Your school counselors are here for you during the school closure. Counselors are availabe via email, phone, or conference calling during their office hours of 9:00am-11:00am and 1:00pm-3:00pm. Click here to access the ACPSD school counselor directory.

Summer Meal Site Services:

A grab-and-go meal bag containing breakfast and lunch will be available Monday-Thursday June 8th-July 31st for pick-up from 10:30 a.m.-noon at Aiken Elementary, Belvedere Elementary, Byrd Elementary, Chukker Creek Elementary, Clearwater Elementary, Busbee Elementary, East Aiken School of the Arts, Gloverville Elementary, Graniteville Elementary, Greendale Elementary, Hammond Hill Elementary, Jefferson Elementary, Mossy Creek Elementary, North Aiken Elementary, Oakwood-Windsor Elementary, Ridge Spring-Monetta Elementary, Warrenville Elementary, and Jackson STEM Middle Magnet.

A parent/guardian must accompany elementary and middle school-aged children while picking up lunches. Additionally, any adult may purchase breakfast for $2.25 and lunch for $3.75. Free adult meals are available to those 19 years and older who have a physical or mental disability and are enrolled in school.

Golden Harvest Food Bank: 

https://goldenharvest.org/find-help/

For assistance, call 706-736-1199 during business hours (Mon-Fri 8am-12pm and 1pm-5pm) and the team will help you find a food resource that fits your needs. You can also visit the Master's Table Soup Kitchen for a hot meal served daily Monday-Saturday at 11am and Sunday at 1pm. It's located at 702 Fenwick Street, Augusta, GA 30901.

ACTS of Aiken:

Food pantry, medical, and utility assistance is available from Monday-Friday 11:00AM-3:00PM. Call 803-642-5919.

ACTS of Aiken is located at 340 Park Avenue, SW in Aiken SC 29801.

Resources for Parents and Students due to COVID-19 school closure:

Section 59-32-20 (Erin's Law) requires instruction in sexual abuse and assault awareness and prevention. Understanding the challenges and sensitive nature of delivering remote instruction related to this legislative mandate, we want to communicate the contact information noted below in the event any students or parents have safety concerns during the closure: South Carolina Department of Social Services (DSS), 1-888-CARE4US (888- 227-3487).

Social Emotional Resources

Hundreds of Elementary School Resources Here

List of online resources for counselors, parents, and teachers: Dept. of Mental Health online resources

Articles: How to Talk to Your Children about Coronavirus

New York Times Article

NPR Article

Tips and Resources for Parents

Book: The Yucky Bug by Julia Cook

YouTube video of the Book being read by the author:

Click here

Strategies for Parents and Caregivers: Maintaining mental wellness

Social-Emotional Learning Websites & Activities

Brain Pop Parents can create a free account. Includes hundreds of videos and activities on topics such as understanding emotions, empathy & respact, mental health, course & perserverance, etc. 

Inside SEL Resources for parents, educators and school communities. Activities, articles, and plenty of ideas for SEL at home.

Local Mental Health Information during school closure: Updated information March 20, 2020

Aiken Barnwell Mental Health (ABMH) and Aurora are both open. ABMH is able to conduct sessions over the phone. Effective Friday, March 20, all locations of Aiken-Barnwell Mental Health Center changed operations to help keep patients, staff, and our community healthy and prevent further spread of the COVID-19 virus. If you have a routine (scheduled) appointment, a member of our staff will call you to discuss options for your current needs- either by phone or possibly secure video- so that you will not need to come in person. Staff will explain how telephone and telehealth visits work. If you have an appointment by phone or telehealth, your information will be secure and private, just as with an in-person visit. We will remain open for emergencies, and to provide scheduled injections. If you are not sure when your next appointment is or have general questions, PLEASE CALL AND TALK TO STAFF, DO NOT COME TO THE CENTER.Our Assessment Mobile Crisis/CCRI Team staff will continue to respond to crises in the community.  To reach your local team, call 1-833-364-2274. These are precautions to help limit patient and staff exposure to the Coronavirus in our community. We must all do our part to keep our families, friends and neighbors safe and healthy.  Please note, our North Augusta clinic is not open at this time.  We will be seeing all Aiken County residents at our Main Office, 1135 Gregg Hwy, Aiken, SC.  We have established a triage area in the back of our main office where our RNs will screen patients prior to being seen by a clinician.  As noted above, we’re attempting to do the majority of our services via telephone and telehealth.  This includes services provided by the clinicians, nurses and psychiatrists. Patients receiving injectable meds will be seen on site at both our Aiken and Barnwell offices. We are accepting new patients. We ask that they call us and a trained mental health professional will assess via phone.

The main office number is 803-641-7700.  Also, the National Disaster Distress Hotline 24/7/365 is operating and providing crisis counseling and emotional support.  Calls (1-800-985-5990; press "2" for Spanish) and texts (text TalkWithUs to 66746) are answered by trained counselors from a network of independently-operated crisis centers located across the U.S.

Aurora Pavilion is open Monday-Friday from 8am-8pm and on Saturday and Sunday from 8am-4:30pm. Call 641-5900 for assistance. Walk-ins are also welcome. Aurora provides walk-in crisis assessments, crisis stabilization, inpatient stabilization, and outpatient services.

Aiken 2-1-1 is a great resource for connecting families to local human service resources. Dial 211 or visit their website: Aiken 211

Class of 2020:

Understanding your College Financial Aid Offer

Take a Virtual College Tour

E-Campus Tours

You Visit

Online Career Awareness Activities:

Click here for career resources you can use from home.

Strategies to Manage Stress and Anxiety

Click here for stress management tips

Click here for breathing exercies for students of all ages.

Free Academic Tutoring

SC Discus: Free Tutoring 

SC Dept. of Ed Remote Learning Site 

What is school counseling?

School counseling includes K–12 activities that are organized and implemented by certified, professional school counselors with the support of teachers, administrators, other school personnel, parents, and business and community members. School counselors provide individual, group, and classroom guidance sessions. School counselors help all students in the areas of academic achievement, career and social/emotional development, ensuring today's students become the productive, well-adjusted adults of tomorrow.

What is the role of a school counselor?

Professional school counselors are licensed/certified educators with a minimum of a master’s degree in school counseling, making them uniquely qualified to address all students’ academic, social/emotional and career developmental needs by designing, implementing, and evaluating a comprehensive school counseling program that promotes and enhances student success. 

School counselors embrace the framework of a comprehensive program that includes four key components: foundation, management, delivery and accountability. 

What is the role of a special programs counselor?

Special Programs Counseling as a related service is counseling that is provided when the Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) team determines that it is required in order for a student to make progress in the general education environment. For students who are eligible under Section 504, counseling is a related service when it is needed for the student to have access to school programs. Counseling services may include individual and group counseling with the student and family, psychological counseling for students and parents/families, along with crisis prevention and intervention. Counseling services in this context in ACPSD are services provided by licensed social workers and licensed professional counselors.

What is the role of a career specialist?

Career specialists are part of the Education and Economic Development Act’s (EEDA) initiative of Personal Pathways to Success and are required to complete the 120 hour Facilitating Career Development(GCDF/CDF) Course and become certified as a Global Career Development Facilitator. They serve as part of the school counseling team and implement the “Learning to Work” portion of the SC Comprehensive School Counseling Model.

The South Carolina Comprehensive School Counseling and Career Guidance Model