About Ms. Sepp

Ms. Jaclyn N. Sepp

This is my fourth year counseling at Lee Elementary.  Before coming to Lee, I taught both third and fifth grade for seven years at Mathews Elementary.  I graduated from The University of Texas at Austin in December of 2003 with a degree in Psychology, and then continued my education in their Post-baccalaureate Teacher Certification Program with a Specialization in Reading.  Throughout my undergraduate studies I worked for 2 years at a private preschool in West Austin, which led to my increasing fascination with the process of learning.  Also, a few summers ago I completed the Master Reading Teacher Institute through The University of Texas.  In 2012 I earned my graduate degree from Texas State University in the Professional Counseling Program.  I am a National Certified Counselor (NCC), a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and a Registered Play Therapist (RPT).  You can visit my private practice, Ensemble Therapy, here.  I have had many years of experience with children of all ages and I am very excited to be  getting to know your child!

I was born in Atlanta, Georgia and grew up most of my life there, but I have also lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Dallas, Texas.  I have a younger brother that is a auto technician, my mom teaches high school, and my dad is a retired banker - all in Dallas!  Upon graduating high school, I moved to Austin for school and now I can’t imagine ever leaving (except to frequently visit home)!  I hope to learn more about each of your lives, as I am sure your child will share more of mine with you as the year goes on.   

Children need a safe, accepting environment where they can learn about themselves and work through the feelings they are having.  I believe human beings are motivated to preserve their current state of being and have the desire to enhance themselves.  As children use play to explore and express themselves, their own perspective of the world emerges.  I believe that children are the experts on themselves, and my job is to assist them in finding the answers they are seeking inside of them.  The emphasis moves away from a therapist telling a child what to do, and instead empowers the child to become more self-aware through the playing out of their inner world.  The child dictates the pace and nature of our work, which in turn protects the child’s autonomy in the role of the engineer of the session.  The relationship between the child and therapist becomes the technique for fostering change and understanding.  In order to enhance our sessions, active involvement from caregivers is vital to seeing the whole child and situational concerns that might arise.