are more equipped than their peers to plan and implement a model comprehensive school counseling program.
• The nominee has inspired his or her school counseling students to be leaders, advocates, and collaborators as professionals, which leads to the achievement of all students.

School Counseling Graduate Student of the Year

Eligibility and Criteria:

• Nominators may submit one nomination.
• The nomination deadline is normally at the end of September of the current school year.
• The purpose of this award is to recognize a student in a School Counseling master’s level program in Maryland who is showing tremendous potential to implement a comprehensive school counseling program.
• The nominee has shown, through his or her graduate work in classwork and/or internships, the highest level of leadership, counseling skills, advocacy, and collaboration that can be expected of a pre-service school counselor.

Novice School Counselor of the Year

Eligibility and Criteria:

• Nominator may submit one nomination
• The nominee has inspired their students, colleagues and administrators, through their dedication and work ethic to the profession, and by implementing a comprehensive school counseling program.
• The Nominee must be a current member of the Maryland School Counselor Association and a practicing school counselor in the state of Maryland.
• The Nominee cannot have completed more than five years as a School Counseling.
• The Nominee cannot be a previous Maryland Novice School Counselor of the Year.
• The Nominee must complete the application process to be considered.
• Applications are due sometime in October.