ALTY Student Spotlight | Amanda Tapscott

I graduated from Hood in 2019 with a bachelor’s in psychology and English literature. I had been working part time at Mount Airy Bowling Lanes for six years, but I left to start working part time as a home organizer as well as to work full time as a behavior specialist at Laurel Hall Frederick—primarily in the elementary room.

In 2021, I got promoted to reading interventionist and started the counseling program at Hood. However, our school was short on teachers, so the principal asked me to take over some high school classes, too. I’ve been working as a special education teacher and reading interventionist since then. I also work part time as a medical technician for the school as well as a wedding coordination assistant for my older sister’s business, Sleeping Bee Designs.

My older sister went to Hood, so it always felt safe and familiar. I also lived nearby and wanted to go to a smaller, local school in hopes of receiving a more direct, personalized education closer to my family. I stayed with Hood for graduate school for similar reasons. Hood just feels like home.

When I was a behavior specialist, I started looking for ways to advance my career. I was originally interested in speech therapy, but I kept an open mind and started looking at all kinds of graduate programs. 

I realized school counseling was an option after scrolling through the list of programs at Hood, and something about it just felt right. It seemed to combine a lot of my vocational interests in scheduling, planning events, providing therapeutic support and working in a school.

I especially liked the idea of working in a school with children and adolescents on a close-knit, multidisciplinary team that takes a holistic approach to care. I decided to go for a license in clinical mental health counseling, in addition to the school counseling certificate, with the goal of becoming a school-based therapist like those at Laurel Hall.

Practicum has been an extremely valuable experience. I found placement at Brook Lane’s child and adolescent partial hospitalization program (PHP). It is essentially a short-term, outpatient day-program.

Most of our patients struggle with mood regulation, depression, anxiety or suicidal ideation. It’s been important for me to understand the inner workings of this program, as I may work with children and adolescents who have been there or will go there in the future.

My supervisor is more hands-off, which has allowed me to gain independence. I’m hoping to start Internship I at the Foundation School of Gaithersburg this summer.

After my undergraduate studies, I applied to work as a Mental Health Associate for the same PHP program at which I’m currently placed for practicum. The human resources department called me and said Laurel Hall Frederick was much closer to my house and hiring behavior specialists. I eventually got the job.

I primarily pull students K-12 for reading intervention, and I teach high school English and social studies. This includes classes such as English 9, English 10, creative writing, journalism, graphic novel, government and American history.

I fill in for the nurse as a medical technician and for behavior specialists when we’re short-staffed. I’ve also served on the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) committee and spearheaded school projects and events. These include the school newspaper, a week-long Comic-Con, trivia, a poetry slam, jousting tournaments and dog therapy.

If there is a position open at Laurel Hall Frederick when I graduate, I might apply. I’ve built strong relationships with staff and students here, and our team is absolutely magical. Either way, I certainly plan to work in a therapeutic school with students with increased social, emotional or behavioral needs. However, I am not opposed to working in a public school, a private school or a different setting altogether if that is where my journey takes me.

I would advise those interested in the counseling program to consider taking their time and stretching the program across three or more years, rather than two.

Think about your work-life balance and how much you will be able to absorb. The program will confront you personally and professionally, so it might be worth finding a therapist for yourself and challenging your openness to criticism, reflection and change.

Lastly, I found it useful to seize every opportunity I could find. What would happen if you left no stone unturned? All aspects of knowledge and experience make for good knowledge and experience, in my opinion!

I still have a baby tooth, and I collect writing utensils—pens, gel pens, markers, colored pencils and so on. I’m also BRCA1 positive, which I mention because I want more people to know that they can receive genetic testing for hereditary cancers. If you have one of the mutations, you can receive preventative screenings and procedures to decrease your risk at an earlier age.

Inspired by Amanda’s counseling work at local schools? Ready to #GOFURTHER in your career? Learn more about Hood College’s graduate programs, such as school counseling, by clicking here.