For new school psychologist Ashley Ostrowski, no two days are the same. On Mondays and Wednesdays, she typically starts at Revere Middle School, working with eighth graders. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, she works at Revere High School, spending time with students, teachers and counselors and having the occasional parent meeting. Fridays are her flex day. She goes wherever she is needed. 

Although her schedule is constantly changing, her goals stay the same: providing support to all students. Often, this means administering cognitive and social/emotional tests. Ostrowski explained what she does on a daily basis. 

“Somedays, I’m pulling students to test. We will work, and we test. Somedays, I do report writing. I’ll sit and close the door, and all I do is write all day. Other days, I’m in the classroom: I’m observing students and I’m watching how they interact with peers, talking to teachers and counselors, principals, everybody. My days never look the same, but it’s exciting. I could be pulled at any minute for an emergency,” she said. 

Although this is her first official job as a school psychologist, Ostrowski has plenty of experience in the field and hopes to integrate her new lessons into Revere’s curriculum. Last year, she interned at Akron Public Schools, working in a variety of buildings and with different grade levels. 

Ostrowski was hired as a long-term sub for the 2022-23 school year, taking over for RHS psychologist Robert Richardson. Richardson is currently on a year-long sabbatical, hoping to return for the next school year. 

Although Richardson has still helped out at RHS throughout his sabbatical, the district realized that they would need to hire someone to take care of his duties while he is away. RHS principal Dr. Andy Peltz was part of the hiring process for Ostrowski and has worked with her throughout the first few weeks of the school year. Peltz explained the situation leading to the hiring of Ostrowski. 

“Mr. Richardson is our school psych. He is on a year long sabbatical; his wife and he had a baby and needed to be able to stay home and help out with some needs, so he took one year out. He’s actually been a part of her onboarding process. He’s come in a couple of times just to help her get up to speed. We hope to have Mr. Richardson back at the end of the year, but if not, we would love to keep Ms. Ostrowski as well,” he said. 

Ostrowski was not the only psychologist added to the district this year. Allison Truax-Loescher was also hired to work at Bath Elementary School and Richfield Elementary School. 

“We were looking to actually hire two school psychologists: one for the elementary level and one for the high school and middle school, and we were thrilled to have two quality people,” Peltz said. 

Currently, the district has three psychologists spread among four schools. Abby Kassel, director of student services, was part of the hiring committee for the new psychologists and has overseen the process. Kassel explained the presence of school psychologists in the district.

“We currently have three school psychologists in our district. There is one that is housed over at Richfield and a little bit of Bath. We have one that does Bath and a little bit of middle school. Then we have Ashley [Ostrowski], who does the high school and a little bit of middle school. They all overlap within the buildings,” Kassel said. 

Each school psychologist’s role changes based on the age range they serve. Additionally, Revere employs psychologists from all different backgrounds, providing an array of services for students. 

“We have some unique school psychs here in the district. One of our psychs has been with us in the district for several years. We have one that is new to us here at Revere but has been a school psychologist in another state for over fourteen years, and then Ashley [Ostrowski] just came out of her internships. There is a unique gambit of services that they’ve provided,” Kassel said. 

Although he is grateful for the additions to the district as a whole, Peltz is especially excited to work with Ostrowski since she will be in the building. Peltz explained what stands out to him about Ostrowski. 

“She’s coming to us with a year of experience from Akron City Schools. She’s relatively new out of college, but her mother is a special ed director, so she’s always been in the mix of it. She was very impressive, especially for her age. [Although] having limited experience, she was able to answer every question with poise and professionalism, and has been a joy to work with since the beginning,” he said. 

Although Peltz agrees experience is important, he looks forward to having someone in the building who is newly graduated from college. 

“It’s nice when you have someone fresh out of college. They come with a different perspective when compared to someone who’s sort of been here year after year. For her, she’s up to date on the newest testing techniques and the newer research-based practices, so she’s able to come in with a fresh set of eyes and a fresh set of ideas,” Peltz said. 

Last year, Ostrowski interned at Akron Public Schools, gaining experience in different surroundings and grade levels. Ostrowski compared her time at APS to her first weeks at Revere. 

“Before this, I was at Akron Public Schools, so that’s where I was doing school psychology stuff. I’m pretty new out of internship, so this is only the second district I’ve ever been at. I was at Akron Public Schools, so a little bit different… a lot bigger, a very different population of students and families,” Ostrowski said. 

While at Akron, Ostrowski worked with preschoolers all the way up to high schoolers. 

“I was at a bunch of [Akron Schools]. I did a couple of high schools. The way their schools work is, they’re called community learning centers, so their buildings are either pre-k through fifth grade, kindergarten to sixth grade, or sixth grade to twelfth grade. They’re giant buildings and they’re all connected,” Ostrowski said.

Ostrowski also interned at a few private schools in the area. 

“I worked with preschoolers in a preschool building. I [also] did some non-public schools; I worked at Hoban and St. V,” Ostrowski said.

Prior to her internships, Ostrowski earned her bachelor’s, master’s and a specialist degree, all essential being a licensed school psychologist. With her school psychology license, Ostrowski is able to work in many areas, but because of her place in the district, she focuses on a few essential places. 

“My scope of practice is large. I’m qualified to do a lot, but because there is one of me in this big building, it really narrows down what I can do. Most of my days are spent testing, writing, observing students and calling parents,” Ostrowski said. 

Ostrowski is optimistic about her plans for this year, hoping she can provide support for all students in the building who need it. 

“I’m young and new, so I dream big, but something in my field is making sure we are getting wrap-around support. Every student is supported, not just students in special education programs, but also just every student here who just takes general education classes or AP classes,” she said. 

To achieve her goal, Ostrowski is beginning by addressing common factors that lead to later issues, especially in the specific high school setting. 

“[I am focusing on] making sure everyone is supported and gets what they need academically. In high school you have a lot of high-stakes testing, so making sure that students are prepared for that, they’re ready, and they feel good,” she said.

Although Ostrowski has a lot of freedom in her goals and schedule, she makes sure to do everything in accordance with state guidelines and regulations. 

“There is a lot I have to do with law and compliance and making sure that the building and my caseload of the kids here are within the compliance of the state and I’m doing things right, so making sure that that fully sets us up. For me, that means every three years, I pull and I re-test [each student], making sure that whoever I test this year is compliant for the next three years. It also has to look into the future,” Ostrowski said. 

The job of a school psychologist greatly varies based on the grade-level of the student and the environment of the school. As a psychologist for mainly older students, Ostrowski largely checks up with students, making sure their accommodations are sufficient. 

“I usually meet with students one-on-one. I’ll do some academic testing and cognitive testing and see where they’re at. Most of the time, at this level in high school, they’re kids who are already in special education and already have an IEP. I’m just re-evaluating them to make sure they qualify,” Ostrowski said. 

Although most of the time she is not drafting new accommodations, sometimes unusual circumstances arise, leaving her to create a plan that works best for the student and school. 

“I’m usually not getting new people or new referrals at this level, sometimes you do, like a lot of times you see an athlete that got a pretty bad concussion and they need some modifications all of a sudden in the middle of high school. Those types of things can happen,” Ostrowski said.  

Peltz is hopeful to continue integrating Ostrowski and her teaching methods into the classroom. He reflected on the benefit she has provided to the district. 

“She’s able to help give some strategies to teachers within the regular education classroom to help out as well. Maybe there is an accommodation someone needs or a way to help them understand the information through a different learning style. She’s been able to bounce in on that, so we’ve used her at some parent meetings as well and plan to use her in the future. She looks at it from a school psych perspective and not necessarily a parent or a teacher. It’s nice to have her as a part of that response intervention,” Peltz said. 

Aside from her job as a psychologist, Ostrowski has a passion for dance and hopes to bring her experience and expertise to RHS. 

“I want to start a dance team here. Revere used to have one, and I would love to start it again. I’m assistant coach for the Kent State Dance Team, so I want to bring one here so I could get the Revere team in with Kent State… I think it’d be so fun and so different,” Ostrowski said. 

Even though Ostrowski is new to the district, she has brought with her many new ideas and goals for RHS. Whether cheering on students in the classroom or cheering at dance competitions, Ostrowski hopes to help all students feel supported and welcome.