STUDENT SERVICES

Lumpkin County Schools employ professionals to assist children in preparing them for successful and productive lives in an ever-changing world. School counselors, school nurses, and social workers work together to provide support services for students from PreK through graduation. These professionals focus on academic areas and emotional and developmental behaviors to address barriers to school success. Our mission at Lumpkin County Schools is to educate and empower life long learners.

Kerri Whitmire
Director of Student Services & Title IX Coordinator
706-864-3611, ext. 10119
kerri.whitmire@lumpkinschools.com

HOSPITAL HOMEBOUND

Hospital/Homebound (HHB) services are designed to provide continuity of educational services between the classroom and home or hospital for students in Georgia public schools whose medical needs, either physical or psychiatric, do not allow them to attend school for a limited period of time.

HHB instruction may be used to supplement the classroom program for students with health impairments whose conditions may interfere with regular school attendance (e.g., students receiving dialysis or radiation/chemotherapy or students with other serious health conditions). Students must be enrolled in a public school in Georgia in order to receive HHB services. HHB services are not intended to supplant regular school services and are by design temporary.

The student must anticipate being absent from school for a minimum of ten consecutive or intermittent school days due to a medical or psychiatric condition.

The student’s inability to attend school for medical or psychiatric reasons must be certified by the licensed physician or licensed psychiatrist who is currently treating the student for the diagnosis presented. Please click the State Policy document to the right for a complete review of the Hospital Homebound Policy.

If you think your child may be eligible for HHB services, please contact the administrator of your child’s school for a referral form and/or additional information.

FAMILY CONNECTION

The Family Advocacy Program provides trained staff to work with vulnerable families who have children enrolled in the LC School System. The advocate works closely with the family for 9-12 months to help stabilize and familiarize them with resources and supports within the community.

Lumpkin County Family Connection
56 Indian Drive, Dahlonega GA 30533
706-864-8169 ext 41126
Brigette Barker, Director
brigette.barker@lumpkinschools.com

LBES
Patricia Jarvis
706-864-7082
patricia.jarvis@lumpkinschools.com

BES
Jenn Gooby
706-864-8180
jenn.gooby@lumpkinschools.com

CES and LCMS
Taylor Anderson
706-864-3254
taylor.anderson@lumpkinschools.com

The Student Outreach Center is a partnership between the school system and Lumpkin Family Connection to meet the concrete needs of families in Lumpkin County, support families, and empower students.

Makenzy Horne
Student Outreach Center Coordinator
706-864-6189 ext 41128
makenzy.horne@lumpkinschools.com

PARENT INVOLVEMENT SPECIALIST

The Parent Involvement Specialist works to provide parents/families with support to further the academic achievements of their children. The Parent Involvement Specialist provides information to parents/families in order to improve home-school communication and resources available to them.

Sabine Brashier
sabine.brashier@lumpkinschools.com

MULTI-TIERED SYSTEM OF SUPPORTS

Lumpkin County School’s Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) process is designed to provide assistance to students prior to failure instead of waiting on students to fail before providing assistance. This framework integrates instruction and intervention (RTI, Student Support Team, Student Mental Health, Wrap Around Services, etc.), delivered in levels of prevention, through interventions that vary in intensity based on individual student need. 

The goal of MTSS is to quickly identify those students in need of help and provide research-based interventions to help improve academic success. Student progress will be closely monitored, and information gathered by this approach will be used to make decisions about the student’s educational program. 

In MTSS, the needs of all learners are identified and supported early through increasing levels of instructional intensity and time. By using performance data and through monitoring learning rates and social- emotional-behavioral development of students, schools make important instructional decisions to meet the needs of all of our learners (e.g., students from different backgrounds, levels of language proficiency, and students who already know the content and need acceleration).

MTSS provides the structure to prioritize the academic and behavioral needs of all students, including our Students with Disabilities (SWDs), students with advanced learning needs, and English Language (EL). Response to Intervention (RTI) is a process within the system of an MTSS framework. RTI is part of the data-based decision-making process within progress monitoring where team members review data to determine how students are responding to the interventions in place. It is a process to observe and adjust (intensify, select new, or continue) an intervention based on a student’s progress toward the targeted goal. 

SCHOOL SYSTEM SOCIAL WORKERS

School Social Workers work in conjunction with counselors, nurses, and school administrators to assist students and families experiencing difficulties in a variety of areas. A school social worker may offer direct services and assistance to school staff and families in crisis situations. The social worker may provide aid to students experiencing homelessness and connect families with appropriate community resources. The social worker also monitors attendance and makes referrals to appropriate agencies when students have excessive absences. The social workers' goal is to empower and support all students to achieve academic success.

The focus of the Lumpkin County School social worker (SSW) is to find effective ways to resolve problems, which may significantly interfere with a student’s academic achievement or adjustment. The SSW assists with communication between the school and the home and encourages parents to assume an active role in their child’s education. By utilizing the student’s home, school, and community the school social worker can expand helping efforts so that students are successfully prepared for their educational experience and the future.

Reasons student are often referred to the SSW include, but are not limited to:

  • Chronic attendance problems

  • Lack of academic progress

  • Potential dropout

  • School and personal adjustment problems

  • Need for community resources (economic assistance, crisis intervention, mental health issues, physical health concerns)

Joni McElwaney, Lead Social Worker
High School & Summit Academy Social Worker / Wrap-Around Services Coordinator
joni.mcelwaney@lumpkinschools.com

Michelle Pisarik
Elementary and Middle School Social Worker
michelle.pisarik@lumpkinschools.com

SCHOOL COUNSELORS

The priority of school counselors is to provide support to students, families and school communities in order to increase student achievement by addressing emotional, social and behavioral needs. Counselors provide age-appropriate guidance for school success through individual and small group settings, classroom guidance activities, character education, and college and career lessons. Our counselors are available to all students to help ensure that the students acquire and demonstrate the skills needed for personal/social development in preparation for becoming life long learners.

MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS

The mental health counselors will work closely with the schools' guidance counselors, school staff, and Georgia Hope to support students to help address the mental health needs of the students.

Cara Murray
K-12 Mental Health Counselor
cara.murray@lumpkinschools.com

Beverly Maloney
K-12 Mental Health Counselor
beverly.maloney@lumpkinschools.com

SCHOOL NURSES

The school nurse is an individual that facilitates better health practices in the life of students and staff to make a difference in student academic performance. The school nurse maintains a clinic record for each student to use in maintenance care or in the event of a school emergency. The school nurse is an integral part of helping to maintain the well-being of our students.

SCHOOL NURSES:

Blackburn Elementary School – Anna Roberts (anna.roberts@lumpkinschools.com)

Long Branch Elementary School– Amber Gilleland (amber.gilleland@lumpkinschools.com)

Cottrell Elementary School – Rosa Grizzle (rosa.grizzle@lumpkinschools.com)

Lumpkin County Middle School – Scott Mildenhall (scott.mildenhall@lumpkinschools.com)

Lumpkin County High School– Cami McCarty (cami.mccarty@lumpkinschools.com)

SCHOOL ATTENDANCE

Regular school attendance is an important factor in determining a student’s success in school. Frequent absences can cause students to miss important classroom instruction, fall behind in class work, and earn lower grades. This can lead to stress, frustration, and a negative attitude toward school. Parents play an important role in school attendance and should make sure their child attends school regularly. Parents are also encouraged to make sure the student is at school on time and allow him or her to complete the entire day.

If parents or guardians experience problems in getting their children to attend school regularly, they should be in contact with school staff members, including the guidance counselor, principal, and/or school social worker. All are willing to work with the family to provide support and assistance to promote regular school attendance.

The SSW promotes regular school attendance and is involved in all phases of truancy reduction including, but not limited to:

  • Consultation with school staff

  • Student attendance referral

  • Parent/guardian contact

  • Attendance Support Team (AST) meetings

  • Referrals to community agencies

  • Filing of truancy charges

  • Attending truancy court hearings

  • Staffing and coordinating with community agencies

  • Chairing Attendance Protocol Committee

RESOURCES