Kilo Middle School in the Federal Way Public Schools district recently became the first middle school in Washington to earn the designation of Recognized American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Model Program (RAMP).

The RAMP designation was awarded to 101 schools across the United States for aligning with the criteria in the ASCA National Model. These schools exhibit a commitment to delivering a comprehensive, data-informed school counseling program and fostering an exemplary educational environment.

“We’re so proud of the staff at Kilo Middle School for putting in the time and effort into earning this designation and creating a school counseling program that is data-driven, focused on prevention, and aligned to best practice to ensure we’re serving our scholars well,” said Dr. Dani Pfeiffer.

The counseling team at Kilo also congratulated the accomplishment.

“Working toward an exemplary comprehensive school counseling program has helped us to be more intentional about serving all our students,” according to a statement from the counseling team. “It helped us to ensure that all students have access to school counseling services through individual, group, and counseling lessons. We were also more intentional about taking a preventative lens and equipping students with the knowledge and skills to be able to problem-solve more independently and be successful leaders in the community. Going through this process helped us to show stakeholders how school counselors can have a positive impact on student outcomes when given the time to lead a counseling program aligned to the ASCA model is very much worth the time invested.”

Research shows fully implemented school counseling programs are associated with positive student educational and behavioral outcomes, according to the district.

“This year’s RAMP honorees have shown their commitment to students and the school counseling profession,” said Jill Cook, ASCA executive director. “These schools used data to drive their program development and implementation so all students can achieve success. The RAMP designation distinguishes these schools and encourages school counselors nationwide to strive for excellence.”

Kilo Middle School was recognized for this accomplishment at a recent FWPS school board meeting and will be honored at a recognition ceremony at ASCA’s annual conference in Atlanta, Georgia, on July 17.