Sylvia Montes De Oca
Casa Grande,AZ
Summary
Adept School Counselor offering 6 years of experience counseling students on mental health, academics, and interpersonal conflicts. Driven to help students achieve success by providing guidance on career options, higher education choices, and life planning. Attentive in identifying early warning signs of harmful behavior in students to provide preventive counseling. Consistent in meeting the established goals of the counseling program. Possesses excellent communication, problem-solving, and organizational skills. Trusted advisor goes extra mile to help individuals succeed.
Overview
17
17
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Elementary School Counselor
Casa Grande Elementary School District
07.2022 - Current
- Develops and Manages a comprehensive school counseling program based on ASCA National Model: A Framework for School Counseling Programs
- Implements comprehensive school counseling program by monitoring student progress and provides personalized support for students and their families
- Collaborates with behavioral aides, teachers, psychiatrists, and school nurses to assess student needs and strengths.
- Collaborates with administration and faculty members to regularly make data-informed, evidence-based, counseling decisions.
- Serves as system change agent within comprehensive school counseling program, including development of evidence-based programming to address priority college and career readiness needs of school.
- Conducts group and individual counseling services to elementary students to meet developmental, preventive, and remedial needs of students with learning disabilities.
- Maintains confidential behavioral data, special education reports, and services reports.
- Collaborates with behavioral aides, teachers, psychiatrists, and school nurses to assess student needs and strengths.
- Uses surveys and assessments to evaluate abilities, interests, and characteristics of different students.
- Advocates for students to access available resources.
- Works with individuals to help understand and overcome personal, social, or behavioral problems affecting educational or social situations.
- Conducted group and individual counseling services to elementary students to meet developmental, preventive, and remedial needs of students with learning disabilities
- Organized and developed [Type] community and school activities to enhance student learning and engage students
- Used educational assessment strategies such as Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and Student Study Teams (SST) to assist teachers with educational placement of students
- Administered functional behavioral assessments and developed behavior intervention plans to target maladaptive behaviors
- Developed and implemented student guidance plans to foster academic success
School Counselor
Mesa Public Schools
02.2020 - 05.2022
- Provided crisis intervention in response to emergencies, employing existing trust, and rapport to de-escalate situations.
- Maintained positive relationships with students, faculty, alumni, and administration.
- Coordinated with outside agencies to determine students received appropriate services and resources.
- Used data to monitor students' progress and recommend solutions for improvement.
- Partnered with parents and guardians to promote student success in school environment.
- Regularly met with enrolled students to confirm success and identify problem areas.
- Facilitated classroom discussions to emphasize bullying prevention and college readiness.
- Developed and conducted workshops and seminars to educate students, faculty, and parents on relevant topics in field.
- Delivered supportive and knowledgeable counseling to students with academic or personal concerns.
- Collaborated with parents, school faculty and social workers to address problems and grow student success.
- Helped students develop organizational, time management and study skills.
Patient Navigator
American Cancer Society, Maricopa, Health System, Hematology/Oncology Clinic
04.2019 - 12.2019
- Introduced cancer patients and families to resources, support programs, and services offered by the American Cancer Society
- Participated in regular team meetings, huddles, staff meetings, and quality improvement projects to improve patient care.
- Consulted with medical staff and ancillary department to eliminate barriers to delivery of care and identified service delivery problems and potential for patient management intervention.
- Provided additional information about community resources for needs articulated by cancer patients and their families who visit with the Patient Navigator
- Conducted follow-up calls to patients and families to ensure the resources met their needs and identified additional needs, as appropriate
- Identified gaps in resources and worked within the community to bridge these gaps
- Worked within Maricopa Integrated Health System (MIHS) to promote Navigation and build patient referrals
- Organized patient schedules and assisted in planning transportation and payments.
- Maintained accurate, confidential records documenting services provided and unmet needs
- Maintained patient confidentiality in accordance with HIPAA regulations
- Referred to appropriate agencies for cancer patient or family psychosocial needs, counseling, or provision of any professional services.
- Coached patients on self-advocacy.
Cancer Resource Specialist
American Cancer Society, National Cancer Information Center
07.2018 - 04.2019
- Handled high-volume customer inbound calls to the National Cancer Information Center in a consistent and customer-focused manner
- Identified and evaluated constituent's needs and provided accurate and thorough information exchange
- Provided current information and resources to constituents of the American Cancer Society, healthcare professionals, students, and members of community organizations
- Triaged appropriate requests for patient service programs
- Collected all data points required by organizational processes and policies
- Handled all interactions with tact, courtesy, and empathy
- Maintained a strong team environment and utilized coaching and feedback to improve performance
- Abided by ACS policies, procedures, and security requirements
- Identified useful resources and coordinated referrals.
Subcontractor – Kinship Home Assessor
Family Endeavors
05.2018 - 07.2018
- Identified risk (as defined by DFPS) and immediate dangers to child and/or family members
- Correlated a person’s criminal history, behaviors, mental health, and protective ability with factors conductive to risks of abuse, and presented them in a logical, objective and articulate format
- Differentiated between and objective assessment and opinion, as well as understood how to articulate it in written format
- Understood and demonstrated the knowledge and skills necessary for generating an empathetic yet inquisitive conversation even when it involved critical or sensitive subjects
- Identified during a conversation and home visit all verbal and non-verbal cues that may identify a risk of neglect or abuse
- Communicated and made observations during home visits in a manner conducive to identifying concerns regarding a child’s safety and well-being.
Director
Cal Farley’s Family Resource Center
02.2013 - 03.2017
- Managed and maintained an annual budget of $125,000 by tracking monthly expenses and making proactive corrections as needed.
- Oversaw operations and provided corrective feedback to achieve daily and long-term goals.
- Worked closely with organizational leadership and board of directors to guide operational strategy.
- Evaluated company documentation to verify alignment with regulatory requirements.
- Reviewed employee performance and career goals and actively sought development opportunities
- Established departmental performance goals and provided feedback for underperforming areas.
- Encouraged employees to create innovative solutions to problems
- Leveraged professional networks and industry knowledge to strengthen client relationships.
- Provided life skills training in the areas of parenting, coping, communication, decision-making and problem-solving
- Provided support and resources to families assigned for case management
- Facilitated contact between residents and their families to promote the goal of successful reunification and transition back into their communities
- Connected families to other community service agencies to fill any service gaps.
- Remained composed and highly professional in a fast-paced and constantly changing environment, effectively handling challenging situations and difficult individuals to achieve objectives.
Family Case Manager
Haven for Hope of Bexar County Homeless Shelter
11.2011 - 02.2013
- Assessed, referred, and advocated for the chronic homeless (members) on campus
- Facilitated and enhanced collaborative relationships with campus staff, members, and partners
- Completed all documentation using the concurrent documentation technique
- Involved assigned families in the preparation and completion of all documentation needed to obtain employment and/or housing
- Referred families and individuals to in-house mental health and/or addiction counseling as deemed appropriate and necessary
- Referred clients to appropriate team members, community agencies, and organizations to meet treatment needs.
- Contributed to the strategic planning and continuous quality improvement of the case management program
- Communicated regularly with a lead case manager and/or Director to discuss opportunities and challenges of the position
- Collaborated with campus partners as they advocated for their assigned members to ensure the best outcomes based on goals and objectives
- Connected families to other community service agencies to fill any service gaps
- Facilitated and assisted clients in determining and securing the use of other agency and community resources
- Coordinated clients' activities with other involved agencies
- Maintained current case records, assembled material for informed assessments, and formulated specific treatment goals.
East Valley Regional Manager
Teen Outreach Pregnancy Services
05.2009 - 05.2011
- Established and maintained operational standards for the Mesa location.
- Managed pregnancy prevention programming in the East Valley that encompassed providing comprehensive services to 150 teens and their families totaling 300 individuals.
- Supervised staff to optimize brand expansion initiatives and productivity.
- Managed RN Educators and Case Managers who provided health education and support services to pregnant and parenting teens in Maricopa County.
- Provided a trusting, open, and non-judgmental relationship with all staff including teens and their families throughout their time in the program.
- Met monthly, quarterly, and annual grant objectives for civic, non-profit, and state funding sources to maintain programming.
- Collaborated with community experts and partners to ensure a smooth process for staff, consumers, and community referrals.
- Managed case management protocol to include appropriate training of staff regarding confidentiality, ethics, and boundaries.
- Worked diligently to resolve unique and recurring complaints, promoting loyalty, and enhancing operations.
Behavioral Health Consultant
Mountain Park Health Center
05.2006 - 05.2009
- Provided quality clinical consultation to providers and staff in areas of individual, family, child, and adolescent mental and behavioral health-related issues.
- Provided brief, solution-focused behavioral interventions with active development of Behavioral Change planning. Follow-up was provided for patients referred via medical providers.
- Promoted MPHC provider's knowledge of patient behavioral health issues and provided education to assist with enhancing primary care utilization of behavioral health interventions.
- Conducted in-house group sessions regarding but not limited to healthy eating, controlling diabetes, meal planning, time management, etc.
- Collaborated and co-managed the patient’s behavioral health care with consistent and expeditious feedback to referring providers.
- Provided on-site availability for crisis triage and intervention.
- Documented the clinical behavioral health aspect of patient interventions and tracked the patient referrals to specialty behavioral health care.
- Observed and respected the confidentiality of information regarding patients, visitors, and fellow employees.
- Used EMRS to document patient information, progress notes, and treatment plans.
- Identified appropriate treatment resources and recommended patients for these services.
- Observed and monitored patient behavior and responses to treatment.
- Created progress reports, assessments, and charting within required timeframes.
- Displayed sensitivity to cultural and linguistic needs of patients and families served.
Education
Master of Counseling -
University of Phoenix
Phoenix, AZ2007
Master of Education -
University of Phoenix
Phoenix, AZ2003
Bachelor of Arts - Sociology
Arizona State University
Tempe, AZ1999
Skills
- Critical Thinking
- Interpersonal Skills
- Crisis Intervention
- Individual and Family Support
- Administration Collaboration
- Counseling
Accomplishments
- April 2023: Making Your Mark Award Recipient - Casa Grande Elementary School District
- November 2022: Supply My Class Award Recipient - Arizona Public Service
- August 2022: Donors Choose Project - Fully Funded
- May 2022: Marigold Recognition Award Recipient - Casa Grande Elementary School District
- March 2022: Donors Choose Project - Fully Funded
- November 2020: Certificate of Innovation Grant Award Recipient - Mesa Public Schools
Affiliations
Arizona School Counseling Association
American School Counseling Association
Certification
- Certified School Counselor, PreK-12, Arizona Department of Education - 12/9/2019-07/2/2032
Languages
English
Native or Bilingual
Spanish
Native or Bilingual
Timeline
Elementary School Counselor
Casa Grande Elementary School District
07.2022 - Current
School Counselor
Mesa Public Schools
02.2020 - 05.2022
Patient Navigator
American Cancer Society, Maricopa, Health System, Hematology/Oncology Clinic
04.2019 - 12.2019
Cancer Resource Specialist
American Cancer Society, National Cancer Information Center
07.2018 - 04.2019
Subcontractor – Kinship Home Assessor
Family Endeavors
05.2018 - 07.2018
Director
Cal Farley’s Family Resource Center
02.2013 - 03.2017
Family Case Manager
Haven for Hope of Bexar County Homeless Shelter
11.2011 - 02.2013
East Valley Regional Manager
Teen Outreach Pregnancy Services
05.2009 - 05.2011
Behavioral Health Consultant
Mountain Park Health Center
05.2006 - 05.2009
Master of Counseling -
University of Phoenix
Master of Education -
University of Phoenix
Bachelor of Arts - Sociology
Arizona State University
- Certified School Counselor, PreK-12, Arizona Department of Education - 12/9/2019-07/2/2032
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