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Posted on: 11/12/24
No two days are ever the same for School Psychologist Corrie Gifford. But what does remain the same is her commitment to doing what’s in the best interest of her students and helping them reach their full potential academically, socially and emotionally.
Last spring, Gifford was named School Psychologist of the Year for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. Gifford said she was humbled by the recognition.
“It’s still hard for me to put into words,” said Gifford. “I work with a lot of amazing psychologists. They’re so smart and just incredible people. It was really special to be named among them.”
Gifford is in her 10th year with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, but her journey to psychology wasn’t a straight path. Before CMS, Gifford worked for a sports magazine for 10 years, climbing the ranks to assistant managing editor. She moved from St. Louis, Mo., to Charlotte when the magazine she worked for was bought by a Charlotte company.
But over the years, Gifford felt the industry was shifting and was losing the impact she initially felt she was making. In search of finding something more meaningful, Gifford decided to go back to school to study psychology.
“My whole family is in education and I understood I wasn’t cut for teaching, but I liked the idea of working with kids,” she said. “I minored in psychology, so I had all the prerequisites. I was set up pretty well because I was good at writing, so it actually translated a lot better than one might think.”
Gifford is currently serving Starmount Academy of Excellence and
Winget Park Elementary School. A day for Gifford could include testing, observations, report writing, behavior assessments and plans and running small groups. With her group at Starmount, she and counselor Lindsay Natoli have students talk about how they’re feeling, work on social skills and practice good behaviors in a small setting.
Gifford is also the chair of the Multilingual Learner Psychologist Committee and collaborates with other psychologists in the district to make sure supports are provided for their multilingual students.
“She always ensures that students are getting the services they need and is always advocating for them,” read her nomination for School Counselor of the Year. “She reviews data, language scores and always looks at the whole child when making any of her decisions. She truly has the best interest of all students in her mind.”
This year’s theme for National School Psychology Week (Nov. 11-15) is “Spark Discovery,” and it highlights the work school psychologists do to help their communities seek out new ideas, effect change and expand horizons for children and youth, according to the National Association of School Psychologists website.
Gifford said she feels the theme ties into her love for how connected CMS psychologists are to one another and the support and opportunities they provide to their students.
“I’m not an autism expert, but if I have a question about autism, we have a committee for that,” said Gifford. “I’m not a preschool expert, but if I have questions about preschool, there’s a whole committee to go to. Sometimes you get cases where everything doesn’t fit perfectly into a box, and having so many smart people to bounce ideas off of is so valuable.There’s always something to learn about kids and the way we operate in education. The fact that I feel I can constantly learn is kind of the fun part.”
