The Prepared School Psych

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych podcast, host welcomes Armando Fernandez, a seasoned school psychologist with over three decades of experience, currently serving as the lead psychologist at Elk Grove Unified School District and president of eGrasp. Armando discusses his career journey, the impact of his leadership on professional development, and the importance of ongoing training thr...

Host Jenny Ponzuric concludes a four-part mini-series on overlapping eligibilities in school psychology. She summarizes the key discussions from previous episodes, including understanding state criteria, recognizing multiple eligibilities, and differentiating between them. Jenny emphasizes the complexity of psychoeducational evaluations and the importance of using multiple data sources. She discus...

Overlapping Eligibilities: Making Primary Eligibility Decisions - Mini Series Part 3 In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric covers part three of the mini-series on overlapping eligibilities, focusing on how to make primary eligibility decisions. Jenny discusses the challenges when a student meets criteria for multiple eligibility areas, such as emotional disabili...

In the second episode of her miniseries on overlapping eligibilities, host Jenny Ponzuric focuses on a critical first step when considering multiple areas of eligibility: understanding the criteria for each classification. Jenny discusses the variability in state-specific eligibility language, the importance of gathering targeted data, and strategies to ensure assessments align with the criteria b...

In the first episode of her new miniseries, host Jenny Ponzuric delves into overlapping eligibilities in special education. She explains how different states have varying criteria and classifications, using examples such as autism with emotional disability and health impairment. Jenny emphasizes that eligibility should not drive services, but rather the student’s goals and needs. This episode also...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric shares key takeaways from her recent dyslexia training. The five main takeaways include the importance of phonemic awareness, the need for collaboration among professionals, utilizing diverse state guidelines and handbooks, improving visuals for IEP meetings, and the impact of educational videos on understanding dyslexia. Ad...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric discusses her learnings from the recently concluded five-part training series, 'Goals Drive Services' The series focused on various steps for writing an effective IEP, starting from assessment best practices to goals and services. Jenny highlights five major takeaways: the gaps in graduate school training, the challenge of w...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric shares three essential behavior management tips for the challenging period between Thanksgiving and winter break. She emphasizes the importance of having a list of resources for various behavioral concerns, recommends maintaining a positive interaction ratio, and encourages understanding the communicative functions of behavi...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric interviews Emily Bersaglia, a nationally certified school psychologist and past president of the Santa Clara County Association of School Psychologists. With a career spanning since 2008 across four states, Emily discusses her focus on equity in education and her founding of the School Psychology Support Network. The convers...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric addresses a listener's question about the type of content added to the Prepared School Psych community. Jenny discusses her approach to reading and reviewing books each month for the 2024-25 school year, including sharing video summaries and hosting discussion calls. She delves into her key takeaways from 'The Essentials of...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, Cara Newman, an experienced elementary school teacher and certified life coach, joins the discussion to share her insights on integrating mindfulness and mental health strategies into the classroom. With over 20 years in education, Cara emphasizes the importance of inner work, understanding children's needs, and creating a child-centered learni...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric delves into the insights from John Acuff's book, 'Soundtracks: The Surprising Solution to Overthinking.' She explores practical strategies for managing overthinking, tackling imposter syndrome, and addresses 'beginner syndrome.' Jenny highlights the importance of examining recurring thoughts and introduces a transformative t...

In this episode of The Prepared School Psych Podcast, Dr. Amy Merenda, a licensed educational psychologist, delves into the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in school psychology. She shares her cautious yet innovative approach, using AI tools to streamline tasks like report writing and data analysis, allowing more focus on direct interactions with students and families. The discussion e...

Join host Jenny Ponzuric on The Prepared School Psychologist Podcast as she delves into the intricacies of motivation, emotion, stress, and performance in education with Dr. Joel Goodin, a leading expert in educational psychology. Explore the balance between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, the role of future time perspectives, goal setting, and resilience. Discover insightful discussions on th...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric discusses writing effective impact of disability statements in Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). She provides tips for school psychologists, who often lack specific training in this area, on how to clearly articulate how a student's disability affects their educational experience. Jenny emphasizes understanding the n...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych podcast, host Jenny interviews Dan Brown, president of K 12 Consulting and co-founder of Evalulogix, and John Brockman, a California-based school psychologist, about their product Evalulogix. Evalulogix is designed to support the report writing process for special education assessments by using technology to save time, improve data usage, and enhance re...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, host Jenny interviews Katie Peterson, a nationally certified school psychologist with extensive experience in special education and mental health. Katie discusses her advocacy for LGBTQ+ students, the importance of supporting these students, and shares actionable steps for school psychologists to create inclusive environments. She highlights th...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric discusses the importance and utilities of autism rating scales in educational settings. She highlights their role in providing a comprehensive view of a student's behavior across different environments and their usefulness in monitoring and re-evaluations. However, she cautions that these scales do not provide complete a...

In the final part of a six-part series on the IEP process, Jenny Ponzuric discusses the considerations and steps for adjusting a student's placement on the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) continuum. Jenny highlights the importance of ensuring that IEPs are implemented with fidelity and that accommodations and goals match the student’s needs. She provides guidance on documenting attempts to...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych podcast, Jenny Ponzuric discusses the concept of executive functioning, focusing on various rating scales used to evaluate these skills in students. She highlights the importance of examining executive functioning in cases of traumatic brain injury, attention difficulties, and lack of progress on goals. Jenny outlines multiple methods for assessing thes...

50th Episode Special: Your Top 5 Picks and Exclusive Celebration Giveaways! In the celebratory 50th episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, host Jenny Ponzuric offers free resources to her listeners. She reflects on popular topics such as understanding special education requirements and effectively communicating evaluation results. The episode includes insights on diagnosing dysgraphia and d...

In this episode, Jenny Ponzuric discusses Independent Educational Evaluations (IEEs) and provides detailed guidelines for school psychologists on how to review and consider them. She emphasizes the importance of assessing multiple data sources, understanding the conditions under which assessments were conducted, validating the tests used, and thoroughly documenting similarities and differences wit...

In Part 5 of this series, Jenny Ponzuic provides practical tips for explaining Individualized Education Program (IEP) pages, emphasizing the importance of using family-friendly language. She advises reducing jargon, sharing draft language with someone outside of special education for feedback, and starting small with one section of the IEP document. These strategies aim to make IEP meetings less s...

In this episode of the Prepared School Psych Podcast, hosts Lina and Tyler Kitson, co-founders of Copy Paste Report, share their journey of creating a tool designed to streamline report writing and data management for school psychologists. Both Nationally Certified School Psychologists themselves, Tyler and Lina discuss their professional backgrounds, the conception and evolution of Copy Paste Rep...

In the fourth part of the IEP process series, host Jenny Ponzuric discusses the importance of understanding and determining service minutes during IEP meetings. She challenges the notion that there's only one way to provide services, encouraging the team to focus on what the student needs to achieve their goals in a year. Jenny highlights the experience of service providers, the student's...